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He only had two questions for Odelai. "When leave? Where go?" The gnome considers the questions for a moment. "We leave tomorrow... sometime around the noon hour, last I heard. We won't know where we've gone until after we arrive. Hemakhek believes our next destination will still be in Golarion, but that's his best guess."
She frowns at the note in her hand and speaks cautiously, "I'll get this in front of someone who knows Abyssal. Thank you."
”…We almost lost a couple of us to some hobgoblins and a little demon thing, but we managed to drive them off. The others might remember more, but I was just trying to keep everyone from getting killed the whole time.” A hitch appears in Odelai’s step along with a raised eyebrow, ”A demon? That’s… interesting.”
Odelai tries to process the information, ”Sextant? Well, yes. We have several sailors in town. I’m sure any number of them would be happy to teach you how to use it. Um… I’ll ask around and send someone to you.”
The gnome chuckles, "Most definitely! Children recover so much more quickly - it's unfair. Perhaps you should stop by the Slattern later this evening for some 'tea' with the girls? That cures many ills and breeds a few of its own. Or, if you need a lineament for your bones, you might visit Sudara. Her herbal remedies are the best." Odelai continues walking with the group, keen to hear more information but not pressing.
Day 4: Noon The heavily laden wagon clatters across the cobblestones that line the High Street as the team navigates their way from where they entered the city at High Gate, through The Rows and Market Square, to their destination near their apartment and Nine-Toes’ office on the edge of Low Gate. Their wagon draws more than a few interested looks, especially among the merchants of Market Square. The team has no illusions about arriving unannounced. With the transition imminent, each opening in the wall is manned by a child or adult with a clipboard. They check off everyone who enters or leaves the city at this point. The heroes’ names are dutifully taken by a child barely into her teens. Her grey eyes widen at their names then she gives them a polite curtsy and immediately heads to a nearby placard to pass the news. So, before they reach Low Gate, it comes as no surprise when Odelai ‘happens’ to cross their path on the High Street and she decides to escort the group. ”Welcome back! How was your trip?”
Odelai nods and stands, "Get your weapons. Bob will be waiting for you in the plaza. With luck, we'll be talking about this over drinks."
The gnome chuckles, "I don't think it's a matter of you earni..." She is interrupted by the Campanile, the bell-ess belltower. It rings once, a single sharp BONG that you feel in your femurs. "Excuse me." She jumps up and heads to the nearest blank placard, adjacent to the bar. She reads the message carefully and returns to the table, a bit of a spring in her step. "Looks like you are the people we were sent to fetch. Hemakhek has observed the signs - we transit in seven days. SO, let's run this... rabbit to ground and be safe while doing it. You don't want to miss your first transit."
Odelai takes in the details. ”Fine. Here’s how this goes. Bob will be your guide and liaison with the team. He’s got the location lists and he can make the approach to the home and building residents. Tactical leadership of the sweep will be yours. Bob’s job is to help kill the hag and keep you from getting killed. Do me a favor and don’t get killed. I’ve already got folks questioning the wisdom of bringing you into this operation,” She sighs, ”Questions?”
To Xing, she responds, ”She can appear as another sort of humanoid creature – a human, elf, gnome, or the like. We don’t believe she can imitate a specific person. And even if she could, she’d have to keep that person alive. Any resident or citizen who dies registers with Anne. I don’t know how it works but she sees all of us, thousands of us, as ‘facets’ in a crystal. When a facet disappears, she knows and she knows who. Also, regardless of form, she can’t stand sunlight. So, it’s unlikely she’s roaming the streets during the daylight hours. It would leave her nearly blind.” To Sabelina’s questions, she replies, ”We are going to flush her out or kill her where she hides. Our teams are assembling. We are going to saturate the area and sweep all of the likely buildings from top to bottom. We’ve identified nearly three dozen buildings where our bloodhounds have detected fresh scent. You, along with Bob here…” she points to the burly, armored, watchman, ”… have four buildings to search. All teams go in one hour and we don’t stop until she is found or we run out of buildings.” “It’s remotely possible that someone is dumb enough to be working with her. But it is more likely she and her slippery skulks spent time eavesdropping and reconnoitering us. Her ilk are known for spying on towns to better torment the communities later. Our methods and resources aren’t a secret, one of the disadvantages of being an open society. We’ll just have to cross that bridge if we come to it.” Returning to Xing’s questions, ”Our quarry is a Flue Hag – stealthy, deceitful, and utterly evil. She is quick and resists magic, especially fire. She will attack with her claws and her teeth. Her bite is the worse… you saw what it does to bone. She can squeeze into spaces you wouldn’t think could hold a body, so don’t rule out unusual hiding spots. And she climbs like a damn spider. Now, a couple other things she brings to a fight. She can breathe out a blinding cloud of soot. And, misfortune surrounds her like a stink. When you first meet her, you’ll find yourself very unlucky for a handful of seconds. And she’ll use those moments to her best advantage. She’ll be playing for her life, and you should to. Don’t get creative, put her down.” She glances at Bob. ”Are you a sergeant yet, Bob?”
Odelai pushes away from her plate, ”It’s been a bit of a mixed bag, if I’m being honest. One of our teams cornered and killed the final skulk last night. And our people have squeezed a lot of alarming information from the other two, which gives us a much better idea of who we’re up against. She’s led us a merry chase. We rooted out a half-dozen of her bolt-holes since last night – with no sign of her. It seems she frequently visits a bunch of different hidey holes to keep her smell fresh, just in case she was discovered.” ”We believe she is still in the city and the bloodhounds have narrowed her current location – we think – to approximately a six block radius, south of Market Square. Our seers haven’t been able to find any helpful details about her location. They think she has some sort of anti-scrying device - clever rabbit.” Odelai sits forward, ”Let’s talk about her history since, I assume, you still want a piece of this hunt. She’s been here longer than six months. We’re not sure how much longer than six months but that’s when she ‘recruited’ this band of skulks. And by ‘recruited’, I mean scared them into total compliance. She sealed the deal by eating a couple of their brethren. For the last half-year, she has used them to identify and capture victims for her appetite. They’ve killed and eaten a score of people. And we didn’t notice it because the hag had her people specifically - and only - target visitors who were leaving town. It seems she knows that a resident or citizen going missing would be immediately noticed. And with the way she has evaded our bloodhounds and seers, we think she has some understanding of our methods. As I said before, a cunning rabbit.”
The next morning dawns brightly. From your windows, you can see the sunlight diffusing through the strange pearlescent wall surrounding the city. As you pretty much own the top floor of the Slattern, you hear the sounds of your teammates getting dressed and ready to greet the day. A short while later you all head downstairs. In the common room, Odelai sits at one of the long trestle tables powering through an impressive amount of food on her plate. Uller stands nearby at attention – or as close as he can manage. He is slightly wobbling on his feet. He looks as if sleep was a distant memory. In contrast, a powerfully-built member of the watch in chainmail stands at textbook attention by the doorway to the kitchen. The sharp-eyed gnome spies you over the heaping mounds of breakfast options burdening the table. She waves you over. ”Come. Come! Sit and eat. We have much to discuss.” She glances at Uller, satisfied with his bedraggled appearance. ”Citizen Uller, the guards here have reported you carried out your duty faithfully last night, and they only had to wake you once. The Council is satisfied. I revoke your deputization and you are free to go about your day. Thank you.” Uller staggers toward the door with nary a look at your group. For her seemingly ever-youthful appearance, you see some tiredness around the old gnome’s eyes. ”Did you all sleep well?”
The old woman seems in a lighter mood now that you’ve agreed to not go rogue looking for the hag. "So there is something different. At least I know I'm not crazy." She quips, ”Decidely not. That will take at least two weeks.” "Breakfast it is," she says through sharp teeth. She points to Odelai's tablet, "and I suppose there is no reason for me to hide my true nature here anymore? I sort of assume this detail is now revealed to all residents of Threshold." ”Not at all. We make efforts to respect every resident’s privacy, where possible. Your secret has gone no further than the Council and some of the Watch. Both groups are tight-lipped. Your secret is still yours to share, or not. If you’d like an insider’s opinion… I think you’ll see that most of us don’t judge tomes by their bindings. We’ve got some residents who stay out of sight when newcomers are around… wait til you meet them. You’ll feel commonplace. That said, you may want to change back now before we head up to the street, if you want to keep that particular cat – no offense meant - in the bag.” Odelai looks you all over and claps her hands briskly, calling Uller over. ”Time to return these folks to the Slattern, watchman! As I said… rooms on the top floor and you are personally responsible for their safety until tomorrow morning. Also, it would be good of you to handle the selling of any goods they found in the sewer but don’t want. I expect you should be able to get them three-quarters of the standard sales price.” She gives Cookie a nod, ”And see about swapping out one of those oversized backpacks for one appropriately sized for a woman of petite stature.” With that, Uller escorts you away…
The old gnome gives a hearty chuckle. "You'll know when we transit. You can't miss it and it's far more of a show than that." She gestures towards the high, crystalline wall surrounding the city. Odelai babbles something to one of the strange 'bloodhounds'. Hearing its burbled reply, she nods and continues a little more quietly, "Had to make sure we weren't being eavesdropped. Anne's wall is part of our lockdown protocol. The hag isn't going anywhere unless she can fly and that would likely reveal her to our spotters and snipers."
Our heroes rifle through the hag’s wares and uncover a poorly hidden cache. From the messy spray of coins and gems surrounding it, it seems the hag quickly grabbed what she could before fleeing… leaving nearly 900 GP in coins and gems. Odelai nods, ”You earned it.” Anything else she might have said is forestalled by the sounds of approaching feet and calls of “This is the Watch!” The next few hours go by in a bit of a blur as the analytical and investigative sources of the Watch swarm the sewer… Being at Odelai’s hip, you are privy to some of the Watch’s methods: the necromancers and clerics they employ to identify and speak with the dead (via the bones), the ‘bloodhounds’ (strange creatures with more than five senses from another world) that they believe will have few problems tracking down any other skulks and the hag, rogue spotters, roving patrols deployed to the streets across the city, as well as the coordinated teams of spellslingers and rangers with overwatch duty of those patrols from strategic high points. When you finally exit the sewer again, it is late afternoon. The light strikes you as odd, casting a diffuse pinkish glow over the city. Close as you are to the periphery of the city, you see the cause of the strange lighting. Surrounding the ring wall is a second wall. It rises some 60’ into the air with walls that gently curve inward, forming a very subtle open dome. The wall is semi-translucent, seems to be made of mineral, and ranges in color from pearlescent to light pink. The old gnome enjoys the clean air for a moment before motioning Nine-Toes over and speaking. ”Thank you for your help. Uller, I’ve considered this matter and consulted with the Council. You'll pay these folks 200 gold pieces per person. Further, as they have not been given quarters yet and their safety is a priority, you will get rooms for them on the top floor of the Slattern for the night, at your personal expense. The guards at the Slattern can help you ensure their continued safety. You may wait over there for your charges. I need to speak with them for a moment privately.” Dismissed, Uller leaves with muttered imprecations. She waits for Uller to step away before speaking to the party, ”I hope those terms are acceptable. Nine-Toes hates parting with money, so it is good punishment for him. And the guards at the Slattern will keep him on his toes tonight.” A small smile creeps across her face. ”I suspect you folks aren’t inclined to sit out the manhunt for the hag, even if I ask nicely. So, I’ll make this deal with you… the Watch, we’re still getting a handle on this situation with interrogating those skulks, deploying forces, as well as the earliest stages of tracking the quarry. If they panic and bolt, our forces may catch them tonight. But, realistically, our goal is to narrow down their possible hidey-holes tonight and bring them to ground tomorrow. So, IF you agree to stand down this evening, I’ll meet with you for breakfast tomorrow, update you on what we’ve uncovered, and get you into the hunt – with one of my folks as escort – when we have good target locations. How does that sound?”
The gnome moves a little further down the length of the room then starts making a strange set of rumbling and cracking noises. You think her voice is echoing until you realise the timbre and pattern of the sounds are different. The stones in the room are vibrating in response. Odelai continues speaking with various stones, flying quickly to the far end of the room and then up to the ceiling some 30’ above. After a few more minutes of this strange conversation, she returns to ground level as you gather near the far end of the room, at a rough-hewn and narrowing passage. A quick look into the passage alerts you to the fact that is perhaps 30’ long and the room at the far end is lit by some feeble flickering light, probably the dying remains of a fire judging by the smell of smoke. But even the distance from the room and the oppressive smell of smoke cannot hide the stink of decay, rotting flesh, and death that wafts from the passage. Grim, the gnome pulls out a placard and jots several notes. She says quietly, ”The stones say this is her lair. They also say, the hag is gone… crawled through that drain up there soon after you left.” She points to a small outlet in the ceiling that a child would have difficulty crawling through. ”Their perception range is limited, so it’s possible she returned by some other drain. We need to be careful while checking her lair, just in case. But, it seems likely that she fled and has gone to ground at some other bolthole until night falls.” She puts the placard away and then the entire team moves into the tunnel and then into the hag’s lair… At the center of the circular room are the glowing embers of a dying fire. Against one wall is a pile of filthy rags you imagine serves as a bed. The air is thick with rot. Chunks of rotted and half-eaten meat litter the floor and decorate the walls. Scores of bones and humanoid skulls are set in incomprehensible patterns on the floor. All are gnawed, some are burned, and many are only partially denuded of flesh. It’s more of an abattoir than a lair. The hag is gone.
Odelai nods, "Anyone we encounter gets one chance to surrender immediately; no discussion. If they hesitate, they've chosen to meet Pharasma or whoever awaits." She looks at the crew, "If you have any qualms about that, I'm sorry. When the fight comes, you can stand aside or just defend yourself, whatever suits your conscience. I won’t think poorly of any of you regardless." With that, she floats up the corridor into the room where you encountered the first skulks. She scans the room carefully and then begins digging through the trash piles and meticulously probing in the pooled water with her hair. She finds nothing more than you did while searching the piles but does uncover additional smaller bone fragments in the more stagnant corners of the pool. She places all the fragments in a single pile, in the corner where you recently had your prisoners. Noting the dead skulk in the water, she mutters, ”Here is where her defenses began.” Nothing more to see in this room, the old gnome pushes into the northern corridor leading to the large chamber. She moves more cautiously now, scanning everything and using her hair to probe refuse piles and the waterway. She uncovers a couple more bones and lays them aside. The group rounds the corner and stands in the entrance to the cavernous room. The scattered bodies and smell of blood (much of it yours) stains the hillocks of filth and leaves crimson streamers in the stagnant water. Odelai scans to the range of her enhanced vision for a long moment then gives you a nod, indicating she perceives no obvious threats. She flies up the center of the room and hovers over one of the skulk bodies strangling it with her hair to make sure it isn’t playing possum, announcing herself. ”This is the Watch! Announce your presence, drop your weapons, and surrender. Failure to do so immediately will be considered an act of aggression and will be met with a deadly response.” She waits patiently for a span of six heartbeats. Then looks to the heroes, ”We’re doing this the hard way, it seems.”
Odelai examines the bite and corrosion marks carefully. ”A ‘bite like fire’ indeed.” She hands the bone back to Yash and sighs. ”Based on the evidence, I think we’re looking for a Flue Hag. They aren’t the worst sort of Hag but they’re dangerous and vicious with a taste for the flesh of sentient creatures - the more innocent, the better. They live to spread misery, and misfortune surrounds them - generally to the woe of anyone they cross. The bad news is they are slippery. They can climb like you walk and their limbs and joints give, letting them squeeze through tight spaces no regular body could. They can also change their appearance… so we might see a little girl, or an old man, or something other than the hag’s true form. Be ready for that. In our favor, they are creatures of darkness, hating sunlight. We may have her pinned in here until evening. Any questions?”
The old gnome nods at Xing's directions and flies forward now that she is satisfied the current room hides no lurking threats. ”At least he told you about the drain. I suppose I should be thankful for that. Normally, it is the only true hazard in here. But, you deserve better recompense than 200 pieces given what has happened. I’ll see that you get it.” Warned of the Muckdwellers, Odelai enters the drain room with flourishes to intimidate the creatures. She flies in, tentacles of hair extended and writhing in multiple directions. She hovers near the ceiling and begins speaking with the creatures in a strange hissing and croaking tongue. The quartet of Muckdwellers sink low into the water and move to the far side of the pool when they see they are well outnumbered by the humanoid creatures. Odelai slowly descends and hovers to continue the conversation with the strange lizard-like creatures. The conversation becomes animated and lasts for several minutes with Odelai pointing to the team a couple of times and making a series of different gestures as she questions the Muckdwellers exhaustively. In the end, Odelai turns to the heroes, ”It appears you may have finished off nearly all of this nest of vipers. The ‘dwellers believe there were no more than eight or nine skulks. They didn’t see the ‘pack-leader’ often but they say she is a dark-skinned old woman of roughly Senna’s height. And she hasn’t passed by them since they last saw you. More concerning, is talk of corpses and some captives being brought in by the skulks… and never leaving. I think we are dealing with a Hag of some stripe. I’d like to see the bones you mentioned. They were this way, correct?” She motions toward the diagonal passage leading to the room where the team was jumped by skulks initially.
The old woman only smiles at Xing’s transformation before returning her attention to the potential threats ahead. ”Nicely done.” In the first large room, Odelai floats toward the ceiling then quickly flies to the center of the room. With her back to you, you can only tell that she has cast some of sort spell before announcing loudly and imperiously. ”This is the Watch Commander for Dockside in Threshold. You are suspected of crimes against the citizenry or visitors of Threshold. You will present yourselves for questioning and possible arrest. Any attempts at evasion, escape, or attack will result in your swift deaths.” After the echo of her voice fades, and hearing nothing in response, the gnome woman swoops into the narrow side corridor before quickly returning to the main room. Her eyes glow, limned in cold blue. She looks to you and says in a more personable tone. “Nothing there. Let’s continue… but please stay behind me. ” As you move into the next room, Odelai inspects every corner thoroughly, even scanning the ceiling. She asks conversationally, ”What were the terms of your contract, with Nine-Toes?”
”Let me be clear, this is a Watch mission. Anyone following me into the sewer is under my authority and I am in charge. If I give an order, it better be obeyed. Second, I’m going in to clean the sewer out, not clean it up. Anything working for or with these skulks is going to get thumped.” She nods to Cookie, ”I appreciate you wanting to be at your best for this mission, but it can’t wait. These skulkers are skilled at evading us, clearly. We need to root them out now while we hopefully have them on their heels.” Her eyes slide over the party. ”You each have a choice. Anyone who wishes can stay here with Uller and guard the entrance until we return. Anyone who wants to face this threat and will follow orders, come with me.” She gives you each a minute to decide and then floats slowly into the dark and stinking tunnel entrance…
Odelai, hovering at nearly eye level with the half-orc, smiles at Yash's first statement. "My duty is to protect this city and her inhabitants, which includes you folks. Taking you into harm's way isn't the safest option for you."
Her question being largely rhetorical, Odelai continues. ”Since I now have to clean up this sewer, I was inclined to drag you along… by your scruff.” A thick tendril of her hair comes to rest on his shoulder and swipes at the dust on his shirt. You’re fairly certain that isn’t an idle threat. ”However, with at least one of these backstabbing skulks on the loose, plans need to change.” ”Congratulations, Resident Uller. I am temporarily deputizing you as a member of the Dockside Watch. Your assignment is to ensure the safety of these newcomers – with your life, if necessary – and watch this gate. When other members of the Watch arrive, you will have them find me in sewer and then escort your charges back to their place of residence, where you will stand guard until sunrise. Don’t disappoint me.” Odelai casts a spell and rises off the ground as her hair snakes to open the gate. She looks to the newcomers. ”On behalf of Threshold and the Council, please accept my apologies for the poor treatment you have received and the inexcusable risks placed on your lives. Do you have any questions before I go?” Spellcraft DC:20: Odelai cast Overland Flight
Odelai nods, her face set in a hard look as you recount your adventure. ”So, perhaps this bone-eating creature is the leader or possibly the pet of the leader that helped to keep these skulks in line and more afraid of him or her than of anyone stumbling on their lair, regardless of your numbers.” The old woman thinks for a moment as her hair slowly uncoils from the gate as she formulates a plan. She gazes at Lady, ”Please translate all this for Yash. I want everyone on the same page.” She looks to the three townsfolk. ”You three, take the prisoners to the Low Gate gaol, for full questioning. Keep an eye open for more of these shapeshifters, looking to free their compatriots. Give my regards to the Watch Commander. Have him raise the Watch and bring out the bloodhounds to find our missing skulk and send a couple more people here.” The three townsfolk nod and leave. Odelai turns to Uller. Her eyes are anything but kind. ”Tell me if I’m wrong. You didn’t want to wade in filth or smell it, so you didn’t bother to check the sewer for dangers before sending in these newcomers. Despite their likely importance to Threshold, you sent them in blind because you didn’t want to get your feet dirty. Is that about the size of it?”
"I appreciate the offers of help." She replies, looking from Yash to Lady (as translator) to Xing. She considers her words carefully. "You did well leaving when the situation turned dangerous. This isn't your mess to clean up, it's mine. I would have as much to answer for as Uller does if I endangered new potential citizens as he has done... You can help most by telling me more about the leader you think drives these creatures. Or do you think it is just a more dangerous Skulk?"
One of the gnome's expressive eyebrows rises in curiosity. "What was that now?"
"From all we've been told it isn't all that easy for a whole group of outsiders to just move in and take up residence in this city without being noticed." Odelai nods, "It shouldn't be. Large or open groups, we can keep an eye on... even with all the gates into the city. We've had some sneaky stowaways before, but not on this scale. We may need to rethink some things."
Three more townsfolks - dressed in normal clothing not uniforms of any sort - clamber down the steps, stop, and give Odelai a nod. She indicates the skulkers. ”Take them.” Odelai seems dissatisfied with Uller’s response but turns to the party, her tone softening. ”What happened in there? What can you tell me about these creatures? I’m not familiar with this race.”
Odelai spares another glance at the injured team and casts a quick spell. "Save your wand." All your wounds heal fully. At Xing's mention of a continuing threat, the old lady puts herself between the team and gate. Her hair lengthens, slaps the gate shut, then binds the gate closed. "Don't be concerned, child, I've got this." Her large eyes fall on their employer. "Speak up, Uller." Spellcraft DC:21:
Odelai cast Mass Cure Light Wounds
CURRENT HP:
As you exit the sewer via the squeaky gate and catch your first breath of fresh air, you see Uller looking worried - particularly when he sees your prisoners. He’s about to speak when his and your attention is drawn to the nearby stairs. A small figure leaps down three steps at a time, muttering blackly under her breath. You clear the mouth of the sewer as Odelai, the gnome granny, goes toe-to-toe with Uller. She regards your party briefly – noting your prisoners, your wounds, and your general condition. ”I’m glad you are all alive.” She turns her attention to Uller, speaking in a tone that carries far more menace than you’d imagine her body could hold. ”Explain this.”
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