Don't forget to dot in here!
The town of Torch has long enjoyed a singular claim to prosperity—a violet flame that burns atop Black Hill in the heart of the town. This flame burns incredibly hot, and while it’s usually the size of a bonfire, several times a year the fires spew up into the heavens in a brilliant beam of purple violence. These eruptions are presaged by about an hour of soft rumbling, giving nearby smiths a chance to retreat before the fires can consume them. At all other times, the violet energies allow for the smelting of all manner of skymetal. Torch is one of the only locations where skymetal can be worked with relative ease outside of Starfall, and its entire economy has risen around these purple flames, with traveling smiths coming from across Avistan to pay for the opportunity to work with them. Of course, Torch needs all the visiting trade and coin it can gather, for while the town’s distance from Starfall makes it inconvenient for the Technic League to maintain a permanent presence here, the taxes and tariffs it charges the Numerian town on a monthly basis are significant. The town prospers, but the bulk of its income does not belong to it.
Which is why, when the fires atop the hill suddenly go out, leaving only a strangely seeping pit of rubble and bubbling fluids where Torch's livelihood once glowed day and night, the town is in trouble.
Immediately launching an investigation into this devastating incident, council member Khonnir Baine, well-liked and respected, discovered signs of traffic near Weeping Pond (which was suspicious and unusual) to previously undiscovered tunnels and caves beneath Black Hill. Khonnir emerged from said caves with a deactivated, dented-and-beaten, semi-humanoid robot, which sparked worries from both the council, and to a greater extent, the townsfolk.
Several adventuring groups have gone down into the caves and tunnels, but none have ever returned. Khonnir, in response, organized a second expedition himself, but hasn't returned for several days, and has not been seen since.
Seeing as the townsfolk haven't been keen to volunteer themselves to go look for Khonnir and the other parties, and Baine himself is still missing, the remaining members of the council offer a public reward of 4,000gp for Khonnir's return. Furthermore, if he can be returned alive, a Scroll of Resurrection will be given to the rescuers, the one that they planned to use on Khonnir.
Whether out of concern, or just for the reward, the group of you have decided to venture into the mysterious caves and tunnels beneath Torch to rescue Khonnir Baine. Regardless, your first task is to meet with the Town Council. The six of you are gathered at The Copper Coin, awaiting the Town Council to summon you for a meeting of the next group of adventurers at the Town Hall.
Seated at a table with 5 younger folk, Khoran quietly nurses his ale and keeps his own counsel, thinking "Robots and such. This is the stuff of those bastards in the Techic league. I hope Khonnir's foolishness hasn't involved him with them. Still, blood for blood. He's been a friend to me when I needed one, after the fall of the Bone Bears. So I will go looking for him. Hopefully I will be able to keep these youngsters of his out of more trouble than they can handle..."
+2 con
The android was aware that the past few days had been difficult at the Baine household.
Val and Zelvin each seem to blame the other for Khonnir's disappearance. But Khonnir was quite clear; he is significantly more accomplished at the arcane arts than either Zelvin or myself, and so any threat that he could not handle would be an overwhelming danger to any of us. Our safety is a priority for Khonnir Baine.
Postulate: if Khonnir Baine has encountered challenges that he could not overcome, we will need a significant force to rescue him. Numbers are an advantage in and of themselves, so this group may be sufficient.
Hekau sits quietly at the table next to Zelvin, watching the half-elf's reactions to the others gathered there.
It is well known in town that Hekau is under Khonnir Baine's protection, so while he may be an oddity to those not from Torch, the locals are generally tolerant of him (and some are even protective).
Grezzag sharpens his axe, his chain of trophies clinking softly as he runs the stone over one of the blade of his axe. He nods in satisfaction, then takes a long swig from his ale before turning his attention to the other end of his weapon.
It's good that they asked me to join. he thinks, looking over the group. They look smart enough, but I don't reckon they know how dangerous robots can be. They found one already, there's probably a bunch more down there, going crazy and doing who knows what.
"So what have you done with the robot your old man found?" he asks the Baines. "Are you sure it's safe?"
Zelvin sits next to Hekau, nursing resentment about being left behind. If Mr. Khonnir had taken me with him, he might not be in whatever mess he has landed in! he thinks. Unable to sit still, he stands and begins pacing the floor. Finally, he bursts out: "What in tarnation are they waitin' for? There's no time to lose! Mr. Khonnir is in trouble, I just know it! We've got to find him afore it's too late!" He huffs and sits down again, breathing heavily and obviously worked up. He makes a funny picture perched there fuming and fidgeting next to his brother Hekau, who generally shows no emotion whatsoever.
The pale young half-elf looks over the assembled people here in the Copper Coin, and their general competence takes some of the wind out of his sails. He notices Penka with a look of surprise, and stares at her as if to ask what she is doing there before he remembers that Mr. Khonnir said something about tutoring her. He saw them in the lab once talking about chemicals and ingredients and assumed it was a baking thing. Zelvin's eye gets distracted by the older man in the corner. He looks wise, he thinks. And behind him, that tall woman, she looks like she knows what she's doing!
His eye ends on the frightening-looking half-orc sharpening his greataxe. He starts to say something, but stops, intimidated. He nearly jumps when the man asks him and Hekau a question, and it takes him a moment to realize he is being addressed. "Ah, well, I don't rightly know," he says uncertainly. "Mr. Khonnir took it into his shop-- I reckon he was goin' to take it apart and figure out what makes it tick. I don't think it was clockwork, so it was somethin' of a mystery." He shrugs. The robot carcass is clearly one of the last things on his mind right now.
Penka spends more time staring at the drink in front of her than sipping it. She knows a coupe of people at the table a bit, Zelvin and Hekau, but the others are very new acquaintances so aside from initial "hellos", she not sure what to say to them.
Partially this is because she tends to feel awkward around new people. But, there are bigger things on her mind at the moment. The loss of the flame is anxiety producing. Her uncle hasn't worked since it went out because no smiths are going up there. Although her mother's bakery doesn't depend directly on the flame, most everything Torch does in some way, even if it' indirectly. If If others are not making money from the flame, they can't buy bread, or other things. If other businesses and trades are suffering, there's less bread sold. The whole web of life in Torch is beginning to show how it could unravel if the problems isn't fixed, and there's no guarantee that knowing why it went out will mean the flame can be restored.
Aside from her personal concerns about Khonnir's well being now that he's missing, he's also the person most likely to be able to be able to fix things. It's a lot to worry about.
Alyn alternates between tapping her fingers against her pistol and running her fingers over her necklace. Her eyes flicker between the members of their group, the door to the tavern, and the other tavern-goers. Jumping slightly at the half-elf's outburst, she purses her lips and looks away a moment as he slumps back down. She hadn't considered that some of the locals would still volunteer, with how long the call for help had been out. Even more surprising was the way the half-orc referred to Baine - "your old man"? I... didn't know he had family in town, she muses, watching as the half-elf answers.
Feeling acutely aware of how much of an outsider she was to Torch, she tosses out a reply. "I mean, if he felt it was safe enough to keep at his workshop here in town, then it's probably fine. Can't see him bringing anything dangerous in if his kids are here, right?"
The lot of you had heard a bunch of rumors and baseless speculation going through the townsfolk on your way to the Copper Coin, or perhaps in the Copper Coin itself:
You hear a local (potentially tall, there's no way to verify this, after all) tale about a pair of dwarves while pacing around the Copper Coin:
"A pair of dwarves got drunk at the Foundry a few nights ago and went up to Black Hill to drink some of the sludge up there on a dare. One of them grew a lot stronger for a few minutes after drinking the stuff, but the other one nearly died after the fluids burnt a hole in his gut!"
While sitting idly sipping drinks, you hear a disgruntled farm worker mull about something going on on the farm: "Something’s been raiding Seven Tears Farms lately, crushing some crops and stealing others. Whatever’s doing it leaves these big round footprints in the ground."
Hekau regards the rumor he has heard as, regardless of its veracity, entirely irrelevant to the matter at hand. And so he does not share it.
When he does speak, it is in a generally pleasant tone. Although he is emotionless, he has learned to mimic some aspects of emotion in his speech to better communicate with others. There is varying pitch with a reasonable degree of appropriateness to the context, rather than a monotone.
"Zelvin's recollection of events aligns with mine," he adds, "but we cannot say that the robot is 'safe'. I note that 'safe' in this context may have two meanings: that it is secured against theft or sabotage, and that the robot itself poses no danger to the inhabitants of Torch.
In neither case can we offer a definitive declaration."
He turns to the Garundi woman. "Pardon me, I do not know your name. My name is Hekau.
You have ventured that the robot is probably safe, I assume in the latter sense, based on Khonnir Baine's judgment and known expertise. While I concur that he most likely knows more about robots than any other inhabitant of Torch, his knowledge is incomplete. There were many nights when Val, Zelvin, or I would try to assist him with solving a puzzle of a technological nature.
I also believe that neither Zelvin nor Val consider themselves to be 'kids'. That term generally implies youth, inexperience, and immaturity. Both individuals are at a biologically mature stage of development, and are recognized by Torch society as capable of making independent decisions."
The possibility that he himself might be considered a 'kid' is so thoroughly foreign to him that it does not even cross his mind.
Alyn blinks as Hekau adresses her. As he finishes speaking, she grimaces to herself. Great job, Alyn. Off to a great start...
"I didn't- I wasn't trying to call you immature. Sorry. I meant... You're his children. You're a family. He cares about you, so he wouldn't have put it where he knew it would have been a serious danger to you or the townsfolk -- and unless there's someone who knows robots better than he does, we kind of have to trust that he knows best."
She starts slouching back again, having finished speaking, before remembering how he had started. "Oh- and my name's Alyn."
Zelvin looks a bit embarrassed, realizing he hasn't introduced himself. "Salutations, Ms. Alyn. I'm Zelvin, or you can call me Zel or even just Z if you want. Zelvin Baine, since Mr. Khonnir took me in when no one else would, and he lets me use his last name. But if you folks are interested in settin' your eyes on the hunk o' junk that he brought back, I reckon I could let you into his workshop. I doubt Val will like it much, but I'll vouch for you."
He looks around, suddenly aware that he's the center of attention. He runs his hand through his hair near his right ear in a slightly nervous gesture and continues. "Val's our sister. I'm older than she is, but Mr. Khonnir brought her with him when he moved here, so she says she's the older sibling." He rolls his eyes. "And Hekau's probably older than all of us together, but he doesn't give himself airs about it."
Grezzag nods with satisfaction at Hekau's words. There had been worried chatter about androids on the caravan into town but Hekau evidently passes Grezzag's personal Turing test.
"I mean the second type of 'safe'" Grezzag explains. "If you're going to take it apart, better to do it sooner than later." He leans in to emphasize his point, his tone echoing an argument he's heard before and repeated many times. "See, robots are nuts. You don't know what's goin' on in their heads, or if they even think straight. I mean, if I asked you to dig a hole, you'd maybe ask how deep or where. You'd stop when you hit a wall or water. But a robot? It'd just keep diggin' and might even turn on you if you tried to stop it, or dig right through you instead."
He leans back again and pauses. "If Khonnir knows a lot about robots, then it's probably safe." he concedes reluctantly. "I'm more worried about the ones that are probably still down below that we don't know about."
---
"I'm Grezzag" he states simply when introductions are being made
As the six of you are chatting amongst yourself, you notice the door to the Copper Coin creep open. You hear a boisterous voice standing right outside the door, "Alright. Freddert said the ei--," she briefly pauses before looking down towards a piece of paper in her hands, and finishing her line of thought, "Sorry. Freddert said the adventuring party of six would be here?"
If any one of you were to turn your head toward the new voice, you'd see a harried Amurrun woman, shorter than everyone present in the party, Penka included. Her golden, spotted fur draped in leaf armor, with a black-powder musket slung over her back. She has a golden holy symbol in the shape of a cat openly worn as a necklace, no attempt made to conceal said holy symbol whatsoever.
She looks down at the paper before reading out six names. "The party is composed of... Alyn Muloya, Hekau Baine, Penka Borsay, Zelvin Baine," she remarks, followed by a brief pause, muttering something in her native tongue,
Before even getting a response, she blurts out exhaustedly, while sighing, "Anyways, Dolga Freddert wants to see those six I just named at the Town Hall soon." Immediately after, she turns towards Hekau before calmly quipping in Androffan:
"All right kids, let's not keep Dolga waiting." Khoran rises to head to the town hall. He continues "Y'all are kids you know, including you, gunslinger. I've seen more summers than the five of you together. I owe Khonnir for debts incurred before most of you were born, so I'm signing up for this little expedition. I'm Khoran of the Bone Bears. Grezzag here is right, the only really safe robot is a destroyed robot... "
Penka can have problems figuring out when the right time to insert herself into a group conversation. Therefore, she tends to remain quiet rather than risking cutting in at the wrong time. All she manages to do is say hello back to Alyn and Grezzag (even though he's rather intimidating) when they introduce themselves.
She has no such problem when they are called upon though. She immediately hops up, ready to go to the meeting at the town hall.
"Let's go see what they say."
Zelvin stares at the Amurrun woman, surprised at her appearance. (Maybe he hasn't ever seen any of the catfolk before?) He sits up a little straighter and narrows his eyes when she speaks in Androffan, as he recognizes some of the words. That's the robot language! he thinks anxiously. He hasn't learned it himself, but he's heard Mr. Khonnir and Hekau speak it, enough to identify it. He gives his brother a quizzical look, as if asking for a translation.
Once he knows what she's said, he jumps up with urgent enthusiasm and nods to the others. "Well, what're we waitin' for? Let's go see the mayor. Maybe she has some answers for our questions!" He grabs his things and heads for the door, nodding amiably to the Amurrun woman as he passes.
"It is rare to hear Androffan spoken. I myself do not recall how I learned the language.
She wishes us good luck in rescuing Khonnir Baine."
"I am ready to proceed to the Town Hall."
Grezzag nods at Khoran's statement as he repacks his gear and slings his weapon over his back. He heads out the door after the others.
Alyn doesn't look at the Amurrun woman at first, only turning her attention when she hears her name. She's wide-eyed the entire time she speaks, glancing back and forth between the messenger and the others until she finishes, growing more disbelieving as the woman directs something toward Hekau and Zelvin in what turns out to be Androffan, of all languages.
When Khoran introduces himself Alyn opens her mouth to respond, then closes it, choosing to stay quiet for a little while. She stands instead, smiling somewhat at Zelvin's enthusiasm, and waves a goodbye to the tavern as she heads out with the others.
Chuckling at the old Shaman, the Catfolk woman remarks "noted, Khoran. And as for robots? Agreed." And then nods amiably back to Zelvin, before responding to Hekau: "The Goddess I worship, Bastet," she grasps the golden holy symbol necklace as she speaks, "is one of secrets, pleasure, and cats. Finding out secrets such as the language of the robots and androids? To me, that's an act of holy devotion. As to why it's not often spoken? No clue! Not enough androids or intelligent robots in one spot, I guess."
As soon as she is finished talking, she motions for the rest of the party to follow her out the door.
As the seven of you approach the Town Council, Ana (the Amurrun clad in leaf armor leading the way) opens the doors to the Town Hall building itself (15 on the map). Dolga Freddert, an old female dwarf, the oldest councilmember and the only one present, nods as Ana leaves: "Thank you, for delivering that message, Ms. Brunas."
In response, you see the furred woman nod and walk away slowly, not wanting to intrude on the next group of adventurers who are going to take up the task of venturing into the tunnels and caves beneath Torch.
As soon as the door closes behind you, you hear Dolga Freddert's dwarven voice, "So... finally, a group of you decided to find Khonnir Baine? I'd go myself, as I'm tired of desk riding," as she says 'desk riding,' you can hear some amount of derision present in the tone of her voice. She continues after sighing to herself, "But, as you can see, I'm currently the only member of the council that can do anything council-related at the moment... Kyte and Otterbie are dealing with a waste management problem, and the headaches have gotten to Murgrave..."
She stops to grasp her adamantine warhammer, before sighing and continuing again, "And you all know the status of Baine, considering two of you are his adopted kids. Speaking of," she points the handle of her warhammer towards the Baines present before her, "your sister has closed down the Foundry, and is open to providing the tavern as a place to rest between forays, should the six of you need it."
"Barring that, you should eventually let her know it'll be more than the two of you staying there for the time being... Do any of you have any questions?"
"How many other groups have gone down?" Grezzag asks, one hand idly fiddling with a bolt on his necklace. "Do you know if any of 'em happened to bring back anything like that robot Baine found?"
Zelvin nods to Ana, watching her depart, and then turns his attention back to Ms. Dolga. He is obviously anxious to get started and tense with nervous energy, but without his adopted father present he keeps second-guessing himself. Part of him wants to run off right away, but his more practical side knows he should prepare for the journey in whatever ways he can. "The entrance to the caves-- it's under the Weeping Pond, right?" he confirms. "We might need some help gettin' down there if so. I'm not a very strong swimmer, ma'am."
First turning to the half-orc standing before her, Dolga nods and sighs before responding, "Four teams in all have, but only one came back to report what they found... Khonnir's first expedition was that expdition. Khonnir spoke at length with the council before going back in, and he confirmed what his group told us, despite how outlandish it sounded. The first team was a group of halfling adventurers, the second a group of local thugs, and the fourth a small adventuring party devoted to the worship of Brigh from out of town. Khonnir's team undertook the third and fifth expeditions under Black Hill, and it was on the fifth expedition, his second trip, that he went missing. So no one else has been able to bring anything else back up, even themselves."
After Zelvin asks her the question about the location, she responds to him after responding to Grezzag: "There's an underwater passage connecting them to Weeping Pond, yes. Khonnir noticed a large number of human footprints on the pond’s banks, he was there the day the fires went out testing the water to ensure it hadn’t suddenly grown more toxic, and he realized that a sizable group of people had entered the pond but had not emerged."
She takes a minute or two to steady herself before responding to the second half of Zelvin's question. "Mhm, the entrance to the caves is flooded, so you'll need to swim a bit to get to the caves. However," she says, "Joram Kyte has agreed to cast water breathing on any group to aid in entering the caves—free of charge, of course. You can find him at the temple of Brigh or up at Crowfeather Palace when you’re ready to go."
Then, she looks at the remaining members of the group expectantly, as if to ask 'any more questions'
"First, So the town council got a report from Khonnir about what's down there from his first expedition. What did he tell you about what's down there? Did he leave any documents? Any maps? Second, if we are going in through that pond, presumably we come out through that pond. If we need water breathing to get in, presumably we'll need something to get out - especially if something is chasing us... Could Joram Kyte make us a scroll we could take with us?"
"You are correct, Dolga Freddert. It would be courteous to advise Val that these other four individuals will be staying at the Foundry. It is my understanding that sentient beings may find their peace of mind disturbed by unexpected changes to their living arrangements."
"Given that Master Kyte is a priest of Brigh, it is plausible that he advised the fourth expedition and gave them material support. I recommend that we ask him what support and equipment they brought. If what they did bring was inadequate to overcome the difficulties within the caves, then we may need to consider what they did not bring.
I regard procuring a Scroll of Water Breathing as unlikely. That is a powerful enchantment, and requires expensive components to scribe into a scroll."
"Nor do I know that Master Kyte has the knowledge of scribing scrolls. If we cannot obtain such a scroll, we may need to monitor our excursion time so that we can exit the caves while the Water Breathing enchantment remains active.
Other magical options exist. If I can find a source of the spells Air Bubble and Touch of the Sea, I can scribe scrolls at a much lower cost than Water Breathing. As well, we can simply attempt to swim. A typical human can hold their breath for approximately one minute of active swimming."
"Unarmored and in placid water, this results in a swimming distance of 150 feet before needing to come up for air. Khoran's point is well taken. Khonnir Baine's notes of his first excursion most likely detail the length of the underwater passage, as well as the difficulty of swimming the passage."
"That seems correct, Hekau. Joram agreed to cast water breathing, potentially twice per day, on any party that wants to go down to rescue Khonnir. Between the eight of you, and his... whatever it is that lets him extend the spell, that'd grant you 4 hours twice by his estimates, or 8 hours once. That... seems like enough time for you to go "
Turning to the Shaman in front of her, Dolga opens her mouth to speak, "He does have documents and maps, but he took them all with him when he went down on the second expedition," before turning to the Android again, "He did say it wasn't too deep of a swim down, but I imagine if you aren't used to swimming it might pose a challenge," she coughs a bit, before continuing "And yes, Hekau, scribing scrolls of Water Breathing would be far too costly. If you can be in and out within 4 or 8 hours, I imagine you should be fine. And yes, again, I believe Joram partially financed one of the trips down there, but I can't exactly remember which one at the moment."
Alyn lets out a breath she wasn't aware she was holding, focusing intently and nodding at each question Dolga answers.
"So... we have to go talk to Mr. Kyte about the Water Breathing and the other trips' gear. Hekau and Zelvin need to go talk to their sister - that's Val, I think - about the rest of us staying at the tavern. At some point, we should probably go check out the robot in the workshop to see what exactly we're dealing with. We won't have Mr. Baine's notes on things though, because they're down in the caves still... maybe we could find them." She taps each of her fingers as she goes, running through a mental list.
"Then when we finally head down there, we have to be back before the spell runs out or else we have to make the swim back on our own. All in all it doesn't sound too bad, but we're the sixth trip and only one other trip made it back, so we should be careful."
She looks around at the others, finishing with a quick "Did I miss anything?"
"Going underwater won't be a problem for me, but if anyone's got anything that ain't meant to get wet, we should get something to protect it." Grezzag answers Alyn
Zelvin looks a bit nervous about the swim, but shrugs as if to say that if that's what it takes to rescue Khonnir Baine, then that's what he'll do. "I got a couple of Mr. Khonnir's waterproof bags back at the shop; that should protect anything we got that can't get wet. My pistol, for one, and my spellbook. I can probably fit more in 'em if we need." He looks at the assembled group. "Well, what say I introduce y'all to Val, get your lodgin's squared away, and then we can head to the house o' Brigh before divin' in?"
Once everyone agrees and there are no more questions for Dolga Freddert, he leads the party to Mr. Khonnir's establishment and tries the front door to invite them in.
Grezzag nods to Zelvin. "I ain't got more questions, and no time like now to get started."
"I got a bunch of questions. First: Zelvin, Hekau; would Khonnir have kept a copy of his notes in his shop, where we could get at them? Second: Would Khonnir have some length of decent chain in his shop? If so, we could borrow it, and run it down through the pool to help getting back out. Third: I can see in the dark, and I guess so can Grezzag, the others? I'm figuring we'll need some sort of waterproof light? Fourth, I don't like not having a plan for getting out the pool beyond don't be late. Any ideas on those last two?"
"I do not know of any copies of Khonnir Baine's notes.
I imagine we can find a length of chain.
I can see in the dark. I can also prepare a spell of Light.
My suggested plan beyond 'don't be late' is 'swim while holding our breath'. If our initial foray reveals that the underwater passage is too long to allow that secondary plan to succeed, then we can reconsider."
"Let's talk while we mosey," Zelvin suggests. "I can see pretty well in the dark too, though maybe not so well in bright light. Might be I do all right once I'm in the tunnels-- I'm guessin' that's where my folk originally came from. I've never been in these, but there's some other caves on the other side o' town that I've been explorin' before. Just between us, I kinda like it better down there than up here sometimes." As he warms up to the group, he talks animatedly with a friendly drawl, though he is still obviously antsy and itching to get their expedition underway.
With your questions being satisfied, the six of you decide to head down to the Foundry, also known for being where the Baines typically live, with Zelvin and the others making light conversation while they "mosey" on along.
As the six of you arrive at the Foundry, however, you hear a voice screaming, "AAAAAAAAAAhhh WHY IS IT ACTIVE," along with what sounds like the sounds of wood and stone being ripped apart and demolished, coming from Khonnir Baine's home behind the tavern and the foundry.
You recognize this screaming high-pitched voice as your adoptive sister, Val Baine.
Zelvin frowns. "That's Val! What's she goin' on about now?" He draws his pistol and starts to head back towards the sound, slightly faster than when he was moseying over before.
"..Active?" Grezzag repeats. He swears an orcish curse and starts running towards the shout, drawing his axe as he races forward
"..Active?" Grezzag repeats. He swears an orcish curse and starts running towards the shout, drawing his axe as he races forward
A look of grim surmise spreads over Khoran face as Grezzag speaks, and he runs after Grezzag. As he does, he shakes the lonspear he had been using as a walking staff, to unfurl a banner, adorned with a snarling bear skull...
"I surmise that the robot has become active. That is the most likely explanation for Val's alarm."
Hekau will keep pace with Zelvin.
(Dex 16)
(Dex 15)
As you continue to hear Val's panicked screams, you hear the crashing, banging, and the sounds of wood being ripped from wood get stronger. Then, all of a sudden, you see a semi-humanoid robot tear the door off its hinges and stutter in a foreign language.
As you see it stare at you, with its cold, soulless "eye", you get the immediate feeling that this is what Val was talking about being "activated".
Zelvin swears under his breath and quickly casts a spell, shooting a shiny metal coin through his arcane gun as he moves into close range.
Alyn speeds up to move through the group and - having drawn her pistol on the way over and developed a bad habit of keeping her gun loaded - comes to a stop next to Grezzag, takes aim, and fires.
"I believe the robot is malfunctioning from what I can understand of its fragmented speech."
Hekau draws and loads his crossbow .
Grezzag scowls as the robot bursts through the door, but he's not really surprised.
"Malfunctioning is one word for it." he mutters. Striding forward into the open space before the robot, he swings his axe around in a broad sweep at the crazed machine.
"Damnit, he's in the way" mutters Khoran as he advances with his longspear leveled, and begins stabbing at the robot...
+1 str +1 flagbearer
+1 str +1 flagbearer
When Zelvin fires his coin-projectile at the robot, missing his shot, it turns its head toward the would-be attacker and ignores the others present. When a shot hits the robot, however, its head and "eye" turn to face from whence it was fired. Its focus now turned on Alyn, it fails to notice Grezzag stepping up and slicing into its skymetal skin. As it is assaulted by the half-orc, it falls "limp" to the ground, eye no longer producing any light. It lies motionless as Khoran strikes it with his longspear, causing even more damage to the already non-functioning robot.
----------------------------------
As Val Baine hears an end to the commotion outside, she hears two familiar voices outside of the torn-off door, and rushes outside to greet her adoptive family. She runs up to hug Zelvin Baine and Hekau as well, before breaking Hekau's hug early to ask a question: "Are... are you the group going down to Black Hill caves? Along with," and then she motions to the four unfamiliar faces, "these four?"
"Are... are you the group going down to Black Hill caves? Along with," and then she motions to the four unfamiliar faces, "these four?"
"Of course," says Zelvin haughtily, shaking himself to clear his nerves after his near-catastrophe with his pistol. "Someone’s gotta do something for Mr. Khonnir!" He makes brief introductions of the newcomers. "Freddert said you had offered to let them stay here at The Foundry while they are in town, is that right?" he asks approvingly. "We’ve got to head over to the House of Brigh before we go, but I think we’re headin' out right away, since we don’t know what condition Mr. Khonnir’s in but he might be injured and need our help. If so, don’t worry, we’ll find him and bring him back safe." He doesn’t voice his fear that they might already be too late.