Savage Tide: There Is No Honor (IC)

[Callos_DeTerran]

Sasserine began not as a city. but as a woman. Over 700 years ago. a cleric of Wee Jas named Sasserine woke one night after a particularly livid dream of a hidden cove, protected from the sea by vast cliffs and from the land by steaming swamps and jungle. In this vision, she beheld a thriving city and a glittering spire of scarlet stone,and knew Wee Jas hold visited her with a prophecy. Sasserine called together her followers, including her lover Teraknian, a soldier and worshiper of Kord. and set out to find this hidden rove. Diseases, accidents, and monsters took their toll, and near the end, despair gnawed at Sasserine's pilgrims.

Finally, their numbers reduced to less than a quarter of their initial strength, these pilgrims emerged into a bounteous stretch of land with fertile soil and fields of exotic plants sheltered by twin shore line cliffs. Sasserine recognized the landscape at once, but Wee Jas had not warned her of the black dragon that had taken the cove as his territory. Mere hours after the pilgrims had thankfully fed on the abundant plants and had only just begun to hope they had found their new home, the dragon Zelkarune struck. Enraged at this final trial, Sasserine stood her ground against the dragon and defeated it-but at a terrible cost. For in delivering the final strike, Sasserine had been forced to step between Zelkarune's claw and Teraknian; the blow meant for him instead laid her low, just as she called down a bolt of fire from the sky to slay the dragon.

In the days to fellow. the survivors turned to Teraknian for leadership, who
vowed to found a city in Sasserine's name. It was the year -124 CY, and over the seven centuries to follow, Sasserine would mature into one of the great hidden wonders of the south.

-The Founding of Sasserine, Chapter One


Sasserine (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBOW0A11s1I) is located at the westernmost edge of the Amedio Jungle, nestled in a sheltered harbor. Most travelers come to Sasserine via ship, as overland routes are fraught with peril. From the sea, Sasserine isn't much to look at; two ragged cliffs of stone jut from the coastline, their faces home to sea hawks and gulls but little else.Then a vast rent in the cliff slides into view, its summit crowned by the shattered remnants of an immense stone bridge. Sailing between the slowly eroding stone pylons that once supported the bridge above, a visitor passes from open sea in to a thriving harbor of commerce, whaling, and intrigue. The decaying stone bridge is no indication of the city itself, a collection of white-washed buildings collected upon the shore of the cove that acts as a beckon of civilization surrounded by the turbulent Amedio Jungle that surrounds the city and it's plantations. Many first time travelers to Sasserine find themselves in awe of the stunning sight, so unexpected given it's surroundings.

Certainly the smell of the city is breath taking-a tremendous riot of exotic spices, smoke, humanity, and sewage that assaults the senses. Perfumes and scented candles are popular commodities in Sasserine. The sights even more so, crowds of people throng in the streets during the day, going about their business or making way to one of several markets. Brightly colored jungle birds flit from roof-top to roof-top, as if taunting their sullen brethren who are kept tied to posts to be sold as pets or meals. Colorful bolts of cloth freely exchange hands for a pittance of what they would have cost farther to the north, dashes of color to offset the nominal tanned or brown skin tone of most of Sasserine's people. All of this activity exists despite the sweltering heat, a lethargic thing that saps the energy of those not accustomed to it and the cause of the...blatant displays of flesh around the streets. Modesty sometimes takes a back seat compared to relief from the almost oppressive heat of the city and it's surrounding jungles. Some find it's streets claustrophobic, with the buildings built close together out of necessity of making the most of the limited space available.

But for five unique individuals, the day is not fated to be so ordinary. Not when an old and wizened halfling woman approaches each of them with a letter, imploring them to read it on behalf of her mistress and to consider it's proposal.

Note:
Greetings, and I trust this missive finds you in good health!
My name is Lavinia Vanderboren, and I humbly request your presence for dinner at my estate on Festival Street and Blue Skink Lane tomorrow evening. I think I can present you with an opportunity uniquely suited to your skills. Please inform the carrier of this letter of your response to this invitation, and I hope to speaking to you in person soon!

-Lavinia Vanderboren

The Vanderboren Manor is located in the eastern section of the Merchant District; the seven-foot-high stone wall that surrounds the estate is impossible to miss, as is the towering, gothic, three-story house that dominates the grounds within. Leering gargoyles and capering nymphs festoon the eaves of the manor 's roof, and several trees give the manor grounds a nice buffer from the hustle of the city and the beginning of it's preparations for the Wormfall celebration, a festival to commemorate the victory of brave heroes against a dark god that had threatened a city to the north. The front gate, an imposing wrought iron affair, had been left open so that any who had accepted the invitation could come in past the wall unto the front lawn, but the door leading into the manor itself is locked from within. The sun is already high in the sky, beating down mercilessly on those who aren't careful, as the afternoon begins to come to a close.

[Mordokai]

The note piqued her curiosity.

She woke up at The Empty Grave, head still pounding from the last night. That was one ale too many and one dance too much. Going to bed at sunrise probably wasn't the best idea as well. Suffice to say, despite all the shortgivings, Adrie was feeling happy. Sun was shining and the day was full of promises. It's days like these that are worth living for.

Putting her clothes and armor on, she went out of the tavern. Deciding that she has nothing better to do with her time, she takes a walk down the street. She pondered visiting Shadowshore for a moment, before thinking better of it. Usually nothing good came out of it and she really didn't want to spoil the day in the very beggining. Maybe some other day.

No day is perfect without a little music. She pulled her flute out of her pocket and started playing a gentle melody to herself. That's when she felt a tug on her trousers. Looking down, she saw an old halfling woman, who explained what she wanted to her. Taking the offered note and reading, Adrie was more then a little perplexed. Who is this Lavinia and where did she hear of her? What could she possibly want of her? That and many other questions just started going through her head, before she dissmised them. All would be answered in good time and it would hardly befit to turn a polite invitation like this down. So she told the halfling woman she'd be seeing her mistress gladly.

Now, she stood before the locked gate of the manor. Looking around, she checked if there is anybody else there. Not seeing anybody, she shrugged her shoulders and knocked.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Down on the corner of Rubble Street and Worgul street, at a seedy tavern known as The Skinned Man, a relatively unassuming man reclined at a wooden table. The outdoor patio was pleasantly located in the shadow of the walls of the Arena district, which loomed above the slum called Shadowshore. The man, named Animesh, found himself spending more and more time in Shadowshore, as few people there asked questions, and there was always somebody with a problem that needed solving, and silver eager to switch pockets.
Animesh was grinding his teeth, thinking about the lightness of his own pockets. This watery ale was going to cost him, as was the trencher of stale bread and lukewarm chicken and barley stew. His feet were propped up on the table, and he was shirtless, as befit the typical sweltering afternoon. He stroked his oiled goatee absentmindedly, the copper, silver, brass, and gold rings and beads decorating it and his mustache glinting in the shade. To his surprise, a matronly halfling woman approached him. At first he sat up, his spine erect and tense. The jolt of paranoia and alarm quickly faded as she handed him a letter. Animesh forced a smile before cracking the wax seal and reading the letter, his brown eyes focused with concentration and curiosity. After a moment, his smile became somewhat more genuine, and he handed the parchment back to the halfling.
"You have my thanks. Inform the lady of my intent to accept this most gracious invitation."
As the messenger departed, Animesh downed the last of his ale and slammed a few coins on the table. His mind was filled with all manner of thoughts, and he needed space, and time to think. He put on his shirt, little more than a tan woolen vest, and set off at a brisk walk, towards the Sunrise District.

Who was this woman? Clearly, a noble of some kind, but how had she heard of him? Silently, he cursed Savnok. The armor he granted Animesh had been most useful in the arena to earn a few coins, but it made people ask questions, and make assumptions. Several arena goers now thought Animesh himself was a minor noble or lordling of some kind. Only the rich could afford a full suit of plate armor. Nobody suspected it was summoned from nowhere, that it hadn't cost Animesh one red copper. As he walked, he began to smile. Maybe he should be thanking the vestige instead... at the very least, he was getting a free meal tomorrow. If she asked too many questions, he could just leave. No, there was no way she knew what Animesh was. He was starting to get a reputation, true... maybe this was the big opportunity he had been waiting for. Maybe he could earn some real money, and get out of this steaming sty of a city.

Animesh found himself at the outskirts of the city; from here, the plantations began their sprawl. Checking one last time to make sure he was alone, Animesh ducked into a small grove of trees and thick bushes. Isolated, he began to draw a design in the rich soil: a large circle, filled with various squiggles, runes, and signs, not unlike the tattoos upon his bald scalp. Finally, he knelt beside the design, and spoke softly, his voice a whisper.
"I call upon you, Naberius, the Grinning Hound. Grant to me your knowledge and guile, for I stand before your seal and wish to make a pact."

Animesh did not leave the copse of trees a few minutes later; if anybody had been watching, an elderly, overweight dwarf exited the trees, and returned to the city. But it was still Animesh walking the city streets, and he no longer walked them alone...

The following evening, Animesh found himself at the gates of Vanderboren manor. The vestige was gone, the pact only recently having expired. The memory of the Hound's presence was a bitter one: the wily vestige had not parted with a scrap of information, and seemed to taunt him in his ignorance. For once, he was relieved to be 'alone' once more. He was dressed in his nicest clothes; a baggy pair of burlap pants, worn leather boots, and his wool vest. He hoped he did not look too much like a beggar, but there was little for it; contrary to popular belief, he was poor, and it wouldn't do to attend such a meeting clad in plate armor.
As he walked across the luxuriant green, he saw an eye-catching young woman knocking at the door. Animesh approached her nonchalantly, a smile upon his well-tanned face.
"Good evening. I see Lady Vanderboren has extended her hospitality to more than one person. Most interesting. You look somewhat familiar... ah, where are my manners? I am Animesh. Animesh Vance."
He did not extend a hand, but did a small bow, his mustachios jangling a bit as he did so.

[dathom]

It is mid-morning, the sun has risen and Jasren Holdrath is already poring through his spellbook as he sits in his family's garden. Already knowing the routine, he has about 13 minutes before his father would come out to begin preparing the shop for today's business.

Jasren's brother sits under a tree, looking over his own spell book as the two wait for their father to arrive. Dressed in his soft, cotton robes, Jasren rehearses the final phrase of a spell that he would need for today's work before closing his spellbook and rising to enter his home.

Each day is the same here in the Noble District. Once preparations were finished, Holdrath's Trinkets would open and a day of talking to various stuck-up nobles and their servants would begin. As Jasren started laying out his family's wares, his mind wanders to after work and how he would use that time to slip out to the Azure district to see what types of exotic things he might find there today.

After work, Jasren gathers up his things and changes his clothing to the more durable black boots and brown pants with a simple, white cotton shirt. Once dressed, he heads to the Azure district, where he has always felt more comfortable. As a transmuter, he is often looked down upon and seen as having something to prove, however, his skill in transmutation magic has given Jasren a fresh perspective on life. Instead of being stuck in the everyday rut of life in the noble district, Jasren was determined to change his stars, to make something of himself that would grant him adventure.

Stopping in at Best Bait and Desserts, he says a calm hello to Janina, whose life he had unexpectedly saved just a short week ago. His family was still angry at the risk he had took in facing off against the two hoodlums who had been accosting the young woman. That was understandable for he had walked away with a wounded leg which cost the family a good amount to get healed. However, Jasren was not the type to let types like those hooligans have their way. besides, he walked away with a good story.

Seeing the young wizard approach the counter, Janina gives a shy smile as she says, "An elder halfling came by and left this for you."

Taking the offered note, Jasren thanked Janina as he read over the note. A little taken aback by the invitation, Jasren weighs his options; spend another evening escaping his sedimentary life or do something that could add a little excitement.

Thanking Janina for the message, Jasren leaves the shop with purpose as he makes his way home to get everything prepared for the dinner the following evening.

[The Tygre]

Essel is careful with the note as he takes it to the Church. He patiently waits for one of the higher knights to meet him. The little halfling paces back and forth, recalling what he knows of Lavinia off of his experiences with the nobles of Sasserine.* Essel finds himself interrupted by a dancer, one of Gwynharwyf's favored. He knows this dancer; a half-elf by the name of Silas. "What can I do for you, brother Essel?", Silas wonders out loud. The halfling tries to be at ease as he asks, "I was given this early this morning, coming back from a bath. I had heard that the Vanderborens needed help; everyone has. So why was it given to me?"

"That's right there in the note; uniquely suited for your skills."

"I don't really understand, I'm afraid."

"You have experience with the nobles. She gave a call to the Church, and we're answering."

"I'm not really high class, you know. And by 'not really', I mean 'not at all'. That's just what I studied in my squire-hood."

"Never the less, you're the one for the job. People seem to trust you, Essel. And this serves another function; it will be your first mission for the Church by yourself."

"That's what worries me. Do you really think I'm ready for this?"

"Of course we do! Fury's cuts, most squires are already griping about not being sent against an army of goblins or to explore Castle Greyhawk by now! It's just a little noble's feud, you know that."

"... You're right. And I've got to learn to rely less on my brothers and sisters. Set out on my own."

"That's the spirit! Just remember that there's a difference between being independent and being alone."

"I will."

"Winds at your back, brother Essel."

"Winds at your back, ser."

After the conversation with Silas, Essel heads out for a little while. He garners what information he can from the streets before his afternoon practices. In the evening, Essel puts on a blue velvet tabbard over a good set of clothes. He wants to look his best, after all. With that, Essel heads out for dinner with Lavinia. Arriving at the front door, he sees the two peoples and barks out a quick "Halloh!"

[Dr Strangelove]

Davina read the note again, but it didn't make any more sense the second time through. Translators were a copper for the halfscore in a city like Sasserine, so this Vanderboren must be interested in Davina's less reputable skills. But if it was thievery that Vanderboren wanted, why had she written a note? Wasn't the first rule of criminal proceedings to write nothing down? So either Vanderboren was stupid, or she was desperate. And Davina, she reflected with a bitter laugh, was both. She handed the note back to the halfling.
"Tell your mistress that I'll be there.

Later that day, Davina walked to the Vanderboren 'manor - really a large house. She checked as she saw other people standing at the door: a dark, curious-looking man, and a statuesque woman of the sort that had always made Davina bristle with envy. Apparently Vanderboren had invited more than one person. Davina shrugged, feeling the comforting weight of her rapier and crossbow on her back, and padded through the open gates. Standing a little back from the door, she watched the dark man give the woman a bow, and smiled slightly before speaking.
"Fellow invitees?"

[Callos_DeTerran]

More and more people seem to arrive as time passes on, even after Adrie had knocked considering the door hadn't opened yet. Not that there wasn't activity on the other side, anyone listening to the door closely enough can hear shuffling foot steps slowly approaching the door. It's only once all those who had arrived had begun to talk to one another that the double doors to open up a crack, revealing the same wizened halfling woman who had first brought some of you the note.

"Ahhh..I see that not all of the mistress' invitees decided to show up. A shame." the old woman murmurs to herself, as if unaware that those present can actually hear her, "Well some is better then none, come in then if you must. 'Kora, be polite to my guests' Lavinia said and so I shall. Just be certain to leave your boots and shoes by the door unless you want an old thing like myself scrubbing the floor when you leave."

Without waiting for a reply the halfling, Kora, turns and leads the way into the manor house. She guides the five into a splendidly decorated atrium that is at odds with the current state of neglect seen in the front garden. This enormous great hall's marble stonework is smooth and white. Two oak stairwells with burnished brass railings ascend to an open first-floor landing. Tapestries depicting a beautiful and savage frontier of sprawling jungle landscapes and an eerie shoreline hang from the upper landing. A glass chandelier hangs from the atrium's ceiling, left unlighted considering the daylight still pouring in through the windows.

"You can wait here for now. The mistress has other guests that she is seeing at the moment, but she'll be with you shortly. If you need anything then you can just give me a holler." the old house servant says, gesturing around the atrium before shuffling up the stairs to the second story, muttering under her breath about vagrants and loud-mouthed braggarts. The first part could apply to those who had just arrived, but she hadn't let them get a word in edgewise with her! The braggart comment must be meant for the other guests...

A chance to introduce yourselves to one another real fast before meeting with Lavinia.

[dathom]

Jasren had been walking down Blue Skink Lane when he spotted others gathered out in front of the place he was invited to enter. So, its to be a social event then, he thought as he saw them move into the house. Picking up the pace, he arrives, breathless, just as the door shuts.

Pausing for a moment to regain his breath, he knocks, hoping that those inside had heard.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh steps into the landing, his arms folded behind his back. Unlike Davina, the only weapon he carried was a dagger strapped to his belt. He eyed Davina's weapons for a moment, his face a mask, before shifting his gaze to look her in the eye, and smiling politely.
"I'm assuming we all received a similar missive, then. You certainly came prepared for an interesting evening, m'lady."
Again, Animesh gives a little bow to Davina, giving her a better look at the intricate tattoos on the top of his head for a brief moment. He addresses the group, his voice soft and cordial.
"It is good to meet you all. I am Animesh. Unless I'm gravely mistaken, I take it we will all be working together very soon."
The knock interrupts him. He arches an eyebrow before opening the door, seeing the out of breath newcomer.
"Here at the invitation of Lady Vanderboren? Do come in."

[dathom]

Stepping in, Jasren gives a quick nod before saying, "Sorry I'm late. It was rather difficult getting here. The boatsmen are rather busy today. I am Jasren, and I guess we are to dine together tonight." Passing his gaze over the many weapons that Davina wore before continuing with, "At lease I THOUGHT it was just dinner."

[Dr Strangelove]

"I believe it's dinner and discussion of paid employment," said Davina, keeping one eye on Animesh. "I assume you're here for the same reason. I'm Davina."

[The Tygre]

"I hope she feeds us soon, then. I'm Essel. I come from the Church of the Whirling Fury. We seem to have an interesting little posse here tonight, now don't we?"

[Mordokai]

She paid close attention to everybody. What a colorful bunch this Lavinia has gathered. This held promise.

"It is nice to meet you all. My name is Adrie and I am entertainer by proffesion. I am sure I am not the only one to be curious of the reason why we were summoned here, but perhaps somebody has more information than I do?"

[CockroachTeaParty]

"The note I received was rather vague... I imagine that was a security measure. With increasing certainty, I think it is safe to assume that whatever offer awaits us is privileged information."
Animesh paces as he speaks, scrutinizing the tapestries with interest.
"Well met, everyone. Well met. Adrie... yes... I believe I saw you perform a week ago somewhere in the Merchant District. They say music has a magic all its own, and if that is true, you are quite the archmage-in-making."
He stops to regard the halfling. Given the height difference, a bow would look strange, so he gives Essel a nod, and a polite hand gesture.
"So you are a halfling of the cloth, then, Essel? I must confess my ignorance of the church of which you speak. To what deity does the Whirling Fury refer?"

[Mordokai]

Adrie smiles at Animesh's compliment.

You sure know how to flatter a lady Animesh. I thank you for your compliment and I believe it is honest. But I am but a novice and it's a long way towards archmage. Still, it is always a pleasure to hear my music bring joy to people."

She then turns her attention towards Essel. She too is interested in who or what this Whirling Fury is.

[Callos_DeTerran]

The wait for the meeting with Lavinia doesn't take quite as long as Kora might have implied it would, the noise of boots on the wooden floor soon reaching the ears of all present before their owners can be seen. A group of four people troop out of the back of the manor, talking quietly amongst themselves as they make their way towards the front door, Kora hustling along after them in a huff.

Among the four is a jaunty male half-elf dressed in leather armor and armed with a half dozen daggers of different shapes, a somewhat seedy look to him that betrays him as a native of Shadowshore or some similar place in another city. Still, he seems competent for a wharf rat by the quick way he sizes up the five summoned to dinner in just a moment or so.

A dark-skinned dwarf with a sour expression dressed in green and brown robes and clutching a large curved spear walks beside him, an unusually serene expression on his face. He talks to the half-elf of various animals safe to eat in the Amedio Jungle, a topic his companion doesn't seem to be nearly as interested in.

An attractive, but haughty-looking, woman dressed in dark purple robes and with a tattoo of a crescent moon on one cheek trails a bit behind the last two. She appraises her surroundings in much the same manner that a money-lender would, no visible weapons carried on her person but that meant little when it comes to a person's ability to defend themselves as some of you know well.

And lastly, a tall and handsome man dressed in polished breastplate carrying a bastard sword leads the quartet. His rugged looks and the boisterous good will hinted at in his eyes has likely helped him to get far in life judging from the state of his equipment and almost palpable aura of confidence. The sort spoken of in tales that could inspire men and women to charge into the face of certain death. Not that he was leading any such death-charges right now.

It's the last fellow who pauses on the way out to take a longer look at the assembled companions, a smile coming to his face that exposes too-white teeth. "You must be the help Lavinia is bringing in to do the chores around here. Well, best of luck to ya. Means we won't have to do them."

And then he's gone, sweeping out the double doors without a second word or glance behind him. The only one left behind is Kora, who glares at the quartet who hadn't heeded the warning about leaving their boots by the door, contiuing the sullen glare before turning back to those assembled.

"Hmph. Mistress Lavinia will see you all now. If you'll please follow me?"

[Mordokai]

Making sure she takes her boots off and leaving them by the door as Kora asked them to do it, Adrie slowly follows the old halfing woman. She decides to strike a little conversation with her.

"A very nice place you have here, Ms. Kora. I assume you are the one making it cosy? If it's not too much to ask, how long have you been employed by Vanderboren family?"

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh stared after the other group for a moment. Things are getting more interesting by the minute, he reflected to himself. He followed Kora, his footwear still on, since removing them would mean he would be walking about barefooted, and he already resembled something of a pauper as it was. Considering the number of people entering and exiting the manor clad in armor and sporting weaponry, he realized that making a pact with Savnok probably would have been a good idea; tromping around in full plate would have made him look more respectable, or at least more intimidating.
As for the 'chores' mentioned by the man in the breastplate, Animesh could only speculate. It was time to learn just what sort of an offer this Vanderboren woman had in store for them...

[The Tygre]

Essel stands proud as he answers his companions, "The Whirling Fury is the name of Gwynharwyf, Lady of Swords, Knight of the Court of Stars, a noble amongst the celestials called the Eladrin. She rides on whirlwinds with her blades, cutting down the tyrannous and the wicked wherever she may find them. The Church is her hand on this plane, her shield and her strong arm. I am but a novice though, only recently leaving my squire-hood." He says this last part with a bit more demure than Gwynharwyf's introduction.

Essel keeps a close eye as the other adventurers interrupt him. He lets out a snort as the knight in shining armor passes by. Wordlessly, Essel takes off his shoes and enters the chamber. The halfling asks Kora, "So tell me, how did you come to work for the Vanderborens? Is it a family tradition, or are you away from your clan?"

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh arched an eyebrow as Essel described his church.
"The Court of Stars? Most interesting."
He said nothing more on the subject as he walked slowly behind the others, his arms folded behind his back. Animesh was always inherently cautious around religious types, but the fact that Essel apparently served a celestial paragon, rather than a deity, intrigued him. Perhaps, if he discovered Animesh's true nature, the halfling would be less wroth than some. Still, he wasn't about to give Essel an opportunity to judge his magic if he could help it. But the thought did a little to help him relax ever-so-slightly.
The bard, Adrie, was also not necessarily cause for alarm. Animesh had read, and heard on occasion, that bards, being usually open-minded and well-traveled, were not terribly quick to judge anything new or unusual. Indeed, some even thought the inherent mystery and romance of pact magic good fodder for stories and songs... If they believed in such things.
The others, however, were still wild cards to Animesh. As always, he quietly observed the proceedings, noting their mannerisms in an attempt to categorize them as best he could.

[Callos_DeTerran]

If anything, Kora seems a bit surprised at the sudden interest in her, but it doesn't keep her from puffing up with pride at Adrie's comments. "You're darn right it's me! The other servants, with their mercenary tendencies, left as soon as Lavinia couldn't afford to pay all of them anymore, can you imagine?"

The wizened halfling gives a sad shake of her head and a sigh before continuing.

"But I couldn't just leave the poor girl to revive her family and take care of her own manor, so old Kora is the last one here. Been serving this family for...hrm...well I was still...ah! Been serving this family for sixty years, through bigger crisis then this! They always manage to turn it around. This'll be no different, after all, she feels secure enough to offer you five jobs."

It's Essel's question that has Kora drawing back, looking surprised at the question before quickly responding in the small folk's own tongue.

"I..don't have a clan. I think. My family has lived in Sasserine for some time if that's what you mean, doing odd jobs here and there.."

[Mordokai]

Pondering on what she has learned thus far, Adrie slows her step down a little. The Jade Ravens are obviously their seniors here. Why would Lavinia want another group and one of relatively unknown people at that? Maybe that was what she was counting on. She looked at the others.

Essen seemed like a nice enough fellow. She wasn't familiar with this Gwa... Gwh... whatever his godess was called, but from what he said, she was against tyrany and that was good in her eyes. Jasren and Davinia had said nothing more then their names, though they both looked competent enough. She hoped that she would get to learn more about them soon.

Then there was Animesh. Something about him bothered her. Nothing she could put her finger on, but it appeared like he was hiding something. She dissmised it soon enough as her own paranoia. Everybody deserved an equal chance and she would it give it to him as well. It was only fair and time would tell sure enough.

Listening to Kora explaining about the current situation in Vanderboren family, her curiosity was piquied again. Seemed like the family had it's share of troubles already. This would merit a deeper exploration, in due time.

"You're a good person Kora. Lavinia is very happy to have a friend like you. I don't know many people who would persevere in situation like this out of sheer sense of loyalty. I admire that."

[dathom]

Startled a little by the rush of events, Jasren makes sure to remove his light boots, following the others in to meet Lavinia. He wasn't to impressed by the Jade ravens, sure they might have skill, but no discretion in how to show it.

Listening to the others as they head into the dining room, he does make sure to add, "Well, I for one am excited to be dining with the Lady. Otherwise I would be stuck working at my family's shop. That and my interest is piqued as to why the Lady would be interested in hiring us."

Though he wears rather normal clothing, perfectly fit for those from the Azure District:a loose, cotton shirt and durable pants, his manner of speech hints at someone with a formal education.

[Callos_DeTerran]

Kora's guidance through the manor house is not a particularly long one, taking the five to a private dining hall that lay towards the back of the Vanderboren Manor. The (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DiPN1pra59s) private dining hall is comfortable and cozy, softly lit by wall-mounted lanterns. A window overlooks the manor's central courtyard and the carpet is thick and soft. A large portrait (http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/6636/portraitofvanthus.png) hangs on the wall, a fine work depicting a handsome young man with a short beard. Despite any good looks the man in the portrait might have, it's offset by his sneering expression and the haunted look in his eyes. He's impeccably groomed and dressed as one might expect a lord would be expected to be garbed. The very picture of a disdainful young nobleman, the background set with dark and slightly ominous mountains.

Standing before the portrait is an attractive human woman (http://img84.imageshack.us/img84/7656/laviniavanderboren.png) wearing a long, flowing blue dress. She has more then a passing resemblance to the fellow on the wall, speaking of the likely blood relation between them, but the way they carry themselves makes for an easy way to tell the difference. Where the young man seems full of nothing but haughty disdain, warmth and a certain spark for life burns within her bright blue eyes. They share a sense of impeccable grooming between the two of them that only heightens the impression of nobility, her velvet dress lavishly decorated with gold designs and thread. The young woman, the only other person in the dining hall beside those who had just entered, also seems far more mannerly and eloquent, a sign of good upbringing if there ever was one. She smiles as she sees her faithful servant and those she leads into the room, gesturing towards the long table in the middle of the room set with a light, but exquisite smelling, meal.

Kora gives a quick bow, waiting for each of the quintet to enter before shuffling out with nary a word while your host takes her seat at the very head of the table. "Good afternoon, please have a seat. As you have undoubtedly guessed by now, I am Lavinia Vanderboren. It's a pleasure to meet all of you, I've heard such hopeful things about each of you."

The halfling returns at that moment, but only to pour a small glass of wine for each of Lavinia's guests.

"Ah, thank you Kora. I had forgotten the wine, thank you. Now..before I explain my proposition, do you have any questions for me?"

[Mordokai]

Adrie bows her head a little and returns Lavinia's smile.

"I cannot speak for others. However, I am interested in the following. Why me? I am but a simple bard and asides from my talent for music, they are nothing really special. I assume you will explain what would you have us do, but I am more then little curious."

She then takes the offered seat and takes a sip of wine, as she awaits Lavinia's response.

[dathom]

Wow. She is quite beautiful. Jasren thinks to himself as he looks upon the face of their host. She wasn't anything like the nobles he had dealt with before. None of the haughtiness or spoiled countenance that the customers at his family's shop often had.

Feeling that a formal introduction was in order, Jasren takes a barefooted step forward and says, "Though you seem to know our names already, I would like to introduce myself. I am Jasren Holdrath, and like some of the others gathered, I too am wondering why you have asked us to convene today."

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh takes in the scene, his face betraying nothing. He bows slightly to Lavinia, as he did for most of the others outside the manor.
"A pleasure to meet you, m'lady. Animesh Vance, at your service."
He held off on any questions. In time, perhaps... but for now, he was keen on listening to what she had to say, as well as the others. He wondered what exactly Lavinia had heard about him...

[Dr Strangelove]

Davina glances around the richly furnished room uneasily, remembering dozens of nights spent being seen and not heard in similar rooms. She taps her fingers together, amused by the irony. It was worth it, though. I might be in the same place, but it's a different situation. Employees are important, daughters aren't. Jasren's little speech jolts her out of her thoughts, and she nods along with his words, before chiming in. I'm certainly wondering what kind of job you have in mind for such a disparate group. Something important, but not enough so to be worth the attention of the rather impressive lot we passed in the hall. Davina smiles and shrugs a little, to show that she takes no offence.

[The Tygre]

Essel nods at Kora, "I understand. There's nothing to be ashamed about. I'm separated from my own clan right now." Essel gives another bow to the old maid before entering the stately hall. The lanky halfling is quite impressed, and looks about in awe, focusing on the portrait of the nobleman on the wall. Essel listens as the others talk before he asks Lavinia quite unabruptly and humbly, "Would you mind if I smoked in here?"

[Callos_DeTerran]

"Yes, of course you can smoke in here. My father used have a fondness for it himself. As for you Adrie, you were referred to me by the Seekers when I asked them for aid. You seemed to have impressed someone with the successes you've had on their missions for you. Lavinia says honestly enough, trying to keep the mood pleasant and light despite the fact she had asked each of the five to come here for some task of hers. Finally, as she waits patiently for further questions, and hears none, she rises to her feet as a far more serious expression falls over her face.

"As you may have heard, I recently inherited my parents' estate. Along with this fine house, unfortunately, came a fine amount of debt owedthe Dawn Council, the harbormaster, and quite a few guildhalls. It seems my parents, for all their success as adventurers, were not as skilled at finance as one might expect. If I'm to get these taxes paid, I'll need to access my family's vault under Castle Teraknian." A brief pause then as the noblewoman gives a soft sigh, gaze dropping to the table-top, "And that's the problem, you see. The vaults are magically locked-keyed to special signet rings. Both of my parents had these rings, at least, until recently. My mother lost hers a few months ago. She arranged for a replacement, but it won't be done for another month or so, too late for me. Which leaves my father's ring. He never wore it-he had a thing about men wearing jewelry.He kept it hidden somewhere on his ship, the Blue Nixie. The problem there is that the harbormaster's seized the ship until someone pays for the last four months of mooring. I've paid the fines to the man the harbormaster's put in charge of my ship, a brute named Soller Vark. Yet when I went to claim my ship, Vark's men wouldn't let me board, claiming that I hadn't yet paid the fines. I spoke to Vark again and he denied ever receiving my payment. My complaints to the harbormaster have fallen on deaf ears-he's a doddering old fool who trusts his man and won't relent."

Another pause as Lavinia lets the information sink in, sharp blue eyes drifting from guest to guest as if to appraise their reaction before she continues once more, lips set in a firm line.

"Vark and his men are up to something on my ship, I know it. What I need is to find out exactly what they're up to. Unfortunately, Vark's not the type to react well to diplomacy or logic. I need someone who speaks his language... which is where you come in. If you can find out what he's using my ship for, or even better, recover the money I paid him, I'll pay each of you two hundred gold in return once I've access to my vault." At the mention of the proud mercenary company that had only recently left though, she clears her throat with a somewhat sheepish smile as her tone lightens from the grim seriousness it had held during her presentation, "Ah..you saw them then. Let me assure you that your task is just as important as theirs, the only difference is that it is considerably more dangerous. I simply wanted to leave it in the hands of a group that has worked with me before and that I knew I could trust."

[CockroachTeaParty]

At the mention of Lavinia's father's opinion on male jewelry, Animesh stroked his goatee defensively; it, his mustache, and his ears were heavily adorned with jewelry of all kinds. Still, he listened intently to Lavinia's tale, and the task assigned them. Recovery of payment, and if possible, a magic ring. It seemed simple enough.
He thought it odd that she was not pursuing more legal options... truly, these encroaching debts must be dire indeed, if she were seeking the immediate resolution of her problems through likely illegal means. Still, if she could afford to be rash, that wasn't his position to judge. Animesh would take the gold, regardless of what transpired aboard this ship...
"I'm assuming you're looking for at least a moderate amount of discretion, m'lady? If a fight were to break out on your ship, you wouldn't want your name attached to any trouble."
Animesh smiles, though his eyes do not.
"I'll need to take a look at the Blue Nixie before I can say anything with any confidence, but the task seems simple enough, and the payment more than adequate. I will help you. Are we operating under a certain time table? How long do we have?"

Already, Animesh was thinking of a certain forlorn elf, betrayed by love, whose power he could borrow for the occasion. Yes... the Turn Feather might prove useful. He glanced to his newly met co-workers, wondering what skills they could bring to the table.

[Mordokai]

She tries to hide her surprise with another smile. However, her eyes clearly betray her when Lavinia mentions the Seekers. She thought her association with the guild was a secret. That seemed to not be the case. That, or Lavinia had some very good connections.

"It is always good to know your employers have a good opinion of your skills. If that is the case, all I can promise is to serve you to the best of my abilities."

Listening to Animesh, she once again directs her attention to Lavinia.

"When you say Vark isn't open to diplomacy... what about his men? Could they be persuaded to change their mind? Turn against Vark? I found that a lot of fighting can be avoided with talking, you just need to find the right ear.
Barring that, anything else you can tell us about Vark? What history does he have, where does he come from... any information you could provide can be helpful. At the very least, can you estimate the number of people on board of Nixie, so we know what we're dealing with?"

[CockroachTeaParty]

At Adrie's question, Animesh turns to her and smiles.
"If Lavinia doesn't know, I'll soon find out. I have... ways, of gathering useful information. If it comes to boarding the ship, we won't be going in blind."

[The Tygre]

"One might almost think you're asking suspicious, Animesh." The halfling says as he lights up his pipe, though with a bit of a teasing half-smile. Essel turns to Lavinia again asking, "And speaking of your father, would that happen to be him in that picture there?"

[Dr Strangelove]

Davina frowns in thought as Lavinia explains the job. She had been hoping for something a little more straightforward: a murder, or theft. But the job did seem interesting, almost as interesting as her co-workers, and it would pay well. She rolls her eyes at Adrie's torrent of questions. This isn't going to be a trade negotiation, singer. Oh, how many guards...finally an intelligent question. She looks at Animesh, intrigued by his confidence. A sorcerer, perhaps? He doesn't have the look of a wizard.
That would be useful, she says to Animesh. I've a feeling this will involve skulduggery rather than diplomacy.

[Callos_DeTerran]

At Animesh's question about showing discretion, Lavinia's jaw sets and a hard glint comes into her eyes before she responds.

"If it comes down to a fight then all that I ask is that you don't throw the first punch. However...I can't imagine them putting up a fight in the first place unless they are up to no good. After all, it's not even their ship, it's mine!" She says adamantly, brow furrowed in consternation even before she addresses his other question, "As for time..I would prefer that the task is accomplished sooner rather then later. While I expect the Jade Ravens to be successful in asking my relatives in Cauldron for aid, I would still prefer to have a contingency to fall back on should they fail."

"Vark is, as I said, a brute but he didn't seem entirely without wits either. I cannot say for certain but I would think he would only have men and women that he trusts at his side. If you can turn that pack of wharf rats against their master though then I imagine it would be very helpful." Finally Lavinia sits once more, lifting up a knife and fork to begin delicately cutting apart her meal before continuing, "I confess, I don't know as much about Vark as I might otherwise hope to. I know that the harbormaster considers him like a son, considering his actual son is such a disappointment to him. I also know that, without proof of wrong-doing, that Vark is safe from my accusations to the city watch with their plates as full as they are."

Essel's question takes the young noblewoman by surprise though, making her fall silent even as she places her silverware back unto her plate.

"...No. That is my brother, Vanthus."

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh nods.
"Then we shall try to accomplish our goal as soon as we are able, m'lady. I'll leave discussion of tactics until after we leave; I imagine the planning stages would only serve to bore you."
Animesh sits down, and begins to eat his meal. He takes note of Lavinia's reaction to the mention of her brother.
"...Is Vanthus not able to join us this evening? Surely, he is interested in the recovery of your rightful property as well?"

Animesh felt they had hit a soft spot, and he was intrigued to learn more. The fact that Lavinia had inherited her family's estate, and not her brother, struck him as a unique situation.

[Mordokai]

Adrie decides the time has come for listening, not speaking. So, for the next few minutes, she spends her time eating the meal before her, occasionally taking a sip of wine. She listens to conversation around her and watches her new companions, trying to spot anything unusual about them. She also devotes some time to their patron. So far, Lavinia has seemed nothing but pleasant. But the whole Seeker bussines just doesn't leave her mind. Perhaps talking to Lavinia would offer some more information. Perhaps once the diner is over...

[The Tygre]

Essel puffs smoke from his pipe and asks, "Or would it be better off saying the young Vanderboren has a little too much stake?"

[Mordokai]

Adrie thinks to herself, I wonder whatever the halfing is insinuating. Still, she stays silent, waiting for Lavinia's response. Things are certainly becoming more interesting by the minute. When she got up, she couldn't dream of day being this turbulent. Deep down, she is highly amused by this, hoping that her face doesn't betray her.

[Callos_DeTerran]

"I wouldn't know, I haven't spoken to my brother in quite some time. My parents and he...had a falling out and he was sent to live with one of my uncles. I haven't really seen him much since then; we live different lives for the most part." Lavinia says softly, fidgeting uncomfortably in her seat as the conversation shifts among the five new companions to the point that it felt awkward to intrude amongst them. The Vanderboren woman falls silent as she eats the light supper, obviously brooding on the shift in conversation that had occurred.

When she finally does speak again, it's back to the business that she has assembled the five for.

"In any case...you may find the Blue Nixie at pier five in this very district. It's the long one between the Merchant's Guildhall and Smith's Guildhall. It shouldn't take long for you all to find it. Perhaps you'd even be able to bring it all to a resolution today?" She says hopefully, finally looking back up at her newest employees.

OOC: Just give a post if your characters are doing anything before going to find the Nixie or when they are going to do so and I'll post for the entrance to the dock.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh reclines in his seat, and steeples his fingers under his chin for a moment as he ponders, his bronzed face a mask. Finally, after finishing his dinner, he stands.
"Well, my lady, thank you for your hospitality. We will hopefully have this matter resolved as soon as possible."
He turns to his new-found 'coworkers,' standing as he does so.
"Before we can proceed, I must fetch a few of my personal belongings. Then, I believe I'm going to head to the pier and have a look around. We should decide on a meeting place close by... Perhaps the The Drunk Bear? It's a tavern on the corner of Mead Street and Main, a short walk from the docks. At any rate, that's where I'll be this evening. I'll see you all later this evening, perhaps?"


Animesh is going to return to the Sunrise District, back to the isolated grove he visited yesterday. If anyone wants to accompany him, he will insist it is too far out of the way to be convenient, and would just be wasting their time, or make up any excuse to make sure he's alone. Once there, he will retrieve his armor and weaponry from a hidden space underneath a stump, and then draw the seal of Malphas the Turnfeather...

At the copse...

Alone again, with the stars just beginning to come out, Animesh finished drawing the seal with a stick in the dirt. As he knelt before the seal, he whispered into the evening air.
"I call upon you, Malphas the Turnfeather. Render unto me your powers of stealth, for I stand before your seal and am in need."
From out of the darkness, a pale elf clad all in black stepped onto the glyph, his hair composed of black raven's feathers...


Binding check, DC 15
[roll0]


As the elf fades into nothingness, Animesh cannot help but smile triumphantly. He was in control; Malphas would provide him with his powers, leaving his emotions alone. He removed a small steel mirror, and in the gloom opened his mouth as he looked upon his reflection. His tongue and teeth had turned pitch black. He sighed, and covered his mouth with a thin scarf, before donning his armor and heading back to the Merchant's district.

Once at the pier, he sticks to the shadows, seeing what there was to see...

[Mordokai]

Seeing Lavinia's discomfort, Adrie sets her silverware back down on the table and turns towards their patron.

"We shall strive towards speedy solution of your predicament, I can promise you that much. I thank you sincerely for a fine dinner you have provided us with and I will now take my leave of you. I hope we get to speak soon again."

Hearing Animesh speak up, she turn towards him.

"Drunk Bear sounds like a great place for meeting. I'll be there by the night as well. Guess we'll see each other then. I have some more work to do, but I shall meet you at the docks as soon as I'm done."

When that is done, she puts her boots back on and heads out of the Vanderboren manor. She sets course for Drunken bear and when she buys herself a pitcher of ale and strikes a conversation with bartender.

Adrie will ask the bartender if he got any information on the Blue Nixie, it's current crew and if any of the sailors is a regular at the Drunk bear. And most important, if any of them is currently in the inn.

Gather Information: [roll0]

[Dr Strangelove]

Davina's lips quirk into a reluctant smile at Adrie's diplomatically vague promises to Lavinia. Like the singer said, we'll do our best. Thanks for the meal. She stands up, and gives Lavinia a small bow before leaving.

As going back to her lodgings would only raise the ugly subject of unpaid rent, Davina wanders around the city for a little while, thinking about nothing in particular, before walking to the Drunk Bear and taking a table in a corner.

[Callos_DeTerran]

At Drunken Bear

The tavern seems to be full of regular clientele, people who seem familiar with the servers and the dour bartender who's quick with the drinks people ask for, seemingly to just get them out of his hair as quickly as possible. This same attitude applies to Adrie who gets a...less then cordial answer that his patrons wanted privacy when they came to his tavern and that he'd need something to make up for the potentially lost business if the men and women she's asking about should find out he's ratted them out.

Davina's seat in the corner gives her a fine view of the common room, including her erstwhile comrade trying to ply the owner for information. For the most part, the other patrons aren't particularly notable. Mostly just dockworkers or off-duty porters seeking a reprieve from the heavy heat outside with a cold pint or two. However, here and there, there are still those who cannot help but stand out as unusual.

Close to the door is a pale man with sharp features and close-cut blond hair surveying the common room much like she is, though something about his cold blue eyes strikes her as threatening. He sits alone and doesn't seem to have any food or drink in front of him either.

A loud game of dice seems to have attracted several intriguing folk as well, the look about them the same as those used to braving dangers and death for the whispered treasures that might come with them. As a matter of fact, she could almost swear she spots one of the four Jade Ravens among their number as well...

===========================

Pier Five

Animesh can tell that something is wrong the moment he comes to the pier that Lavinia has told them about, but determining just what was wrong was as easy as pie. The Blue Nixie isn't in port at all, but rather moored about a hundred feet off shore in the bay itself. Even from this distance he can spy figures languishing about the deck though details are more then a bit more difficult to tell at this range.

For a ship that had been grounded because it's owner couldn't pay it's debts, Vark seemed to have taken some liberties about just what 'grounded' meant and had moved the Blue Nixie well away from the pier itself.

[Mordokai]

Adrie smiles at the bartender. He was a crafty one. She tried to seal the deal and haggle a little. If he would settle for a small enough price, maybe she would pay.

Whatever the bartender is asking for, Adrie will try to drive the price down to half of it, or the next best. Diplomacy: [roll0]

At about the same time she notices Davinia at one of the other tables. Raising her pint of ale, she winks to her, as if to inform her she will get to her presently, just as soon as she seals the deal over here.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh sits down on the edge of the pier, letting his legs dangle over the water. It wouldn't have been an easy task to sneak onto the ship were it moored at the pier; approaching it in the middle of the water would be even more difficult. However, Animesh viewed it as a mixed burden: on the one hand, it would be more difficult to approach, but on the other, they were less likely to be accosted by the city watch or attract unwanted observers should a fight break out.

However, planning could be saved for later; there was work to be done. Animesh held out his right arm, and seemingly from out of nowhere, a white dove fluttered down and landed on his hand. He closed his eyes and concentrated... then, he saw his own face, from the perspective of the bird on his arm. He opened his eyes, and there was the dove, cooing softly. He smiled beneath his scarf, and let the dove fly off towards the Blue Nixie. He then closed his eyes again, and suddenly was watching the dark water move beneath him, until he was close to the ship, where he landed on a likely perch on the main mast...


Sending Malphas' bird a-scouting. Animesh uses the dove's senses (counts as a raven statistically, Listen+5, Spot+7, low-light vision).

He's looking for anything of interest. How many people seem to be on the boat, if they're armed, what they're doing, their general state of awareness, etc.

[The Tygre]

Essel had left with the others, still smoking his pipe on the way out. It was only until he was half-way out of the Vanderboren house that he realized he wasn't keeping track of where he was going. The lean halfling went back to his cozy little shelter and changed outfits quickly. Jostling down the street, armor clanking, Essel kept a cloak around him as he entered the bar. The paladin surveyed his surroundings, and couldn't help but notice the dice game. Taking a seat not too far by, Essel keeps a pointed ear up to find out what game it is.

[Dr Strangelove]

Waiting for Adrie to finish her business with the bartender, Davina scans the room - partly out of reflex, and partly out of nervousness. After all, this is the first criminal enterprise that she's been involved with, and it's very exciting. Well, the thing with the wagon company was similar, but doesn't really count.

Scan the room for anything unusual, Spot +1 [roll0]

[Callos_DeTerran]

Animesh

The dove is quickly across the distance between the pier and the Blue Nixie, the three masted ship rocking gently back and forth with the waves in the port. It looks to be a fine ship though suffers from some mild neglect here and there. It is able to spy two people on the main deck, a man and a woman, who lounge against the railing that is aimed towards the docks. They wear rapiers on one hip with a small, loaded, crossbow on the other by a small quiver full of bolts. Not the most alert guards in the world, but they seem attentive enough.

Another one of Vark's men is on the quarter deck, back against the wheel as he lifts a rotten looking pipe to his lips and busies himself with blowing out smoke rings. Like the other two, he carries a rapier and small crossbow but seems to be relying on the other two for any warning about someone approaching.

http://img12.imageshack.us/img12/9937/bluenixiemap2.png

Don't ask why it's so mangled, best I could do. :smalltongue:

Drunken Bear

With a quick pass of a few silver coins, the bartender's mood seems to improve by a fair bit as he flashes a gap-toothed smile and palms the coins. With a subtle glance about, he leans in closer to Adrie before speaking.

"Ya, one'em dogs comes he'e often. Haven't seen 'is mangy arse fer a couple days though. Figure someone wanted ta collect on 'is debts or he's workin' out ta sea. Ain't none of my business anyway. Lousy tipper." he says pointedly, giving another look at Adrie's money purse.

On the other side of the common room, Ettel watches the dice game progress with some fascination. There doesn't seem to be any particular rules (or a name for it that matter) to it, but rather a test of speed. Players would put their money into the 'pot', one of which would roll a set of dice and then, the moment the dice came to rest, all of the players would grab as much of the pot as they could before there was nothing left. As far as he can tell, there's no clear winner based on the dice roll but who can grab the most coin..

Davina scans the common room once more for anything that's particularly unusual, but beyond those first few oddities that she had noticed spots no one else of particular interest to be had.

[Mordokai]

Rolling her eyes, Adrie takes out a single silver coin and puts it on a palm of her hand.

"You see this, my friend? Well, now you don't see it anymore."

With that, she pulls her other hand over her palm and the coin seems to vanish from sight. With the coin resting safely in her sleeve, Adrie once again adresses the bartender.

"Well, I suppose I would be willing to part with a few more of those beauties... if you can promise me something more than just idle rumors." She leans a little closer and whispers, so only the bartender can hear her. "And I'm not talking just about idle chatter here. Who is this man we're speaking about, who wanted to collect from him... would, saaay... another five silver coins be enough for you to part with this information? I promise you, this infomation shall not leave this room."

Diplomacy: [roll0]

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh makes a mental map of all that the bird sees. The goons seem none the wiser, and after a time he relinquishes control of the bird, returning to his own senses. Making sure his scarf is covering his mouth, he sets off for the Drunken Bear.

When Animesh arrives at the tavern, he seems completely changed. Gone are the loose trousers and shabby vest, replaced by a full-covering suit of studded leather armor. A spear is strapped to his back, and a crossbow hangs from a leather thong on his belt. A thin scarf covers his head, revealing nothing but his eyes and the bridge of his nose. He walks past each of you in turn, muttering your name and motioning for you to join him at a table in the corner.
"Adrie... Davina, Essel... Jasren. It's me, Animesh. I've some interesting information..."

(He'll wait for any other conversations, etc., to resolve themselves, before continuing)

"If you'll pardon the change in appearance... I thought discretion would be prudent, and I don't want my face tied to anything that may or may not happen tonight. We shouldn't really have to worry about that regardless, as I've just been to the Nixie's pier, and found her missing. She hasn't gone far, only a few hundred feet or so from the docks. She's being guarded by some bored-looking goons. We'll have to figure out a way to board her, either by making the swim or 'procuring' a boat to take us over. Once we're there, well... we probably won't have to worry about being interrupted, or distracted. There's at least three guards on the boat, probably more. I suppose you'll see for yourselves soon enough, assuming we want to proceed tonight?"

[The Tygre]

Essel follows after Animesh, the dice game losing his interest. He listens to the mage, and says, "I don't like the sound of swimming." Essel notes, lightly rapping on his armor. "But what's the damn thing doing out there anyway? Did Lavinia know about this, or is this something new? And these goons... are you sure they weren't Vanderboren men? Nobles will do stupid things to protect their assets."

[Dr Strangelove]

I agree about the swimming, Davina says, nodding to Essel. Fighting in wet leather is...well, it chafes. I vote for a boat. She frowns in thought. They can't be Vanderboren's guards, that doesn't make any sense. Unless she's setting us up to die, of course - but I haven't been in town long enough to inspire that kind of hate. Sounds more like this Vark is up to something he doesn't want anyone to see. Might be a way to get some leverage on him. Or we could just kill him, which is what we'll probably end up doing anyway, Davina adds in her head. Always better to start with the nice option, and use violence as a fallback.

[The Tygre]

"Good point. But what if it wasn't Lavinia who hired them? She said she was having some trouble with her brother, after all."

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh leans forward in his chair, his voice muffled slightly by the scarf.
"From what I saw, I'll have to go with my gut: those aren't Vanderboren men on that boat. I'd wager my cut they're Vark's goons. The only reason I could think for them to be out in the water is if they're up to something illegal. Smuggling, probably. If they are up to no good, then they will be even less happy to have unwanted visitors in the night. They were armed with crossbows and cutlasses, from what I saw, but little in the way of armor.
I don't own a rowboat... it probably wouldn't be too hard to find one somewhere, and 'borrow' it for a while.
We can go down there now, if you like. There's nobody around, really. We can see if anything's changed."

[Dr Strangelove]

If nothing's moving on the boat, I suggest we board tonight and have a look around, Davina says. The longer we wait, the better the chances of this Vark hearing that Vanderboren hired somebody, which will just make everything harder.

[Callos_DeTerran]

Adrie's conversation with the bartender seems to take a turn for the worse, while he is impressed by the act of dexterity, even going so far as to crack a smile, his eyes turn flinty at Adrie's request.

"It doesn't need to leave the room to hurt my business, or worse, me. Are you going to order something to drink or are you going to persist in wasting my time?" He says shortly, taking a moment to spit on the ground beside his feet. The man seems far less amicable to conversation now, even with the promise of continued coin for his information.

[Mordokai]

Adrie shrugs at this newest development and pockets her coins back in her purse. She looks back to the table where she saw Davinia and notices with some surprise that she is not alone anymore. Essel and Animesh also seem to have find their path to the Drunken Bear. She quickly joins them. After brief explanation of the information she got from the bartender and listening to what Animesh has to say, she thinks a little.

"It's probably best we move fast. Like Davinia suggested, the longer we dilly dally, the higher the chances Vark learns something about everything. If we can... procure the boat, I say we do it right away. I don't much care for the idea of swimming, to be honest."

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh stands.
"Right. Let's go, then."
He leads the way out of the bar, and back to the pier where the Nixie floats tantalizingly out of reach.
"Well, if we're going to board her tonight, we'll have to find a rowboat and oars."
He looks at the boat for a moment, his back to the group, before speaking again.
"Once we're aboard... how do we wish to go about things? Ideally, I'd just search for the ring and leave without being detected, but I don't think any of us are stealthy enough to pull that off. The guards are going to notice us, and I have a feeling they won't be much for talking. We can try to stall them with words, but if a fight should break out... We're going to have to watch each others backs. Two hundred gold isn't worth throwing your life away, so don't do anything rash, and don't play the hero. If things go south, get out of there."
He turns back to face the party again.
"Well... I'm going to have a look around. If we can't find a boat, maybe we can hire one, but the less people know about what we're doing, the better."


Search check to find an unattended rowboat and an oar or two: [roll0]

Edit: DERP.

[Dr Strangelove]

Davina raises an eyebrow at Adrie. It's Davina, singer. Unlike the rather overblown names of the local nobility, my family doesn't - didn't - tend towards vowel-cascades. She follows along with Animesh's futile search for a boat, but doesn't really have anything to contribute - she's never even taken a sea voyage. An intelligent, capable man with an air of command...but not too good at finding things. I suppose we all have our blind spots. She coughs into her hand, before speaking to Animesh. Well, I suppose they wouldn't just leave them floating around.

Sorry Mordokai, but Davina is the kind of person who would correct Adrie's pronunciation. :smallsmile: Davina will aid another on Animesh, just in case the DC was 5 (also because she likes him).

[Mordokai]

Adrie smiles at Davina, but there's a spark in her eyes.

"And it's Adrie, Davina. Now, with that out of way, I hope we can agree there are more important manners on hand and we can bicker about this later."

With that, Adrie sets out on her own to look for a boat.

[The Tygre]

"I think we should stay close. Vark might've already got wind of us, for all we know."

Essel adds his Aid Another to Animesh's Search as well.

[Callos_DeTerran]

The four companions talk quietly amongst themselves about their course of action, but, in the end, they decide to go with Animesh's and Davina's advice to approach under the cover of night so as to appraise the situation before jumping into it feet first. They wait in the inn for both the sun to fall and for their last companion Jasren to arrive, but something seems to have delayed the mage and so they decide to leave without him. Davina and Essel keep an eye on the Blue Nixie while Animesh and Adrie search for a row-boat to borrow for their task, watching as more torches are lighted on the ship's deck as the night grows darker, watching shadows dart about on their own business.

Soon enough though, Animesh returns to tell them that they've found a boat and in only a couple of minutes the four have pushed the boat out into the bay and stroke silently towards it. None of them decide to light a torch or talk, keeping silent except for the soft noise of the oars dipping into the water as Essel and Animesh take turns at pulling the oak to preserve their own strengths. There is a moment of panic when one of the sentries seems to notice something out on the water, but after a few tense moments they seem to dismiss the sight and turn their attention elsewhere.

Once the rowboat nudges gently against the hull, Animesh pulls a white dove from inside of his clothing and armor, gently releasing it into the air. It flies out in a slow circle to bring it over the ship at the very edge of the illumination...

Animesh
Your supernatural link with the bird reveals that the deck of the Blue Nixie has turned into a nest of activity with close to eight men and women constantly bustling down into the hold and back out again, usually carrying wooden or bamboo cages. They hold sickly looking exotic animals, that have definitely seen better days, but their purpose is unknown.

[CockroachTeaParty]

As the dove inexplicably flutters around the boat, Animesh closes his eyes, as if in deep concentration. Finally, he opens them, and speaks to his companions in the boat in a whisper.
"Looks like there's around eight people on the boat. I believe they're smuggling exotic animals, from the looks of it. Probably won't be too happy to see us."
He removes a light crossbow from his belt, and loads a bolt into it.
"Don't ask about the bird. I'll explain later."


Unless anybody's got any spells or other preparations, Animesh is as ready as he'll ever be. I suppose we got to make Climb checks to get on the deck?
Climb check: [roll0]

[Dr Strangelove]

We're about to sneak aboard a ship under the nose of its guards, and he thinks I'm worrying about the wildlife? Davina shrugs, and prepares herself to climb up after Animesh, moving as quietly as possible.

Climb [roll0] and Move Silently [roll1]

[Mordokai]

Adrie looks up the ships side and curses in Elven under breath, so not even Animesh and Davinia could hear her, let alone anybody on the ship. She isn't too concerned about Essel, hoping that at the very least he isn't familiar with the tongue of her mother. She then slowly stars climbing as well. Light as it may be, her armor still provides added difficulty and she hopes that combined with her inexperience in climbing won't spell an early disaster for their mission.

[roll0]

[The Tygre]

"... This will -not- end well for me." Essel sighs as he begins his attempt to scale the ship.

Climb:[roll0]
Move Silently:[roll1]

[Callos_DeTerran]

As quietly as possible, the four manuever the rowboat around the Blue Nixie, looking for the best place to climb aboard and finding the anchor line. Quickly, Animesh and Davina grab hold of it and pull themselves hand over hand along it's tar-soaked length, but as they reach the top all four have to wince as the two clatter over the railing and unto the fo'c'sle deck where Animesh hadn't seen any of Vark's men at the time. Quickly they lean back over the railing to lend a helping hand to Adrie and Essel who are proving to have some difficulties with the sticky rope and the slippery hull of the ship. Still, they manage to get up and over the side with more silence then Animesh and Davina had but it's only after that the sudden cessation of activity down on the main deck becomes apparent.

The four grungy men and women who were currently on deck stare wide-eyed at the intruders before abruptly dropping their cawing packages. Two of them, the ones closest to the fo'c'sle quickly pull their rapiers from their belt and rush the two stair cases leading up to where the four stand.

"Intruders! We've 'ot intruders boss!" The man coming up the right staircase bawls as he slows his approach, wetting his lips as he slows his approach and passes his rapier from one hand to the other as he slides towards Animesh. His compatriot shows no such restraint, barreling up the steps and moving to circle the forward mast to get a clear path at those still by the railing.

The remaining two begin to scramble for the light crossbows hooked on their belts, though they fumble with the bindings and fill the air with colorful swearing as it proves slower then they might have wanted.

Need initiatives, two of the thugs heard you coming up the side of the ship (the one who drew rapiers) and are within move distance of...well any of you. The other two have not acted yet.

[The Tygre]

"Fie! I knew this wouldn't go smooth! Come on boys and girls! Put your best foot forward!" Essel shouts as he draws his scimitar.

Initiative:[roll0]

[Mordokai]

Adding more cursing on the list(though this time in her head only), Adrie clambers on the boat and quickly takes the situation in. Pulling her whip from the belt, she attempts to disarm one of the thugs with it.

As said, attempting a disarm with a whip. Adrie will take a move action to position herself in range of one of thugs with crossbows, avoiding AoO's while doing so, and try to disarm one of them. If that is not possible, she will instead try to disarm one of the rapier wielders instead. She will make sure that she doesn't provoke any AoO at any time.

[roll0]

[Dr Strangelove]

Well, it appears that this little jaunt is no longer discreet. Davina glances at the two thugs with crossbows, begins to reach for her own, but instead draws her rapier. Are we fighting to the death, or just to the pain? she calls to Animesh, as she moves to intercept the man by the forward mast.

Initiative [roll0] Attack [roll1]
Will move towards and attack the man near the mast.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh has his crossbow in hand as he vaults over the railing. As the sentries approach, he fires a bolt before dropping the weapon and drawing his spear. The shot goes wide, off into the darkness over the water. Animesh barely has time to notice as he braces for retaliation. He spares Davina a smirk (hidden by his scarf), remaining silent as the combat threatens to sweep over them...


I'll fire me crossbow at any goon not in melee and within 30 ft. range.
Attack: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1]
If the enemy is denied DEX to AC for any reason (such as being flat-footed) they'll take [roll2] Sudden Strike damage as well.
Then, free action: drop crossbow.
Move action: draw spear.

[The Tygre]

Essel grits his teeth as he slashes his scimitar at the nearest guard.

Attack:[roll0]
Damage:[roll1]

[Callos_DeTerran]

((Music (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Obmd6Z0K3mg)))

As the two rapier wielding thugs continue to approach up to where the four are reading themselves, Davina hurries to meet by the man coming around the mast. He lunges awkwardly at her with his own weapon, only for the agile rogue to slip around the slender blade and slice her own rapier across his outstretched wrist. With a yowl of pain he drops the weapon and clutches his wounded wrist, the desire to fight leaving his eyes. Quickly he turns and crosses the short distance towards the deck railing, vaulting himself over-top of it to land with a loud splash in the water below.

Animesh lands with a loud thud on the deck, finding an open door opening behind him to the lower decks as he quickly launches a bolt that flies wide of it's target, though his acrobatics draw the attention of the other rapier wielding thug who had advanced up the stairs. That man turns quickly, perhaps seeking to sneak in a quick stab from the higher ground the stairs afforded him, but it only opens him up to Essel's flashing scimitar as it creases his thigh. The halfling's target stumbles and falls down the stairs away from the sharp blade, a new and colorful bout of cursing escaping his lips.

Thud.

Thunk.

Two quarrels flash through the air, one burying itself in the door jam besides Animesh while the other proves more accurate. The bolt punctures his left arm, drawing a victorious smile from the cross-bow wielding woman who had fired it at him. Not that it lasted particularly long as Adrie slips past Essel to run down the stairs. Once she reaches the bottom, she quickly lashes out at the same thug who yelps at the loud crack before the whip coils about the stalk of her crossbow and it's wrenched out of her grasp.

"VARK! We need some help up here!" the second crossbow-wielding thug hollers as he back peddles until his back is up against the wall, frantically trying to reload his crossbow.

Initiative:
Davina
Rapier Wielding thug
Animesh
Essel
Crossbow Thugs
Adrie

Davina and Essel both get AoO on the two rapier wielders. Animesh takes 4 damage from the crossbow bolt. All can make a DC 10 Listen check to...

hear the noise of boots on wood coming from belowdecks.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Blinding pain shoots through Animesh's arm as he grits his teeth and pulls out the quarrel. Blood soaks through his leather armor, but the wound is fortunately less deep than it appears... he can at least still move the arm. Wasting no time, Animesh lowers his spear and closes to melee with the thugs; it appeared they were uncoordinated, with low morale. He hoped that would be their undoing...


HP: 6/10

Animesh will close to any likely-looking target, avoiding attacks of opportunity, and seeking to flank if the opportunity presents itself.
Attack with spear: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1]

[Dr Strangelove]

Davina lets out a bark of nervous laughter as her opponent leaps overboard, then sobers as Animesh is hit. She charges down to the two thugs with crossbows. Concentrate on your footwork she reminds herself, triumph and terror making the grip of he rapier slick with sweat.

Will attack the thugs, flanking if possible.
Rapier attack [roll0], damage [roll1], sneak attack (if applicable) [roll2].

[Mordokai]

A smile adorns Adrie's face as she snaps the crossbow away from the woman. It may be too late to save Animesh from that crossbow, but at least she can't do any more harm with it. Seeing the second thug trying to reload, she tries the same trick once again.

Trying to disarm the second thug, the one who's reloading crossbow. Same as before, move close enough to attack, avoiding AoO's.

[roll0]

At the same time, her ears catch a sound of boots on wood from belowdecks. She screams out to her compaions.

"We're about to get company!"

[The Tygre]

Essel lunges at the off-guard thug, sweeping with his scimitar.

Let's buckle our swash!

Taking my AoO.
Attack:[roll0]
Damage:[roll1]

[The Tygre]

And following through with a whole attack;

Attack:[roll0]
Damage:[roll1]

[Callos_DeTerran]

The brawl only escalates as Davina rushes down the stairs to the main deck, stepping forward in a fast lunge with her own rapier at the man still wielding his crossbow, though he side-steps the blow with a yelp of alarm. Essel's target on the stairs continues to back-pedal wildly, but the halfling is fast in pursuit and his next cut takes the man across the chest. He pauses, looking down at the red cut through his arm before falling back to clatter down to the main deck, eyes rolling back up into his head as he passes out from blood loss.

Eager to avoid getting hit with another quarrel, Animesh charges at the harried thug with the crossbow, trying to angle himself to take advantage of his blind-spot with Davina but it's too close for him to sneak by without opening himself up to attack. Shrugging off the lost advantage, the dark-skinned man stabs his spear forward, seeking to spit the crossbowman on it, though his aim is off and only pierces through the man's light leather armor.

Adrie chooses that moment to flick out her whip again, trying to snare the crossbow and yank it out of his hands like she had before. This time though, things don't go as she had planned and the weapon remains in his hands. Until he tosses it aside himself to rip the rapier from his belt. With a surprisingly deft flick of the wrist, he cuts Davina from right shoulder to left hip in a surprisingly deep cut. His companion, the one that Adrie had already disarmed, tries a similar assault on Adrie though it comes too soon and the bard is able to avoid the slash.

As if on cue, another man storms up from below with a wild-eyed look on his face to find his fellow thugs being hard pressed by the four companions, pushed back up against the side of the quarterdeck. He holds a loaded cross bow in one hand and a rapier in the other, firing a mis-aimed bolt at Animesh that embeds itself into the wall behind him.

Davina takes 7 points of damage from a lucky lucky rapier strike. One more thug comes up from below and misses Animesh. One more Listen check (same DC) will tell that one more person is still coming up.

[Mordokai]

Seeing Davina getting seriously damaged is enough to wipe a smile from Adrie's face. Dropping a whip, she takes a careful step back and pulls her longsword out of sheathe. She then whistles a sharp note and calls out to her friends.

"We have to finish this quickly! More thugs are on the way and Davina needs help!"

Five foot step away from current danger, drop whip as free action, draw longsword as part of move action. Using bardic music to invoke Inspire Courage. All allies who can hear her, Adrie included, get +1 to attack and damage, as long as she continues using this ability and for five rounds thereafter.

[The Tygre]

"Then let's finish this quickly!" Essel barks as he slashes the scimitar again, the crescent blade slicing through the air.

OOC
Attacking next nearest guard.
Attack:[roll0]
Damage:[roll1]

[CockroachTeaParty]

At the sound of Adrie's voice, Animesh all but forgets the pain in his arm. He grips his spear, and closes with his foes with renewed confidence and vigor.


HP: 6/10

Same deal as last round: closing with any foes, trying to get into a flanking position if possible, but avoiding any attack of opportunity chances.

Attack: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1]

[Callos_DeTerran]

Davina slumps to the deck as her wound saps her strength, leaving her pale in face even as reinforcements rush up towards the main deck. The remaining three don't lose hope though and the resurgence from the companions is enough to bring a note of hope to the frantic brawl.

Animesh closes with the man who had assaulted Davina who backs up frantically towards the rail to try and avoid the dusky skinned man's spear. In the end it proves futile though as Animesh's spear jabs him in the side. With a loud howl of pain, the thug swipes at Animesh with his own weapon to force him to back off before he tumbles over the railing to land in the bay below with a low splash.

Essel doesn't need to go far to find a new opponent either, clambering down the stairs to engage the wild-eyed man who had emerged from below before he could get a proper grip on the situation. The halfling's scimitar, once again, drops one of Vark's thugs in a quickly growing pool of his own blood as the halfing turns his gaze to the woman jabs ineffectually at Adrie as the later begins to hum and whistle an invigorating, jaunty tune. The optimistic, but keen-eared, Adrie continues to dance just out of range of her foe's weapon, knowing that her whip's greater reach gives her the advantage.

However, relief for the thuggish woman kicks open the only door set into the quarter-deck behind her and strides out with an animal-like snarl.

"Wha' in blazes is goin' on up here?!" the man (http://img407.imageshack.us/img407/4991/sollervarsk.png) roars with an air of brutish command about him. It could only be Vark himself, a salty cuss of a man who brandishes his knocked weapon in one ham-sized fist as his lip curls up to bare yellowed and rotten teeth. "By Wee Jas's ruby tits, who da ya think you are bargin' unto mah ship?!"

Animesh gets an AoO if you want to take it CTP. Essel drops his opponent with his critical and the woman misses. Spot check DC 20 from everyone still up and about.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh is about to spit over the side of the boat, but remembers the scarf covering his mouth and refrains from doing so. He turns to face the chaos on the deck; the battle could still turn either way. Essel seemed to know how to handle himself, and if Adrie could keep that song up, they might stand half a chance... then he noticed Vark's arrival.
He points at the man with an extended finger before gripping his bloody spear.
"Vark! Vanderboren's ring! Tell us where it is or die!"


I'll take that AoO:
Attack: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1]

Animesh will try to close and engage Vark in melee. However, he won't risk any AoO on his move, and will instead focus on a closer, safer target if necessary. At any rate, rolls:
Attack: [roll2]
Damage: [roll3]

Spot check: [roll4]

Is Davina unconscious/dying/staggered? Can we tell?

[Mordokai]

Adrie figures this wark might be quite a pleasant fellow, were it not obvious on the first glance that he's good for nothing bastard. When he proclaims the ship as "his", she actually gets quite angry with him. Pointing her weapon at him, she screams.

"This is not your ship Vark! And we intend to prove as much to you! If you know what's good for you, you'll leave right away and take your motley crew with you!

When Animesh lands a solid blow on Vark, her good mood once again returns and she calls out to Essel.

"Victory is close! Hang on tight! We'll win this one yet!"

Continuing to use Inspire Courage, stay on spot.

[roll0]

[The Tygre]

"Dog! Be gone! Deliver the Vanderboren ring, or this will be the last ship you stand on before Charon's ferry!"

Intimidate on Vark:[roll0]
Spot:[roll1]

[Callos_DeTerran]

Animesh's sudden rush takes the burly sailor off guard, slicing open Vark's side with a well placed thrust of his spear that makes the man snarl in pain. Quickly Vark's own weapon raises as he tries to smash the pommel of his worn rapier into the dark-skinned Animesh's nose, only for the peculiar-bearded man to quickly retreat out of the other man's range. Vark looks about the battle uneasily, beginning to sweat a bit as blood soaks his leather armor, watching as Adrie avoids another clumsy thrust from her own opponent with ease.

"Mera! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zndQCbXGM7A) Burn them! Burn them all!" He shrieks back into the Blue Nixie from the way he has come, planting himself solidly in the doorway as his eyes pass from Animesh to Essel and back again. Only a couple of moments later all three can hear the panicked noises of shrieking monkeys and animals as the unseen Mera begins the task appointed to them.

Lucky round for you guys, both Vark and the remaining bravo miss (horribly at that) but Vark is lucky and doesn't become demoralized by Essel's Intimidate check (though it was damn close)

[CockroachTeaParty]

The beginnings of panic threaten to stir within Animesh's stomach as the smell of burning wood fills his nose. While retrieving the ring was top priority, it wouldn't do their patron much good to lose the ship as well. They had to act fast.
Animesh could feel Malphas enjoying the ride, subtly encouraging him to take advantage of the powers granted... Quickly, Animesh makes a quick jab to the left, only to pull back and lunge at Vark's right flank, in an attempt to put him off his guard.


Animesh will try to feint Vark. Vark gets to make a Sense Motive check + his BAB against Animesh's Bluff check. If Animesh wins, Vark will be flat footed against the next attack Animesh makes against him, and thus susceptible to Sudden Strike damage, perhaps.

Bluff check: [roll0]

[Mordokai]

Burn them? This can't be good. We need to finish this quickly. Letting out one last whistle, as a final encouragment to her friends, Adrie takes a quick jab at the thugish woman.

"Give up and flee while you still can. Your friends have already deserted and your boss is ready to fry you. Is your life really worth that little?"

[roll0]

Rounds of inspire courage left: 5

[The Tygre]

"You heard, the lady; get. Either you go up in smoke or you go down with the ship, but stay here and we'll take you out."

Intimidate on the new comer:[roll0]

[Zar Peter]

With some banging and clinging suddenly a bald man attends at the railing of the ship. He is clothed in simple shirts and trousers but there is a big, black wooden shield on his back and a light mace hanging on his belt. He looks sinewy but not very muscular and has bright blue gleaming eyes. Without a word he takes the shield from his back in the left hand and the mace in his right hand and looks around to oversee the battlefield.

[Callos_DeTerran]

Animesh and Vark continue their deadly dance, the dark-skinned man leaving a small opening in his defenses that has Vark lunging at him viciously with his rapier. Only for Animesh to slap the skinny blade aside at the last second with the shaft of his spear, pushing the burly sailor off-guard and leaving him exposed to counter attack.

Meanwhile, Essel and Adrie press in at their opponent as indecision flickers across her face about if she should abandon her boss or not. As if on cue, a shrill shriek (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXzOdCY2P5M) sounds from below, quickly followed by the much more familiar noise of a woman screaming in pain and fear.

"Sorry boss, you aren't paying me enough!" the woman abruptly decides, dropping her rapier and raising her hands, moving to jump over the rails if Adrie and Essel don't make an attempt to stop her.

In all of the chaos, the sudden appearance of the well armed bald-man seems to go un-noticed, for the moment, as the three companions turn on Vark while Davina lays across the deck.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh saw the newcomer out of the corner of his eye, but he had to focus on Vark. The fact that he had swung up onto the deck from the darkness implied that he wasn't one of Vark's goons; whether he was city watch, an opportunistic marauder, or a madman was yet to be seen. In the meantime, Malphas subtly pushed Animesh onward. An unseen hand seemed to be guiding his spear as he thrust it at an exposed weak point. Sure, it was dirty fighting, but this wasn't the arena, and this wasn't a tourney show. They needed to stop the fire, get the ring, and get out, fast, and that meant the death of chivalry.


Animesh will attack, hopefully dealing sudden strike damage to the flat-footed Vark.

Attack: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1] plus [roll2] sudden strike.

[The Tygre]

"Blackguard! Surrender while you can!" Essel shouts as he slashes his scimitar at Vark.

Attack:[roll0]
Damage:[roll1]

[Zar Peter]

Heolly notices Davina lying in her own blood on deck. „Dear Rao, not one minute too late. And the lady did describe them pretty well.“ he thinks and rushes to to seal her wounds.

Heolly tries to reach Davina without AoO. If there is an enemy in the way he attacks with his mace
Attack:[roll0]
Damage:[roll1]
If he reaches Davina this round he summons "Cure Minor Wounds" on her healing 3HP

[Mordokai]

The half elf motions to thugish woman with her sword, as if saying, go on, get out of here. She will not attack her, if she moves away without endangering anybody of the party.

The arrival of bald headed man puzzles Adrie. More troubles? But as he moves to heal Davina, some of her faith is restored. Surely he wouldn't be helping one of their own if he was in league with Vark and his thugs. Deciding to trust the fate, she turns back at Vark, only to vince as Animesh skewers the poor bastard with his spear. Combined with the shriek and screaming coming from bellow the deck, all her hair are set on edge. Gripping her sword in both hands, she calls out to Animesh and Essel.

"Something tells me this fight is not over yet. Can anybody see where that... sound came from?"

Inspire Courage, four rounds left

[Dr Strangelove]

Davina swims back towards consciousness, pushing herself up to her knees. She touches the slash across her chest, and binds what's left of her leather armour tighter across her chest to hold the wound closed. No laying down on the job, Davina, she thinks to herself as she stands up.

[Callos_DeTerran]

The fight that had sprung up on the deck of the Blue Nixie ends just as violently as it had started, with Essel leaping in with a wide slash that creases Vark's armor, but draws no blood, moments before Animesh leans into a particularly brutal thrust. It spears right through the brutish man, who's mouth falls open in dumb astonishment before he slides off of the weapon and unto the deck with a wet thud.

For a moment the silence hangs in the air, the only noise that of wood creaking as the ship rocks back and forth in the bay, before the chattering shriek echoes up from the hold once more. Adrie's question almost seems to answer itself, the noise echoing up from the cargo hold at the bottom of the ship. It seems like there isn't too much time left though either, a few oily tendrils of smoke have begun to drift up through the deck boards beneath your feet and there is still the matter of the mysterious new visitor to deal with...

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh was no stranger to death; he had fought his fair share in the arena, and done other things he was not proud of, and preferred not to dwell on. Still, he was surprised by the viciousness of the blow he had just struck. Malphas had given him the extra edge that had turned the blow into something truly terrible. For a moment, his arm shook as Vark's blood dripped off the metal point... then he shook his head, and turned toward the ladder leading down to the hold.
He took a few steps before stopping, and turning to look at the newcomer who had recently tended to Davina's wounds.
"Whoever you are, if you're here to help us, then we need to put out the fire! There's no time to lose!"
Animesh holds out his arm, and from the darkness of the night sky a raven lands upon it. He closes his eyes, and the raven swoops into the nearest opening into the hold...


Summoning a raven (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/raven.htm) and sending it down into the hold to see what there is to see.

[Zar Peter]

Heolly:
Heolly nods to the man with the scarf and shows him his mace as sign that he's with him Then he stands up and goes to Varks corpse. „There's no helping here“ he thinks, takes one of Varks hands and gives something in it. „May Rao judge you.“ is on his lips as a silent prayer.

Wait at Varks corpse

[The Tygre]

Essel wrings his hands for a moment before reaching into his pockets. Dutifully, he pulls out two copper pieces and places them over the corpse's eyes. "And let's hope it's enough. Now, we need to douse the fire or the whole ship might go down. We can worry about finding the ring after that. I guess we'll just wait for the bird to come back." Essel says, eyeing Animesh before turning to the newcomer, "And as for you; who are you? What are you doing here? How did you know about this? Did Lavinia send you?"

[Zar Peter]

Heolly turns to the Halfling and listens. He puts a finger on his mouth and shakes his head. Then he nods, pads Essel on the shoulder turns to Animesh and hardens the grip on his shield, awaiting what ever will come from the ship.

[Dr Strangelove]

Davina nudges the dead man's body with her foot. Glad to see I didn't miss anything interesting, she says, half-joking. I assume that bird is yours, Animesh. Does it see anything? I don't want to go down there blind. She fingers her mostly-healed slash, and winces. I've had enough hastiness for one night.

[Mordokai]

Released to see Davina back on her feet once again and confused at the sudden arrival of the raven, Adrie's primary concern is still the shriek they heard before. With Vark and his thugs dealt with and what seemed like an reinforcements for them, things were looking up. Still, some precautions would do them well. Dropping her sword and pulling her bow, she nocks an arrow, readying herself for whatever may come at them next.

Adrie will drop sword, pull shortbow and ready an action to shot the first obviously hostile thing she sees.

Inspire Courage, three rounds left.

[Callos_DeTerran]

Animesh calls the bizarre bird from...somewhere and quickly dispatches it to fly down into the Blue Nixie to see what it finds.

Animesh:
The bird's flight carries it erratically through the air on the first level below decks as it flutters awkwardly from room to room with little room to maneuver in the cramped space. The images you get from it are just as disjointed since it needs to constantly adjust it's point of view to keep from slamming into a wall or, worse, a lantern and start another fire.

Despite this, it still makes quick work of the first deck below the main deck and makes for the staircase leading down into the hold itself, where smoke was coming up through the entrance. Then, rather abruptly, you lose your connection to the bird with the backlash to returning to your own eyesight making you dizzy for a moment.

The last sight the bird had seen had been massive (from a bird's point of view anyway) chitinous jaws springing up from smoke-filled hold to clap shut around it with a loud snap as if a bear trap had snapped shut. Your only other clue to what had happened to the bird was it's last image, that of numerous barb-covered legs, like a spiders, beginning to haul some carapace-covered thing out of the hold from the slight gaps between the thing's large mandibles.

Luckily it seems that, despite the unseen person's attempts to start a blaze, that wet wood doesn't burn quite that well. The ship is still in danger of sinking, obviously, but it's clear that the five have some at least some time before it becomes a pressing matter to deal with.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh's eyes snap open, and then they immediately narrow.
"There's something down in the hold... something... unpleasant. Some kind of giant vermin of some kind... a spider or scorpion, perhaps? If we want to put out the fire, we're going to have to go down there in the smoke with that thing, whatever it is. Any ideas, other than running down there and trying to poke it full of holes with my spear? We're running out of time..."

[Mordokai]

"Is there any chance of getting this... thing up here, where we could get more space to fight it? On the other hand, the same would no doubt hold true for it as well, so that might not be the best idea."

She looks at Essel.

"You are a man of combat Essel. Any bit of tactical advice you could share with us in a situation like this?"

Inspire Courage, two rounds left.

[Zar Peter]

Heolly hardens his grip on his mace, points to the entrance and nods. It seems he's willing to go downstairs but not first.

[Dr Strangelove]

If it's set the boat on fire, it's not going to come up and give us a fair fight, says Davina. I don't like it, but we'll have to go below and put out the fire. I say we smother it with the firebug.

[The Tygre]

Essel gives a puzzled look at Heolly, muttering, "A vow of silence?" As the priest(?) goes toward the door, Essel follows, saying, "I think that's the right idea. The longer we stay up here, the more the fire spreads. Come on; we'll need to work fast."

[Callos_DeTerran]

The four briefly discuss their options, with nods and shakes of the head from the odd priest, before finally coming up with a game plan. Essel leads the quintet down to the next lower deck of the Blue Nixie, followed by the limping Animesh, cautious Adrie, badly wounded Davina, and finally the mute priest who had revived the downed rogue. They progress slowly, ever wary for some sign of the large insect-like creature that Animesh had told them about before coming down here, but there's no signs of it.

On the second deck the air is hazy and rough with foul smelling smoke, making each of you cough at least a couple times though Essel is short enough that it doesn't overtly bother him. Still...they could hear something banging about loudly in the hold, rattling cages and scraping against the wood there. So when Essel comes to the open staircase leading down into the hold...he hesitates. For good reason.

However, the danger the ship is in pushes past that and soon the brave halfling leads the way down into the hold. Cages are strewn all about the floor and stacked against the wall, the raucous commotion coming from an array of brightly colored birds, lizards, and monkeys that hoot, screech, and holler for freedom. Now that they can see into the hold, the fire seems a much less pressing concern. Mostly it's dirty hay and grass that's caught alight, producing a lot of smoke but few actual flames with which to send the Nixie down to the bay's ocean floor. No, the far larger concern is the large steel cage that's set against the far side of the hold, it's front burst open.

The former occupant (http://img210.imageshack.us/img210/9905/rhagodossa1.png) could be none other then a spider-like creature the size of a pony that skitters about the hold. The creatures body is dark brown with yellow stripes, its furred legs long and spindly. The front pair of its ten legs rear up threateningly as Essel and Animesh come into sight, their tips flattening into terrible discs studded with dozens of hooked suckers. The monster's head is horrifically over-sized, dominated by immense mandibles that chatter and clack with obvious hunger. Despite it's relative size, it's long limbs continue to clatter into the cages loudly, making the beast hiss loudly when their occupants raise an uproar. Blood, and white feathers, hang from it's mandibles as it crouches down warily, keeping it's head turned towards the intruders at all times.

We'll just keep the same initiative that we had before. It spends it's turn waiting to see what you all do.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh blinks back smokey tears from his eyes as he sees the beast more clearly.
"I'll try to get behind it!"
Suddenly, the man winks out of existence, completely disappearing from view. Animesh knew Malphas would only care to conceal him for a few precious seconds; long enough, he hoped, to close the gap and land a decisive blow.


Full-round action: become invisible.
If possible, take a 5 foot step closer, with the aim of closing with the monster on the next round, ideally positioning for a flank with someone.

[The Tygre]

Essel starts back, "Sweet wind, what in Hell's name is that?!" In his life, Essel has rarely seen creatures this strange, and none of them with blood on their... mandibles and hunger in their eyes. The halfling wonders for a moment if they shouldn't try to just subdue the creature; precious cargo for a precious price.

As Animesh appears behind the monster, Essel yells, "Careful! It might have a stinger for all we know!" The halfling is moved to action, and raises his buckler in front of himself. Making sure the creature keeps its eyes on him, Essel clangs his scimitar against the shield, trying to draw the beast's attention.

Essel goes for Total Defense:+4 to AC.
Bluff check (I guess?) to get creature's attention:[roll0]

[Zar Peter]

Heolly:

A silent "OH RAO" is formed on Heollys lips. He sees Animesh disapear and Essels tries to distract the monster. Since he's behind Essel and the others he tries to help the Halflings affords.

Clanging on the shield to aid Essel (if possible) Bluff check: [roll0]

Edit: I will post the roll in the OOC thread.

[Dr Strangelove]

Well aren't you a ugly bastard, Davina murmurs to herself. She sidles around to the left, keeping an eye on the beast.

Will move around to the left and try to set up a flank.

[Mordokai]

Adrie decides that getting closer to the monstrosity would not be wise, so she lets an already prepared arrow fly, hoping it will hit the monster instead one of her comrades.

Shooting an arrow. Since I'm the last in initiative order, all the other actions should be taken care of by then, so I hope I'm not stepping on anybodies fingers. I also believe Inspire Courage is gone already.

[roll0]
[roll1]

[Callos_DeTerran]

At first the large insect-like creature swivels it's massive head to follow Animesh, but when the man disappears it hisses loudly and raises it's two barbed hunting limbs as if to menace the air where he had stood. Fortunately for Animesh though, it no longer seems to be aware of his presence and it's attention quickly swivels back to the clatter being caused by Essel and the mute priest.

The large hunting beast, and it's obvious that it's a meat-eater, crouches low as if to make itself smaller before it abruptly lunges at Essel to lash out with a cruelly barbed and grasping hunting-limb. Luckily the halfling gets his shield up in time, though the insect almost rips it from his grasp as it darts back out of easy reach with a low shriek of frustration.

It's then that Adrie's arrow clatters off of it's chitin-armored jaws, making it recoil in surprise though it looks unharmed.

Knowledge Nature will reveal information about the beast, Adrie misses and the insect misses Essel. Everyone else spent the round getting into position/distracting it.

[Mordokai]

Adrie rakes her brain for information about the beast before her, but soon decides it's better to take the beast down as fast as possible. She lets another arrow fly towards it, hoping that the difference in size between Essel and the beast is big enough that the halfling will be in no danger of getting hit by a stray arrow.

I don't know if Bardic Knowledge can be of any help here, that is, if it can replace Knowledge Nature. Still, it costs me nothing to use it.

[roll0]

Shooting at the monster, I'm not sure if Essel is providing cover, so you include any penalty neccesary as needed. The attack roll bellow includes no penalties yet.

[roll1]
[roll2]

[Zar Peter]

Seeing Davina moving left Heolly tries to go right to set up the other side of the flank. But he moves cautously, trying not to get attacked by the monster while moving. If possible he tries to slam his light mace on the beast.

Trying to get to the right side without AoU.
Attack [roll0] with light mace. Damage [roll1]

[The Tygre]

Essel yelps, "I'll be honest, I didn't really plan ahead past this point!" The halfling swings his scimitar at the arachnid, trying not to have a bite taken out of him. Although, considering Essel, he's probably just a bite...

Attack:[roll0]
Damage:[roll1]

[CockroachTeaParty]

Under the cover of invisibility, Animesh approaches the hideous arachnid. He had one chance to deliver a decisive blow before his cover was lost... Malphas had brought him this far. He hoped the vestige was willing to see his host through this fight unscathed...
Suddenly, from thin air, Animesh appears behind the monster, his spear thrust at a vulnerable spot where abdomen met the rest of the body...


While invisible, move up to 30 ft., ideally into a flanking position. Then, attacking the creature, ending the invisibility. However, Animesh should be able to enjoy certain benefits for this attack. The monster loses its DEX bonus against this attack, allowing Sudden Strike to kick in, and he gets an additional +2 to the attack roll.
Attack: [roll0] (subtract 2 if no flank was achieved)
Damage: [roll1] plus [roll2] Sudden Strike.

5 rounds until invisibility is available again.

[Dr Strangelove]

Letting out a sharp cry, Davina lunges at the creature, hoping to catch it off guard and slip her rapier deep into it.

Attack roll:[roll0]
Damage: [roll1]
Sneak attack (if applicable): [roll2]

[Callos_DeTerran]

The next couple of seconds seem to pass by in a blur as the fight in the cargo hold turns into a frantic mess of shouted calls for help or warning, punctuated with the shrill shrieks of the insect monster as it moves to fend off it's assailants. Another barbed hunting limb flashes out to clatter against Essel's shield, trying to rip it from the halfling's grasp once more as the stalwart halfling sees his opportunity and slashes down with his scimitar! Steel cleaves through chitin and ichor to severe the limb and send it spasming to the ground as the creature gives a shrill shriek of pain and waves it's limbs around in a panic that forces the diminutive paladin to back away before it's massive jaws find him.

The same thing almost happens to Davina as she presses in with a sharp cry and lunges with her rapier, only for the slender blade to find an angle on the chitinous armor and deflect off to the side harmlessly. Heolly tries something similar to what the halfling had done, seeking to bash right through one of the creature's legs only for it to warily pull them back out of the path of the swing as it backs up...right into Animesh. It whirls on the dark-skinned, invisible man in surprise but it's already too late as he plunges his spear into it's upper thorax before it can lunge at him, the tip bursting out of the back as the creature begins to wilt as the strength leaves it's body. It staggers and stumbles to the side, crashing into a row of cages full of distressed animals before it makes a half-hearted lunge at Animesh.

Thunk.

Adrie's arrow buries itself into the back of the rhagodessa's head, stealing the last bit of life from it until it shudders to a heap on the ground and goes still...

In the aftermath of the frantic combat, the only noise is the panicked hooting and cawing of the animals, the only smell that of ichor, blood, and smoke. However, without the threat of the large insect to distract them, putting out the fire proves to be a simple task that's accomplished quickly. Now the Blue Nixie is safe...but where is the ring?

Adrie Only:
Bardic knowledge isn't much good for identifying monsters beyond their names. However, in the future, if the monster has been involved in any particularly famous historical events or is famous for something, bardic knowledge will help with that. Unfortunately rhagodessi are neither so all Adrie knows is they are a cave-dwelling vermin and their name.

OOC:
A total of 27 damage is dealt to the rhagodessa before it gets to act, taking up the entirety of it's 22 hitpoints so good job everyone! :smallsmile:

For defeating Vark's thugs, Vark, and the rhagodessa each of you get 480 experience points.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh leaned on his spear in an attempt to catch his breath. The creature was felled quickly and efficiently, and just in time. A voice... or presence somewhere in the back of his mind was cackling with manic glee. Animesh wasn't sure how he felt about giving Malphas such an entertaining ride through reality, but he was thankful nevertheless for the inscrutable vestige's help. Finally, he stands, flicking some of the ichor off the spearhead before strapping it to his back.
"We'll have to search the ship for Lavinia's ring. I'm going up top to see what Vark and his thugs have on them. We can maybe sell their gear and make some extra money on the side."
With that he heads back up to the top deck, where he goes about the unsavory task of looting the fallen enemies for anything of worth: weapons, armor, coins, jewelry. He wasn't sure what to do with the bodies... clearly, they were smugglers, but Animesh was not too familiar with the Dawn Council's stance on vigilantism.

[The Tygre]

Almost idly, Essel goes over to the dead arachnid, setting some of the animal cages (well, the little ones) upright as he goes. He tugs off a hook from one of its mandibles, examining it wearily but gladly. The halfling stuffs the trophy into his satchel; a fine addition to his collection. The paladin muses, "He's right, you know. We'll need to search the ship. Let's look for a captain's room or a cargo hold. Stay close, though. There might be more of these fell beasts slinking about."

[Mordokai]

Putting the bow back across her shoulders, the half elf breathes out the sigh of relief. Despite the initial difficulties everything worked out for the best. Giving Davina a glance to make sure she really is ok, Adrie heads to pick up the weapons she dropped during the battle, before she sets her attention to the newcomer.

"We appreciate your help. But could you explain to us who you are and what are you doing here? Has Lavinia sent you as a backup?"

[Dr Strangelove]

Seeing that Adrie is handling the interloper, Davina turns her attention to finding the ring. That is what we're here for, after all. The murder and mayhem is just a bonus. Out loud she says I'll help, Essel, and follows him to help search the ship.

Search roll [roll0]

[Zar Peter]

Heolly blows out in relief that everything worked out well. Hearing Adries approach he searches in his pocket for a white crayon and writes on his shield:

Sorry, I didn't introduce myself. Heolly's the name and Rao is my light. Lady Lavina did send me, I came late to the introduction because there was an emergency...

He makes sure that Davina read the text before he wipes it away to make space for another writing

and when I attended no one was there anymore. It seems I came in time to help you a bit. My profession is healing and my god send me to help and protect. But now let's search for the ring.

Search the ship, asuming we have plenty of time taking 20= Search 21

[Mordokai]

Confused beyond description, Adrie just can't follow the going on. Is this new fellow mute? If so, that is going to represent a whole new lot of troubles to be had. But Lavinia could explain it better, when the time would be right. Other's were right, the ring was the most important right now. With that in mind, she set to exploring the ship, helping Davina in finding the precious item.

Aid another, for a +2 on search check, using it on Davina.

[roll0]

[Callos_DeTerran]

The quickly set off across the Blue Nixie, each having their own self-appointed task which they set about eagerly. Animesh checks the bodies of those who died aboard the ship for any valuables, though there aren't many to find. There's only three bodies to search, aside from Vark's own and there aren't exactly great pickings either. A couple of light crossbows, a trio of rapiers along with Vark's well-weighted blade, and the blood spattered armor that all four people had been wearing. Animesh also removes Vark's golden earring and silver ring, figuring that they might be worth something if nobody wanted them for themselves. Just as he's about rejoin his companions though, he spots two vials hidden in Vark's belt and quickly fishes them out. The glass bottles are filled with a sea-green liquid that smells of mint when Animesh takes a brief sniff of them, a label attached to their stoppers showing a crudely drawn man swimming in some water.

Animesh:
4 light crossbows and 38 bolts
3 rapiers
3 bucklers
3 suits of leather armor
15 gold pieces
1 suit of masterwork studded leather armor
1 masterwork rapier
2 unidentified potions
gold earring
silver ring
((Appraise can be used to determine the value of the jewelry))

Essel walks with the others with one hand on his trusty scimitar, keeping a wary eye out for anymore escaped beasts while Adrie, Davina, and Heolly turn their attention to locating the signet ring that they had been commissioned to find. Starting at the logical place, the three go to the captain's quarters to begin their search there where Heolly begins a meticulous and thorough search of any conceivable hiding place. The captain's cabin is well-appointed but seems to have faced some recent disuse. The stench of stale ale and dirt hangs in the air while the thick sheets of the bed are all tossed about as if people had been roused from their slumber rather forcibly. Perhaps it had been where Vark had been sleeping while running his smuggling scheme...

A large colorful map hangs on the right hand wall, bearing an image of Amedio Jungle upon it while a mahogany desk lays beneath with writing utensils laid out upon it. Adrie helps Davina in looking about and the two quickly find a large leather trunk hidden beneath the bed. For a moment the two share a truimphant look, certain this must be where the ring is, but when they open it...they find a couple of shipping manifests from yester year and a leather pouch that jingles with the noise of coins within. Pulling it open they find a bundle of platinum coins, likely Lavinia's dock rental payment that had never actually reached the harbormaster.

As they puzzle over what to do with the pouch of platinum, Heolly finds one of the wooden panels he's prodding give a little and he quickly pushes harder. A hidden latch gives and the panel opens up, revealing nothing else then a signet ring with the Vanderboren seal upon it! There's also a roll of parchment stuffed into it that Heolly pulls free and looks over curiously while Essel stands guard outside the door.

Note Contents:
Chimera looks to sunrise
Cyclops looks to sunset
Medusa looks to sunrise
Umber Hulk looks to sunset
Basilisk looks to sunrise

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh grabs a length of handy rope on the deck and lashes the bundle of questionably-obtained lucre together for easier transport. The rowboat would make it easier to bring back; he didn't want to imagine trying to swim back with a bundle of leather armor and blades. Still, not a bad turnout if they sold most of it... and Animesh had half a notion to keep Vark's fine rapier. He wasn't powerful enough yet to bind him, but there was a certain vestige not too far out of his reach that would lend him great skill with such a weapon. It never hurt to look to the future.

Although he was no merchant, Animesh scrutinized Vark's jewelry, trying to gauge how much they might be worth. A voice inside him urged him to pocket the portable wealth immediately, leaving the others none the wiser, and he was ashamed to admit that the voice did not come from the otherworldly being sharing his body... Still, he resolved to split the loot equally. If he could establish a baseline of trust with these people early on, perhaps they would be willing to trust him if and when it came time to reveal more about the true nature of his powers...


Two untrained Appraise checks, comin' up:
[roll0]
[roll1]

[Zar Peter]

Heolly smiles as he takes the ring and sends a silent thank to Rao, then he reads the parchment and is puzzeled. "What could that mean?" he thinks. Then he turns to Adrie and Davina, pads on their shoulders to get their attention, if Essel isn't looking he tries to get his attention, too, and shows them the ring and the parchment.

He writes on his shield:

Any idea that could mean?

[Mordokai]

Her eyes sparkling at the sight of the platinum, Adrie turns towards Davina.

"Lavinia will be very happy when she finds out we found her money."

Feeling a tap on her shoulder, she turns around, to see Heolly scratching something on his shield once again. This would take some getting used to... taking a look at the note and reading it, she frowned.

"I have absolutely no idea. Perhaps Lavinia will know a little more when we get back."

Spotting the ring in Heolly's other hand, she smiles at him.

"You found it! Where is Animesh? I believe we have everything we came for. We can go back to Lavinia now. There's no sense in keeping her waiting, right?"

[CockroachTeaParty]

It doesn't take long for Animesh to find the rest of the group. He nods curtly when informed of the ring's recovery.
"I gathered a modest pile of loot to sell later. We can work out splitting up the money sometime soon."
He produces the pair of curious vials.
"I believe these are magic potions; by the looks of them, they enhance one's ability to swim. Also, Vark had a good suit of studded leather on him, and his blade's particularly fine as well. The rest is probably only good for selling, but we can sort through it all later. Even if Lavinia's retired by now, I think she'll forgive us waking her with such good news."

(Animesh is ready to return to Vanderboren Manor.)

[The Tygre]

Essel is delighted when Heolly shows the ring, "That's great! I think we've got everything we came for. Let's get back on land. I hope that spider thing doesn't cost us anything, though gods only know who would something like that..."

(Essel is ready to head back.)

[Mordokai]

Adrie turns towards Animesh with interest when he mentions the potions.

"Potions, you say? May I see those? Given some time, I may be able to tell you what excatly they are for."

She then points at the platinum coins she and Davina uncovered.

"I believe this is also property of our patron. We would do well to take them with us as well, don't you agree?"

(Adrie is also ready to return to the manor.)

[Zar Peter]

Heolly looks around the ship if there is any live in the bodys lying around. He gives every corpse a token from Rao in the hand, may his god decide if their death was rightful or not.

(Heolly is ready to return to the manor)

[Dr Strangelove]

Well, it appears we've done well, says Davina, smiling at Adrie conspiratorially. The money and ring recovered, a nice puzzle to occupy us, she nods at the note, And the bodies on the deck aren't ours. Let's collect our bonus!

(Also ready to return)

[Callos_DeTerran]

It doesn't take long for the five to finish scouring the ship for signs of salvageable equipment that could be sold for a profit from the remains of Vark's thugs, and afterwords they carefully scale back down the outside of the hull to the rowboat that had been taken for the night's activities. After the rushed and harrowing melee, the quiet of the bay is an eerie relief. The only noises are the slight dips of the oars into the water below and the occasional lonely cry of a gull stirred from it's slumber before winging through the air to find a new roost. Once back on shore, the streets of Sasserine are, for the most part, devoid of people since those still about were mostly drunks trying to find their beds and the stealthy footsteps of those who preyed on them from the shadows.

All five move with purpose in their steps, back towards the Vanderboren Manor to tell their employer the good news to find the gothic-decorated manor to be devoid of light or sound from the look of things. Still, figuring that news of the ring will likely want to be heard as quickly as possible, it only takes about ten minutes to unlock the gate to allow them inside to approach the front doors before a suspicious local could take too much entrance in the well-armed group apparently breaking in to a minor noble's home. After taking a brief moment to straighten out their armor and clothing, Adrie knocks loudly on the door and, after a couple of long moments, knocks again before hearing the noise of shuffling footsteps across the entrance hall.

It only opens a crack, but it's enough to see a familiar wizened face peering out at the company before Kora, Lavinia's trusty servant, pulls it open further to stand in the center of the doorway in a voluminous nightgown that pools on the floor.

"Hm? What's all this about then? Why've you all come at this absurd hour?" the old halfling woman demands somewhat irately, but understandable given the lateness of the day.

"Kora...what's going on?" Lavinia's voice calls from the top of one of the twin staircases leading up to the second floor, it's owner appearing a moment later as she descends down to the entrance hall in a lilac robe pulled tight around her body with golden hair pulled back in a severe ponytail, "Ah...my friends, I was not expecting you back so soon...do you have news?"

Her tone is confused, but warm nonetheless at the sight of the troubleshooters that she had hired only just this day..

[Mordokai]

"We are very sorry to awake you at such late hour, Lady Lavinia. But we thought you'd like to hear a good news as soon as possible."

With that, she points at Heolly.

"Heolly proved himself very helpful and we were really lucky that you sent him to our help. Besides helping Davina when things were looking bleak, it was him that found your father's ring. As for Davina herself, despite her wounds she proved of a sharp eye and it was thank to her that we found the funds you paid to Vark. Apparently, they never reached the harbormaster, that's why you had problems reclaiming your ship. Vark and his thugs seem to have been up in some smuggling operation and they intended to use Blue Nixie as a base of operations. We managed to stop them and the thugs that weren't killed have escaped. I'm sure they won't present any problems to you again. When it was over, we decided to inform you on what has happened right away."

Pulling the small note that Heolly found next to the ring out of her pocket, she then shows it to Lavinia.

"This was hidden with the ring. None of us knows what it's about. Maybe you'll know more."

[Zar Peter]

Heolly blushes a bit, he isn't used to get praised by young women, but he smiles prouldy at Lavinia.

[Callos_DeTerran]

Lavinia listens to the story intently, turning to look at Heolly when Adrie gives praise for his timely arrival, giving him a beaming smile even before her attention turns back to the tale being told.

"I see..." She says thoughtfully, reaching out with trembling hands to take the ring and the rolled up piece of parchment from the young bard's hands. A single finger traces the Vanderboren crest upon the ring before the young noblewoman takes a deep breath, obviously relieved that her immiedete future has been secured before unraveling the note, "You were right to tell me right away! Maybe this time the harbormaster will actually listen to what I have to say about corruption among his men..And thank you for returning the payment as well. I know some with less scrupulous morals who would have taken the coin for themselves and merely told me that it had been lost."

For a moment she purveys the note, brow furrowing as she reads the cryptic contents.

"Hmm...my apologies but it's meaning is unknown to me. In any case this is wonderful news! Tomorrow I shall head to Castle Teraknian at first light and I would see to it that you accompany me as well to collect your payments for such quick work!" the exhuberent Lavinia says excitedly, her energy contagious even as she looks at the blood-spattered and wounded adventurers, "In fact...if you want, then you can spend the night here to rest and recover. There's a couple guestrooms that are currently in disuse that you can use and I imagine a hot bath in the morning will start the day off right. What do you all say?"

Your characters are free to accept or decline Lavinia's invitation and seek their beds. Feel free, of course, to role-play as you will. :smallwink:

=================================================

In the morning...

Those who stay at Lavinia's for the night are woken up in the morning by Kora, grumpily urging them to quit lazing about and head down to breakfast with Lavinia. Partially because of the joyous occasion, she seems to have set out quite the spread of quail eggs, crispy bacon, with some jam and toast to top it all off. Still, soon she's standing outside of the manor, waiting for those who had decided not to stay the night and anxiously peering up at the sun every couple of minutes to check it's position. Only when everyone is assembled does she offer anything beyond light conversation.

"Good morning all! I hope you are all ready to head to the castle and collect your fees!" At that she pauses for a moment, "I fear I might have some...ulterior motives for bringing you along though. Castle Teraknian is well known to be very...secure and I'm worried that my parent's vault may have protection hidden within."

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh accepted Lavinia's offer with a nod and thanks, though he never removed his scarf until he was safe in his own private guest room. There, he opened his mouth and checked his mirror; his teeth and tongue were still black. Although the bed was dry and warm, and the lock secure, he never felt comfortable sleeping while a vestige was still sharing his body. Malphas would remain bound until the following evening, probably well after they had received payment... which meant he would have to keep his scarf on, lest someone notice his hideous mouth. He paced, trying to think of a decent excuse... the need for anonymity had been a convenient enough explanation considering their recent questionably legal activities, but to accompany a young noble to her vault? In broad daylight? What if they went by coach, or palanquin? Restless, Animesh tossed and turned for several hours before eventually nodding off. Even though he was in control, he could still feel a vague sense of disappointment and irritation; Malphas did not want to spend his precious time experiencing reality asleep and immobile.

It seemed he had barely closed his eyes when the halfing woke him. He tried to straighten up his appearance, but all he had to wear was his armor. Once again checking his ink-black mouth, he wrapped the scarf around his head and neck once more. Perhaps he could claim he wasn't feeling well, which was only half a lie. The dark patches under his bleary eyes suggested illness; perhaps the scarf was a courtesy to not spread his breath around? Yes, that would have to do... But what about breakfast?

Trying not to make too much of a scene, Animesh thanked Lavinia for breakfast, but claimed he was feeling off, and had no appetite. He grabbed a slice of bacon, and excused himself from the dining room to wait outside in the gardens for the others. There, he wolfed down his bacon quickly, and leaned against a wall in the shade, keenly aware of what a strange spectacle he was no doubt making. If he could make it through a few more hours, he'd have his money, and that was the most important thing.

When Lavinia mentions the possible 'security' of the vaults underneath the castle, Animesh was thankful that he still had all his weaponry and gear.
"No worries, my lady. I'm sure there's nothing to worry about."

[Dr Strangelove]

A night's lodging free? And a meal in the morning? Davina thinks as Lavinia makes her offer. A year ago I would have called that pity. Now it's fringe benefits. The guestroom is a little dusty, but it's still the most comfortable mattress Davina has slept on in months. When she's woken by the halfling she spends a moment suppressing her desire to kill the woman and go back to sleep.

When Lavinia explains the errand at the breakfast table, Davina looks up from her quail eggs. Surely the defenses are keyed to your bloodline? My - ah, that is how it is done, isn't it? What breed of idiot can't access her own vault? Davina thinks to herself. Lavinia is a good employer, but a terrible businesswoman.

[The Tygre]

Essel gently smiles, staying silent while the others explain tonight's happenings. He takes the offer of lodging for the night, and sleeps in one of the guest beds. His joints are stiff and his back sore, and sleep comes quickly. The dreams come again. He's wandering through Sasserine, but nobody knows him, nobody recognizes him. There's a peace to the anonymity, and the dreamscape passes before it grows into a nightmare.

In the morning, Kora wakes Essel up. He's difficult to find; the bed was made for big-folk, and the halfling has curled into a ball somewhere under the covers. Essel groggily rejects the offer of a bath, and before Kora can protest too much, Essel has equipped his armor again and gone downstairs. As Lavinia explains her new job for them, Essel takes some of the bacon and jams toast into his mouth. With a mouth still half-full, the halfling says, "We'd be honored to go with you. I'm sure we'll be able to handle whatever's inside."

Essel grabs one more bit of toast and a quail egg before going outside to the garden. He finds Animesh there, commenting, "Some night, huh? Did you get a good night's sleep?"

[Mordokai]

Accepting Lavinia's offer, Adrie retires to one of the guest rooms. A bed for free and a breakfast in the morning are something she just can't resist and some hot water is just too tempting. Taking her armor down, she reflects on day behind her. To say it has been interesting one would be an understatement. And it seemed like Lavinia wished to employ them even further, so it was likely next day would be interesting as well. After that... well, it would probably be back to singing and playing for coins at different tavern each night. Just the way she liked it.

Sitting down on the bed, Adrie takes out her small flute with flowing elven script etched into the wood. Looking at it for a few moments, she brings the instrument to her lips and starts playing a gentle melody. After couple of minutes, she decides it has been enough excitement for one day and lays down. Soon, she drifts into a dreamless sleep.

Morning comes too soon, when Kora shakes her awake. The bed has been, if anything, too comfortable. Raising up, Adrie decides to take Lavinia on her offer and takes a bath, before joining others for breakfast. Once that is over and Lavinia explains what she expects of them, Adrie nods her agreement.

"I had nothing better in mind for today anyway. And I imagine seeing a castle from the inside will be interesting. I'll be glad to keep you company a little longer."

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh looks down at Essel with blood-shot eyes. His voice is groggy and muffled from behind his scarf.
"...I don't sleep much."

[Zar Peter]

Heolly looks at Lavinia, takes the chalk and writes on his shield:

„Thank you for the offer, I gladly will accept to rest in your...“

Seemingly a bit annoyed and in hurry he makes sure Lavinia read the first, then he wipes out the text and continues

„... wonderful lodgings.“

This night Heolly rested uneasily.

Heollys dream:
Heolly opened his eyes. He was on a ship again, yet it wasn't the „Blue Nixie“ where they just bested Vark and his thugs, it was the „Tracker Marcus“, the bark that brought him to Sasserine. It was just briefly after he cured Captain Heludend from the fever. He was standing on deck observing the ocean when he suddenly heard a shriek from beyond. He was puzzled, this hadn't occured on the journey as he remembered. When he turned he stared at a bigger version of the spider creature he recogniced from the „Blue Nixie“. Heolly could feel the fear creeping up but he took out his Mace and faced the beast. Surprisingly the spider got smaller and smaller the nearer it came and at last he smashed it with one strike. That was when a dove manifested beside him and the ship, the ocean and all the surroundings slowly faded away into black space. The dove was Rao who said: „Well Heolly, you found your adventure it seems. But be vigilant, you are not at the end of it, it just begund. You also found some allies to help you with this task which is good, you can't do that all alone.“ Heolly could see Davina, Adrie, Essel and Animesh standing far away. They were sitting on a clearing, discussing, not being aware that he was watching them. „Look at them, soon your live will depend on them as some of their lives will depend on you. This girl...“ he pointed at Davina „... you saved already. But you can do more Heolly. I took your oath to stay silent so you can't use your fiercest but also, for this task, most foiled weapon. It betrayed you often enough to think you can change something by discussing, not by acting. But to help your comrades, to win this fight against evil you have to speak some words. Words to cast spells, to summon creatures that help you fight, to heal your friends or even your enemies after the fight. They are not for you to deter you from acting but to help you. So you may speak, but only to cast. I will teach you the words for the spells you will be able to cast now and later, when you are stronger and more experienced you will learn new spells, mightier than you have ever expected.“


As Kora came to wake Heolly he already was awake in bed. He seemingly was a bit more confident than the day before.

At the breakfast he nodded to everyone and took his seat. He brought a little slate he used for occasion when a shield isn't appropriate, and when Lavinia ended her speach he wrote:

„I would be happy to help you there Mylady. I'm sure Rao wants you save.“

[Callos_DeTerran]

Music (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHMT_4RoJWs)

"I'm afraid it's not that simple Davina, Castle Teraknian only provides vaults for nobles to use, they don't provide any other security measures so each vault is different. To compound matters I..." an embarrassed smile briefly crosses Lavinia's face as she walks to the street and hails a coach, "was sent away to a school for young women when I was young, the punishment for a game Vanthus and I had played, to teach me decorum, manners, and other lady-like behavior. As a result, I wasn't around much, my parents even less so. They both loved to explore and they had the only keys to the vault, so my parents and I weren't at home much at the same time. Those few times there was never a chance or opportunity to take me to the vault until...I've simply never been in it."

As everyone climbs aboard the decorated stage coach that comes at the young noblewoman's beckon, she remains silent as she takes her own seat. The noise of Sasserine awakening fills the air, people emerging from their homes to make their way to work while early morning merchants catcall over the bustle to try and attract customers to view their gaudy wares. Sea gulls and other tropical birds wing over the city, letting out raucous cries that can't help but remind the five companions of the animals left in the hold of the Blue Nixie...

Nevertheless, I'm not going into the situation completely unaware of what lays within. My father told me that a construct guards the vault but he never mentioned what kind." comes the soft voice from Lavinia as the carriage passes through High Market towards the ferry that'll carry the group across to the island where Castle Teraknian stands, a mighty bastion if there ever was one. "Listen, I want to thank all of you and..I want to offer all five of you a job. You reclaimed my father's ring quickly and without a fuss, you even managed to reclaim my payment to the harbormaster while you were at it! I would like to hire all five of you on as my agents and bodyguards, if you'll accept."

"I can pay each of you one hundred gold pieces a month but, more importantly, patronage from a noble can certainly help in other endeavors..what do you all say?" Lavinia asks earnestly, still looking out the coach's window as the carriage jostles down towards a small dock and the boats waiting there to carry people across to the castle.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Although Animesh's face remained a mask behind his scarf, his heart was leaping in his chest. Lavinia's offer was exceptional, almost too good to be true. One hundred gold pieces a month meant Animesh could live a life of luxury for as long as he remained under Vanderboren's employ. The social and political benefits were icing on the cake. He had waited and worked long and patiently for a moment such as this. Perhaps his luck was finally turning around?
"I would be most honored to accept your gracious offer, my lady. Consider me at your disposal henceforth."
Suddenly, the day seemed less humid, but more pleasantly warm. The stink of the city seemed to fade into the back of his mind. Not even the prospect of some construct guardian could wipe the smile off Animesh's face.

[Mordokai]

Climbing into the coach, Adrie soon starts to whistle a soft tune, more to herself than anybody else. As they drive across the Market, she raises a hand, obviously saluting a friend of hers. And just like that, her hand drops back to her side, as she resumes the melody.

Hearing the cries of sea gulls, she feels a pang of guilt. Last night was too busy and hardly anybody of them could be bothered to remember about the rest of captive animals under the board of Nixie. She promises to herself to return back to the ship as soon as possible and set those unfortunate animals free. Or at least bring it to Lavinia's attention.

When Lavinia springs her proposal on them, the melody dies on her lips. One hundred gold? Every month? That's a small fortune, even before the fringe benefits. And Lavinia certaily seemed like a very decent person... Adrie couldn't help but smile.

"I would be happy to help you even further, my lady. As Animesh so aptly puts is, my sword and my magic are at your disposal."

[Zar Peter]

Heolly climbs aboard and takes a seat beside Animesh. He looks out of the window and watch the strange streets of Sasserine. Since his arrival was only two weeks ago nearly every corner is new and interesting for him. The melody Adrie whistles makes his foot wag in tact and makes him feel conmfy and warm. Every now and then his gaze falls at their host Lavinia but only short and when he thinks she doesn't notice him. Then, as she explained her needs and offers, he listens concentrated. While Animesh and Adrie answered Heolly took out his slate and tries to write a longer answer but the shaking of the coach makes him wipe out his writing more often than he wanted to. In the end, a bit annoyed, he only writes one word on the slate and shows it Lavinia with a red face and and an apologetic shrug.

„Accepted“

[The Tygre]

Essel smiles at Animesh, saying, "I sympathize. Disgusting habit, sleep. I've been trying to drop it for years now."

The lanky halfling hops into the carriage, trying to maintain as much dignity as he can with his stature. He is slightly perturbed that his head only reaches halfway over the rim of the stage-coach window. At the mention of Lavinia's offer, the sourness leaves Essel and his eyes go wide. 100 gold a month?! He could live like a noble on that! A creeping voice in his head calculated that just one of those gold pieces could buy him a cask of cherry wine. But just think about everything else; a real home, money for the church, sponsorship on the city council. Maybe even throw his old caravan a bone or two. Essel almost laughes, "What do I say? I say 'where do you need me, ma'am?'!"

[Dr Strangelove]

Davina only just holds back a grin. A hundred gold a month! Bodyguarding might not be the dream career she'd left home for all those months ago, but her experiences have taught her that it's more important to be fed and clothed than to be famous. Not that she'd turn down the fame, if it came along.
I would be happy to work for you, Lavinia, she says out loud. You seem a decent sort for a noblewoman. A wry smile curls her mouth.

[Callos_DeTerran]

"Thank you all, though you'll forgive me if I'm hopeful that I'll never have to use your services as bodyguards." Lavinia says jokingly, falling silent as the coach pulls up to the dock to allow it's passengers to climb out and board the small boat. It doesn't take long for the ferry to cross over to Castle Teraknian, a building that's certainly earned it's name as a fortress. Guards patrol along thick stone walls that run right up to the shore line, except where a small dock sits for ferry boats to deposit travelers. Soon after the six leave the boat, they've passed under the gate house and entered the keep itself where the new patron of the five guides them over to an expansive desk with an officious looking scribe sitting between teetering piles of paperwork.

"Yes? May I help you?"

"Yes, my name is Lavinia Vanderboren and I'm here to get into my parent's vault."

"Ahh, alright. If you could just present your signet ring and proof of your identity?"

"Of course, I have them right here..." the young noblewoman says, proudly presenting the signet ring upon her hand before pulling several papers from concealed pockets to present to the man.

"Mmm...alright..yes, everything seems to be in order. If you'll just follow me..." the scribe mutters, pushing out from his desk to guide Lavinia and the five companions to a large spiral staircase that leads below the castle proper. It ends in a large circular chamber with over a dozen five foot wide hallways radiating out from the central vault chamber; each of these hallways is ten feet long and ends in an iron door. After taking a moment to get his bearings, the scribe guides the group to one of these hallways and gestures for them to proceed before shuffling his way back up the staircase to the castle proper.

The short passageway ends at a solid looking iron door. The portal is emblazoned with a simple rune-an eight-pointed star. Above the door, inscribed in flowing script on a polished silver plaque, is the name "Vanderboren ." A single handle protrudes from the door, just below a circular depression bearing the mark of the Vanderboren signet. Lavinia advances on the door purposefully and presses her signet ring into the depression, prompting a bright flash of blue light before the five can hear the door creaking as it swings open towards them. The floor of the domed chamber beyond the vault door is made of polished green marble. Two fifteen-foot wide alcoves have lower ceilings and feature marble pillars carved to resemble coiling snakes. In the center of the room, five similar pillars are embedded into the walls, rising up thirty feet to a dome overhead. Looking up, the dome bears a huge representation of the same eight-pointed star that was engraved on the door protecting this room. Light comes from ever-burning torches set unto all five of the pillars in the center of the room, casting the chamber and it's coiling snakes into stark relief.

Lavinia hesitates at the entrance, finally twisting her head to give the five adventurers a sheepish smile, "So...who wants to go in first?"

I know I said that I'd roll knowledge checks for you guys from now on, but Myth-weavers is doing maitanence as of the typing of this post so I can't see your skills. That said, a DC 15 Knowledge Local check will tell you that...The eight pointed star appears on a sign of a building on the western edge of the Merchant's District.

Adrie can use Bardic Knowledge to determine more about the star symbol itself, depending on her check.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Not sure what awaits them, Animesh readies his spear, and takes a few tentative steps into the polished marble vault.
"...When was the last time this vault's been open?"

[The Tygre]

Essel puffs himself up, "I'll head in. The rest of you-" The halfling seems a little deflated as Animesh walks past him, but that doesn't stop him from saying, "Maybe we should check for booby-traps, then?"

Spot:[roll0]

[Mordokai]

Adrie pulls her bow and slowly steps into the vault behind Animesh and Essel. She too takes a look around, trying to spot anything out of ordinary.

[roll0]

I have no ranks in Knowledge(Local), so I guess the bardic knowledge roll is out of question as well. If not, roll it for me anyway and give results in next update. In case the myth weavers give you more problems, it's +3 modifier.

[Zar Peter]

Heolly follows Essel and comes to a similar conclusion. Maybe there are traps...

Spot: [roll0]

[Dr Strangelove]

After a moment of thought, Davina readies her crossbow and stands a little behind and to the side of Adrie. She scans the room, keeping an eye and ear out for anything moving.

Spot [roll0] Listen [roll1]
Readied action to shoot the first thing that moves (that is not an ally).
If necessary: attack [roll2], damage [roll3], sneak attack [roll4]

[Callos_DeTerran]

Animesh steps first into the vault, keeping his spear at the ready for the construct guardian that Lavinia had warned them about, quickly followed by Essel and Heolly then Adrie and Davina. Lavinia hesitantly follows behind the last two, nervous without a weapon to defend herself. All five of the companions keep their eyes fixed on their surroundings, trying to pick out the tell-tale sign of motion as they proceed into the empty vault.

"Not for several weeks at least." Lavinia says softly, though her voice still echoes in the serpentine decorated chamber, "There's nothing in here though! Look around some, there might be a hidden lever or cache..." The idea sounds so...purple prose, the thought of hidden levers and guardian creatures, but there's little time to respond to Lavinia's words.

As Animesh nears the far side of the vault, something catches his eyes just barely. The glint of white light of steel rings fitted together and he warily steps closer to get a better look. As he does one of the snake head's drops it's mouth open...just to lunge at the man and sink three inch long fangs into his left shoulder! A burning pain seeps out from the wound, making Animesh's left arm feel numb and weak, forcing him to use his right to bat the metal serpent away.

It lands on the stone floor with all the clatter of a suit of armor, whipping about dangerously before it curls up upon itself and raises it's iron head. Red eyes burn in the well-crafted statue's head, even as it's hood flares out dramatically to show the up-raised skull images places on it, much like how a real cobra would flare it's hood to startle predators. Lavinia gives a loud gasp at the sight of the thing and stumbles back, though Davina's arms snap up to level her crossbow at the construct and send a bolt speeding towards it. The rogue's aim is dead on, but the bolt merely bounces off of the iron cobra's metal hide with no more effect then a slight scratch on it's snout.

And to prompt the construct to swivel it's head to face the woman as it bares dripping fangs in a noiseless hiss!

For Adrie
You recognize the creature as an 'iron cobra', a construct that is usually employed by angry wizards to track down those who have wronged them. This one seems to have been employed as a guardian though, likely because iron cobras are capable of following complex instructions. Their metal bodies are difficult to harm without adamantine weapons and they resist magic like some other constructs do. In addition, the iron cobras are usually 'poisonous' but can only hold three doses of venom before needing to be refilled.

OOC:
The iron cobra strikes Animesh for 4 points of damage and 2 points of Str. damage. It wasn't spotted, but no one rolled a listen check so if one of you can beat it's move silently of 21 then you can act in the surprise round with Davina (who fired her crossbow) and the cobra as well as taking your normal actions.

And Adrie fails the bardic knowledge check, but pulls through on the iron cobra knowledge check. The chamber is 15 feet (A, B, C) wide and 45 feet (1-9) long and a pillar at B2 and B8.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh grasps the wound, the burning sensation of the poison sapping his strength. The weight of his armor and gear seemed to press harder upon him, making his movements slowed. As he backs away from the metal snake, he notices that Davina's crossbow has barely put a dent in it; he doubted any of his weapons would do much better, especially in his current state, and it probably lacked any vital organs or weak spots, so Malphas was of no use here.
His back against the wall, beads of sweat studding his brow, he manages to angrily grunt a few words.
"Any chance of calling off your guard dog, Lavinia?"


Animesh will take a full round action to withdraw, putting as much distance between himself and the cobra as he can mange; the first square he leaves should not provoke attacks of opportunity.
With the strength reduction, his load is now a medium one, and his speed drops to 20 ft. A withdraw can move him up to 40 ft., which should be enough to put him safely in a corner or something.

[Zar Peter]

Heolly

His clinging armor prevents him from being unnoticed by the snake.

Move silently: 0 -6 (Armor). Even if he takes 20 he only has 14.

Heolly sees Animes getting bitten his first thought is to get to him and help him but that would be too dangerous and Lavinia is unprotected. So he tries (without provoking and attack of opportunity) to get between the snake and Lavinia.

And because I want to roll something I roll Initiative. Maybe we need it. [roll0]

[Mordokai]

"Lavinia, your parents must have set the cobra in here as a guardian! Think, is there any code phrase to deactivate it? These thing can have up to three doses of poison and it wouldn't do for anybody else to get poisoned. And unless there's a cache of adamantine weapons nearby, we'll be hard pressed to harm it."

In a desperate attempt to try and do something, Adrie sends an arrow towards iron cobra anyway.

[roll0]
[roll1]
[roll2]

[The Tygre]

Essel is taken back by the metal cobra. Well, he wasn't expecting that. This made the monster on the ship look plain cuddly. And Adrie's talk of adamantine weapons wasn't helping much either. Essel blurts out as he attacks, "Oi, you oversized bedspring! Why don't you at least pick on something you can swallow?"

Attempting Listen check:
Listen:[roll0]

Attack:[roll1]
Damage:[roll2]

[Dr Strangelove]

Fantastic, Davina snaps as her crossbow bolt bounces off the snake's head. She ***** her head as Adrie speaks. You never know your luck in a noble's vault, she murmurs to herself, setting her crossbow aside for her rapier and scanning the room for anything adamantine. Or maybe we can pin it down.

Initiative [roll0]
Spot check for adamantine objects, or something heavy that could be conveniently toppled. [roll1]
Not enough time for a Search check.

[Callos_DeTerran]

The snake glares silently after Animesh as the spear-wielding man retreats back from it, beginning to uncoil as if to pursue but before it can, Essel steps into it's path. With deft swiftness the halfling lashes out with his trusty scimitar and though it strikes true, the only result seems to be a spray of sparks and the fact that he's drawn the construct's attention towards himself with Animesh's retreat. It wasn't until now that the serpent's full size becomes apparent, as it rears up above Essel's head in height before striking down with those sharp fangs. The blasted thing had to be as long as a full grown man!

However it proves far more quick then it's size or metal body would hint at as it dives forward as if to go underneath of Essel's shield, but the brave paladin is just as quick to interpose it between himself and the violent guardian.

"I don't know any command words, I'm not a mage!" Lavinia calls out over the clamor of the halfling tangling with the metal serpent, but she seems to take some courage from Heolly putting himself between the serpent and herself, "Stop! Cease!"

The construct doesn't react to the noblewoman's commands, violently exploding into motion as Adrie launches an arrow that clatters off of the stone floor. Davina quickly scans the room, looking for something to trap the iron cobra or harm it, but finds nothing of use. The pillars are firmly anchored to the floor and ceiling while the chamber itself is bereft of any other ornamentation. The only thing she can't help but uneasily notice is just how many of the snake carvings resemble the cobra fighting Essel...

Iron Cobra misses Essel, and badly. Animesh withdraws. Essel hits, but doesn't do enough damage to bypass the cobra's DR. Adrie just flat out misses.

[Mordokai]

Despite situation being quite serious, Adrie still manages a small smile when she hears Lavinia's answer.

"Well then, I'm afraid this whole bussiness just got a little tougher. Try again! Luck favors the bold."

With that, she drops her bow. It's obvious it will do her no good in this fight. Pulling her whip, she tries to get a drop on the construct. If she could manage to trip the cobra, that would make Essel's work easier.

Attempting a trip attempt on iron cobra. Drop bow as free action, move close enough to be within 15 feet of cobra, draw whip as part of move action and attack as standard action. Attack is vs. touch AC. If it succeds, the cobra falls prone... whatever that means for a serpentine construct.

If the cobra makes an opposed roll, Adrie will drop a whip.

[roll0]

[CockroachTeaParty]

"You're a Vanderboren, right? Prove it! Show it the ring!"
Still leaning against the wall, Animesh drops his spear and draws his crossbow, loading a bolt into it.

[Dr Strangelove]

The ring thing sounds like a great idea! Davina says to Lavinia, taking a wide circle around the snake to attack it from behind. As she does, she glances between the snakes on the wall and the attacking construct, hoping for a clue to its deactivation.

Circle around outside AoO range.
Spot to look for clues[roll0]

[Zar Peter]

Heolly turns to Lavinia, points at Animesh and Davina, nods, points at his ringfinger and nods again. Then he turns to the snake, trying to stay between it and Lavinia. He lifts his shield and his mace, making sure to defend his position and smack back when he's attacked.

Stay between Snake and Lavinia, Total defense

[The Tygre]

"Ring! Show the ring, lass! I've only got the one sword and shield!" Essel yells, swinging his scimitar onto the cobra again.

Attack:[roll0]
Damage:[roll1]

[Callos_DeTerran]

Even as Essel yells back at Lavinia, the serpent takes advantage of his momentary distraction to lunge forward once more, only a quick riposte with his scimitar saving the halfling from a painful bite and venom, even as it leaves a shallow scratch in the hard-bodied construct's 'skull'. Adrie's whip cracks through the air as she tries to tangle up the iron cobra, but it proves a much more elusive target then she thought it would be and evades the strike.

Davina looks around half-heartedly, part of her attention focused on the continuing duel between Essel and the iron cobra, not seeing any clues to the serpent's deactivation as Heolly positions himself once more between Lavina and the iron cobra as Animesh prepares to launch a bolt at the wretched thing.

"HALT!" comes Lavinia's authoritative voice as she brandishes the signet ring at the iron cobra...an act that has the construct pausing in mid-strike to slink back away from Essel. To the astonished gaze of all the companions, it retreats back behind the southernmost pillar, slithering silently up to a carved niche and settling into it, blending in almost completely as Lavinia gives a sigh of relief, "Thank goodness that's over...now we just need to find the door to the vault proper..."

Animesh however has a problem all his own as the numbness in his arm threatens to spread further across his body...

Search checks to look for the door to the vault proper while Animesh needs to make a Fort. save (DC 14) or take 4 points of Strength damage.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh slides down the wall, sitting slumped over, his pupils dilated, his breathing labored. After a moment, the worst passes, and he manages to stand, though he feels severely weakened. He leans on his spear like a walking staff, and wipes sweat from his brow. Normally he'd be more concerned over the damage the poison had done to his body, but if he could last until Malphas left his body, he knew a certain vestige that could leave him good as new...
In the meantime, he tries to scrutinize the walls for any clues or hints at an entrance.


Search: [roll0]
Might we just want to take 20?

[Zar Peter]

Heolly approaches Animesh, points at the wounds in the binders shoulders, points at one of his hands and lifts his eybrows.

[CockroachTeaParty]

"...Yes. Please. If it's not too much trouble."
Animesh still didn't know what to make of Heolly. What sort of a man made a vow of silence? Especially someone not sealed away in a cloister somewhere? He was instinctively wary of servants of the gods... yet he had never encountered someone like Heolly before. Was it conviction that silenced him? Or something more? He made a mental note to keep a close eye on him, and perhaps learn more about the god he served...

[Zar Peter]

Heolly smiles and thouches the biting holes with his fingers. Than he concentrates and mutters in a deep voice: "Versiegle die Wunde, Rao, Herr des Friedens!".

The wounds nearly close and only leave small red marks which will heal fast overnight.

Cure Minor wounds, Animesh heals 3 Hitpoints

[Dr Strangelove]

Davina sheathes her rapier and takes a few slow, deep breaths. The door to the vault. Right. As she walks along one wall, tapping it with her knuckles, she thinks This family is useless! Even worse than my own. I hardly thought it possible.
Search [roll0]

[Mordokai]

With construct out of way and no danger present, Adrie takes a troubles look at Animesh, as she sets her whip back in it's place. After Heolly is done with the healing, she walks up to him and puts one hand on his shoulder.

"Maybe you should sit down and let others take care of this Animesh? Don't understand this the wrong way, but... you look terrible. I'm sure a little rest would do you good."

She also makes a mental note to ask Heolly about him suddenly speaking later, when they have more time.

[CockroachTeaParty]

"Thank you, Adrie. I'll be fine. I'm a fast healer. Might just take a sit down for the moment, though..."
Animesh half-collapses back on the floor, breathing deep and slowly. He felt light-headed, and didn't trust himself to fiddle with secret doors, or even walk in a straight line.

[Mordokai]

"Good man. Take a short rest, while the rest of us take a look. Your idea with the ring probably saved us, you deserved some time off."

With that, Adrie dedicates most of her attention towards searching, but still taking a quick look in Animesh's direction, to see how he's doing.

[roll0]

[The Tygre]

Essel pants, sword and shield still in hand. He had somehow managed to nick the Iron Cobra! WHOO! I'm the greatest! But Essel decided to keep those thoughts to himself. Trying to put a reposed face back on, Essel sheathes his weapons and searches the room with everybody else.

Search:[roll0]

[Zar Peter]

Heolly tries to hold Animesh a bit as he sits down, then he looks around trying to find a door, knowing he can't do anything more here.

Search [roll0]

[Callos_DeTerran]

"I still can't believe that worked..." Lavinia mumbles to herself as four of the group spread out to search for the entrance to the vault proper, leaving Animesh to lean against one of the pillars to try and regain his strength. The search...doesn't go well...there's far too many carved shapes and niches for a hidden lever or cache to reside in, causing frustration to set in soon after for the others aside from Davina who doggedly keeps at it. After ten minutes, the persevering thief finally finds what she is looking, finding one of dozens of carved serpents on the western pillar that gives way when she pushes on it. On cue, in the center of the northern wall across from the vault entrance, a whole mass of serpents shift and roll back with the grind of stone on stone to form a coiling archway that leads into a new chamber.

This octagonal room is supported by a single large pillar with dozens of deep grooves along its sides. The seven walls of this room each bear fantastically detailed bas-relief carvings of exotic monsters in threatening poses. Starting at the wall immediately to the west of the entrance to the room and moving clockwise, the carvings depict a mangy giant with a single blood shot eye holding a flanged mace, a painstakingly beautiful woman of nymph-like beauty, a fish-like creature with three eyes and four tentacles, a four-armed and eyed pasty white creature with green markings down it's back and only a single leg, a spherical creature with four eyestalks and a bulging central eye over a drooling maw, a reptilian quadruped with three snapping heads full of crocodile-like teeth, and finally a towering red scorpion with seven eyes that's missing it's two front legs. Each monster's eyes consist of a glittering red stone that Davina and Animesh pick out as relatively worthless agates. The ceiling above is only ten feet high, with the now-familiar eight-pointed star pattern radiating out from the grooved pillar though with the shortened height of the room the symbol seems menacing. The arms of the star are black, save for the one pointing south toward the entrance, which is red.

Another quick search reveals that five of the bas-reliefs are actually sliding panels, but are made of solid granite and far too heavy to try and lift up by purely manual labor. Lavinia walks hesitantly into this chamber, obviously expecting another guardian though none rears it's head, prompting the noblewoman to breath a sigh of relief as she invesitgates the grooved pillar...and suddenly starts!

"Hey, I think the pillar can twist around both ways! You lot think it's some kind of lock?" she asks excitedly, turning bright eyes on each of the five.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh limps into the new room, more cautiously than before, and takes up a sitting position under the seven-eyed arachnid carving. For a long while he sits and takes in the whole scene, trying to fill his head with constructive thoughts rather than dwelling on the dull pain throbbing through his shoulder.
"The eyes... seem important. One two three four five six seven... From west to east? What about that paper we found with the ring? Something about sunrise and sunset... could be a clue. *cough*"

[Mordokai]

Walking into the chamber, the half elf takes a look around, trying to take everything in and remember if any of the monsters holds any significance to Vanderboren family.

Knowledge: History, to remember if any of the monsters in the chamber have ever been mentioned along Vanderboren family name in the past.

[roll0]

Taking only couple of second, she then walks to Animesh and takes a canteen from her belt and offers it to him.

"Drink this, it will give some fire to your blood. You may end up needing it. And you may be on to something. That paper may hold some clue. Lavinia, you take a look at it and I'll try to figure out if there is anything else of importance in this room in the meantime."

This time, Adrie takes her time with searching.

Taking twenty on Search check, for a grand total of 23.

[Dr Strangelove]

That note said something about dial positions, didn't it? Davina says to Lavinia, frowning at the statues. Try turning them, I guess. Leaving the noblewoman to her own devices, Davina searches the chamber with Adrie.

Take 20 on Search, for 26.

[Zar Peter]

Heolly looks at the statues and tries to match the statues with the names on the note.

I don't know which multiplicator I should use, I think it should be Intelligence or Wisdom (since Heolly hasn't knowledge monsters) because it could be, as a teacher, that he saw pictures of them in some books. I just roll for every monster.

Chimera [roll0]
Cyclops [roll1]
Medusa [roll2]
Umber Hulk [roll3]
Basilisk [roll4]

If he can identify one or more of the beasts he goes the the statue and writes the name of the monster with chalk in front of it.

[The Tygre]

Essel steps in and looks at the carvings. The halfling whistles out, "Well ain't this a pretty kettle of fish..." Essel hears Animesh coughing and looks over worriedly. He hasn't learned healing magic like the other paladins. Essel almost kicks himself for forgetting about his healing kit and basic training. The paladin takes off his gauntlets and retrieves his healer's kit from his backpack. He opens the kit and walks over to Animesh, saying, "Now hold on there, son. I might not be able to patch you up like Eowl could, but I can at least try to slow down that poison a bit."

Treating poison, if I still can. Using healer's kit.
Heal:[roll0]

[Mordokai]

After a few minutes of fruitless searching, Adrie turns toward Davina.

"Found anything of interest?"

[Dr Strangelove]

This whole place is some kind of combination lock, Davina says, pitching her voice to carry to Lavinia and the others. And someone else has tried to get in recently. Anyway. Looks like that pillar with the notches is the dial that opens up the murals. Maybe it's something to do with turning the pillar about? That note had something to do with clock positions - try using those as the combination.

[Mordokai]

"Lavinia, could we have the note we recovered earlier? It probably holds clues to solving this riddle... and to be honest, I don't remember what it said anymore."

[Zar Peter]

Heolly looks up at the ceiling and points at the eight pointed star. Then he writes on the shield:

Maybe the star has something to do with it!

He cleans the shield after the others had read it and continues:

The note says something about a direction where the monsters should look but I don't know how to make them look and I don't know all the monsters.

He shows the shield around and raises his shoulders.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh nods at Heolly.
"Yes, the compass... 'sunset' would be west, and 'sunrise' would be east, right? The eyes of the monsters on the wall increase in value from one to seven...
Chimera looks to sunrise... A chimera has three heads, yes? Try turning the pillar six times to the east.
Cyclops looks to sunset... one turn west.
Medusa looks to sunrise... That one's tricky. Medusas have two eyes, but they have snakes for hair, or so I've heard. It could be two turns east... I doubt any turn can go over seven.
Umber Hulk looks to sunset... I don't know what an Umber Hulk is, but that must mean a number of turns west, probably determined by however many eyes it has.
Finally, basilisk looks to sunrise... again, I don't know how many eyes a basilisk has, but it would be a number of turns east.
That's my best guess. Anybody know how many eyes an umber hulk or a basilisk has? We could try substituting a random number between one and seven every time we try a combination, but that could take us a while indeed..."

[Zar Peter]

Heolly gets exited, goes to the pasty white figure with four arms and eyes, points at it and writes:

Umber Hulk! 4 eyes!

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh strokes his goatee, deep in thought.
"Umber hulk is four? It's worth a shot. A basilisk is a snake, right? Maybe not... let's try it as two, for now. So that's six east, one west, two east, four west, two east. Try and turn the pillar grooves in that combination."

[Zar Peter]

Heolly goes to the pillar, smiles at Lavinia and turns it in the directions Animesh just told. You can see the strain in his face.

[Mordokai]

Going over the combination proposed by Animesh in her head, Adrie decides she has nothing to add. Obviously, Animesh has it figured it out already. When Heolly steps in front and starts turning the pillar she just smiles to Lavinia.

"Where did you find this guy? He may not be much of a talker, but he sure is a doer."

[The Tygre]

Essel snaps at Animesh, "Stop moving so much! You want me to pierce a vein, do you? Now if only we had some leeches..." The halfling snips the final bandage, chiding, "There. Now try not to undo it and just let the medicine run its course." With that, Essel gets up and sees Heolly straining with the pillar. Letting out a sigh, the diminutive paladin goes over and helps the cleric.

[Callos_DeTerran]

Time (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3NynzKe3s58&feature=related) seems to crawl as Heolly and Essel begin to turn the pillars.

Click. Click. Click. Click. Click. Click.

The pillar doesn't turn easy, prompting the two men to grunt with effort as the pillar is turned towards the three headed reptilian with snapping teeth, both starting for a moment when the pillar sinks a half inch into the ground. Glancing at one another they begin to turn it once more to the spherical eye monster with it's waving eye stalks.

Click.

Then to the towering scorpion as Lavinia turns a slightly sheepish smile to Adrie, "Honestly? The same way that I had heard about each of you. I put my ear to the ground to hear about any capable individuals who could handle a rough situation and heard about all of you, including Heolly."

Click. Click. Another inch. Then back around to the three-eyed fish monster once the pillar had sunk down another half inch. It was getting harder to turn the pillar now, but Heolly and Essel both share an excited grins about making progress in the hopes that Animesh had successfully figured out the note.

Click. Click. Click. Click. Another inch, the tension ramped up a couple of notches as Lavinia worries her bottom lip as the two sweating adventurers struggle to turn the pillar back to the drooling eye monster once more.

Click. Click.

As Heolly and Essel briefly lean against the pillar to catch their breath, the first five alcoves shudder as all present can hear gears clanking in the ceiling before lifting straight up into the wall to expose the niches behind them. Four chests and coffers lay in each one, but the sight of them brings a sudden feeling of foreboding into the air, for each of the coffers is empty (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rg0DLUO9-Pw), but for a scattering of silver coins in each. Lavinia quickly goes to each alcove, face paling as she throws open the lids of the chests as well to discover the same thing. A spattering of silver, if anything, that barely totals up to forty silvers as the young woman turns to the final opened alcove and finally finds a reprieve. Here, the chests and coffers seem to be untouched and are brimming with golden coins and other small valuables that catch the white light of the ever-burning torches in this chamber. The five adventurers quietly join Lavinia as she goes through the contents of the final alcove, standing silent for a moment as she surveys the other contents, namely a thick sheaf of what appear to be ledgers dealing with debts owed by other noble families and guilds to the Vanderborens.

The most curious item though, is a thick pile of documents in an iron coffer towards the back of the alcove that Lavinia investigates last. Her brow furrows as she looks over several papers and she frowns, "What? This is my mother's handwriting but the language...I don't recognize it. The character's look Elven though."

It's only a couple of moments after she first picks it up that she sets it back down with a trembling breath, head cast down towards the floor as she gathers herself. When she finally turns around to face the group, she quickly raises one hand to wipe her eyes and turn an uneasy smile upon her new bodyguards and troubleshooters.

"I'm...sorry. I wasn't expecting to find all of...this," she pauses to gesture at the assembled empty alcoves, "I mean...I'm sorry. I owe each of you the pay I promised for securing the Blue Nixie for me. Two hundred gold orbs apiece if I remember correctly. Go ahead and count out your pay..."

The young, distraught Vanderboren leaves the five to count out their pay as she walks to the entrance to the inner vault, standing silently with the pile of documents that bore her mother's writing. It's obvious that there used to be much more coin in the vault and Davina's findings bear ominous omens of theft, but for the moment there is their reward to gather...

[Zar Peter]

Heolly takes a look at the coins, than at Lavinia standing there at the entrance thinking. He picks up some gold coins and walks to the Vanderboren descendant.

I'm not here because of the gold. I'm here because I think RAO wanted me to help you and the others. And I don't think my task has ended yet.

the teacher writes. He waits until Lavinia read it, then he wipes it away and continues:

The gold isn't important. The letters you found may be. We should find someone who can translate it, you could take my share for payment if you need. Or maybe some of the others know how to read Elven.

Heolly shows her the gold coins he picked up as if they are for her to use.

[Dr Strangelove]

Davina gives Lavinia a mildly sympathetic look, but hurries over to count out her pay first. Her deft fingers moving quickly, she considers 'miscounting', but decides against it. Lavinia isn't a bad sort, and she might have more work for me in the future; it would be like stealing from myself. She keeps an eye on the others as they count theirs out, then walks over to Lavinia.
I can read Elven, if you want that note translated, Davina says quietly.

Spot check to see if anyone takes more than 200: [roll0]

[CockroachTeaParty]

Figuring out the puzzle as quickly and decisively as he did was almost worth more than the payment, or so Animesh thought briefly before counting out his gold. He couldn't help but notice how trusting she was, turning her back and letting them take their payment themselves. The fact that she had apparently been robbed was more evidence that she was too trusting, or perhaps a bit naive. As he pocketed his reward, already certain puzzle pieces were falling into place.
As Heolly 'talks' with Lavinia, Animesh limps up to them.
"M'lady... the only way someone could have entered this vault, barring powerful magic, was if they possessed your mother's missing signet ring. I'm probably just stating the obvious here, but the whole situation stinks worse than the fishmongers of Shadowshore. You've been had, Lavinia. I hope I'm not being too forward, but if you could spare the time, I'm mighty curious to learn more about your brother."

[Mordokai]

Adrie considered leaving her gold to Lavinia for moment, much as Heolly did. But to be honest, she needed it. Life in Sasserine was tough enough, tougher still when you were destitute. As she quickly counted her pay, she listened to Animesh. Once again, the dark man had a point, but would Lavinia really want to discuss this undoubtedly painful thing? Time would tell and pretty soon. For now, her interest was on the newly found stash of documents. When she's done counting, she steps up to Lavinia and puts a hand on her shoulder lightly.

"I can read Elven. I could take a look at those documents, if you want me to. I assume you are fluent in tongue of my mother yourself, but maybe it's some dialect you're not familiar with. I'll be glad to help you, at no additional cost."

Adrie reads Elven, Sylvan and Abyssal.

[Callos_DeTerran]

Lavinia reads Heolly's writing carefully, but is already shaking her head by the end of it, turning her honest blue eyes upon Heolly once more. "No, you did a hard jobs work and your reward is yours. If need be I can find someone to translate it on my own.."

However, she doesn't get a chance to finish before Adrie and Davina both come over with an offer to see if either of them can read it. Mutely she looks at them both for a long moment before nodding, handing it over to the two women as she steps back towards the center of the vault. Davina and Adrie quickly find that while the journal is written in Elvish characters, the language being used is not Elven by Sylvan. Furthermore, it seems that the collection of loose papers is actually the journal of Lavinia's mother that details events going back...a couple dozen years at least! It'd take days to translate the entire thing to the common tongue, but at least knowing the language it was written in would help Lavinia find a translator for the task if Adrie was unwilling to do it herself.

"Vanthus? What did you want to know? I haven't seen my brother in some time after all." Lavinia says slowly, though the beginning of a suspicion begins to grow in her eyes, "Where are you going with this Animesh?"

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh takes a moment before responding, his brows furrowed deep in thought.
"My lady, I hesitate to bluntly posit my suspicions here and now, but perhaps I should be frank... Who else would have knowledge of your parent's vault? Who else would have been able to gather the clues needed to open it and puzzle out the vault's combination? I don't know what your relationship with your brother is like, but if you've ever suspected him of criminal leanings, well... he would be my primary suspect, as far as robbing your parent's legacy is concerned. It's odd that there would be a single chest left untouched... perhaps your brother did not want to leave you completely destitute? If it was a random grave robber, I'd suspect this place would be cleaned out completely. We'd need more hard evidence, to be sure..."

[Dr Strangelove]

That makes sense, says Davina, giving Lavinia a sympathetic look. No one can hurt you like family.

[The Tygre]

"I hate to say it, ma'am," Essel says as he pockets a handful of gold (12 gp), "But neither outcome is good for you. Either it's your brother, or someone a lot more powerful than you has decided to take an interest with your family. But maybe, just maybe, it's your brother against his will. Have you seen him in a while? He could have been kidnapped for all you know. Though I'm not sure if that's much better..."

[Mordokai]

Skipping over the words in journal, Adrie's heart starts beating a little faster. This is a big discovery. Sure, it will take some time to translate everything, but I think it will be worth it. Her train of thought is interupted by the newest discussion. Taking an uneasy look towards their patron, Adrie coughs a little to draw everybodies attention to herself once again.

"The journal is written in the language of pixies, dryads and nymphs, Slyvan. You were right Lavinia, it was written by your mother, more than a decade ago. I could translate this for you, should you so desire, but it would take couple of days at least.

My offer still stands. If you accept it, I will translate everything for you and you won't have to pay me a copper for it. But I would ask for your extended hospitality, in that case. I would be loath to do such important work in any of Sasserine's taverns. Who knows what may happen to such an important documents in the meantime. We all know Sasserine has it's share of pickpockets and cutpurses. If we could stay at your estate, that would ensure my work wouldn't be interupted and I could deliver any of my findings to you immediately."

Finishing her speech, she waits for the noblewoman to deliver her decision.

Diplomacy to try and persuade Lavinia to offer our party hospitaliy at her estate, in exchange for free translation of her mother's journal. It's a legitimate offer and not a bluff.

[roll0]

[Callos_DeTerran]

"Vanthus has been missing for close to a month, I haven't heard any word from him since then." Lavinia says thoughtfully, even as Adrie's information provides a welcome distraction from the unsettling prospect that Animesh, Davina, and Essel have raised for Lavinia and the troubled noblewoman turns to respond to her first.

"I'm...not sure that is such a wise idea. It may only be Kora and myself in my home at the moment, but it really isn't meant to accommodate a large group for an extended period of time. I'm not averse to giving one or two of you lodgings in the case of an emergency, however something more permanent simply isn't feasible at this time. Besides, don't you have homes of your own that need tending too?" Lavinia says slowly, before taking a deep breath and swiveling her blue gaze to the others of the group, "I don't want to admit it, but you all have a good point, and one we should be able to easily find evidence to support or disprove it!"

Waiting for the five to finish collecting their pay, Lavinia hurries out of the vault soon after and, as the vault door swings shut, the five can hear the notched pillar resetting itself as the alcove covers drop back into place to hide the treasures within. A woman on a mission, the Vanderboren heir storms up the spiral staircase until she reaches the main lobby of Castle Teraknian and the clerk who had escorted them down to the vaults.

"Ahh, Lady Vanderboren, I trust that you found...?"

"Has anyone visited my family's vault recently?" the Vanderboren demands abruptly, setting the clerk back on his heels, making him blink owlishly.

"Er...I believe so. Your brother Vanthus has visited the vault several times in the past month. He had a signet ring and I recognized him as a member of your family. Beyond that though, I recall no visitors to your vault." he says officiously, even as he nervously wrings his hands, obviously fearing that he had screwed up in one fashion or the other.

"I see...thank you."

"Um..if you wish, I can send word to you if he attempts to do so again...?"

"That would be much appreciated but for now, I must be leaving." Lavinia says shortly, turning on her heel and storming out the doors of the castle and back towards the ferry. The ride back across the Thunder River to the Merchant District is un-eventful, barring a moment when a couple of canoes bearing foodstuffs veered close for the bronze men and women manning them to shriek out prices at the passengers and curses when the ferry continued on past them. One back on solid land, Lavinia takes a deep breath before looking over the five.

"I believe this is where we must part ways for a time. I must decide on my next course of action and each of you has wounds that need attending too. Adrie, I...appreciate the offer to translate the journal for me but...It's..it's something I should do myself. For the sake of my mother's privacy if nothing else...do any of you need to stay with me or do you have your own arrangements?"

You all are going to be given about five days of down time to shop for items, attend to personal matters, or what have you so just give me an indication of where your character will be staying/doing during that time (or any actions they might want to take). If it looks like it needs it, I'll move that little scene to the private conversation thread so it can happen at it's own pace without interfering with the pace of the main story though. :smallsmile:

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh bows deeply to Lavinia.
"Thank you, my lady. If you have need of me, send word to the Bloodthirsty Pelican Inn in the Azure District."
The dark-skinned man turns to the rest of the group.
"If anyone would care to join me, I believe we have some recovered equipment to sell. I could use an extra hand or two carrying everything, considering the state I'm in..."

[The Tygre]

"I'll come with you. I don't need to make a report anytime soon, so I have time to spare." Essel says.

[Dr Strangelove]

Well, I expect I'll spend the next few days recovering, says Davina, running a hand along the mostly-healed slash on her chest. But I would love to remain in your employ, Lavinia. You know where to find me.

Will heal up and try to buy a set of thieves' tools (30gp). Take 20 on Gather Information to find them if necessary (for result of 20).

[Zar Peter]

Heolly smiles at Animesh and then writes on his shield:

I would love to help you with these items. I won't be a great help selling them but I'm sure good in carrying. And we could buy something, too. I would suggest something to help me heal.

He shows the shield Animesh. Then he wipes it away and writes again:

RAO has gifted me with great skills but I'm still too weak. Maybe some scrolls or a wand of healing could support me when my power is on its end.

Heolly ensures that Animesh read his words, then he draws his attention to Lavinia

My dear Lady, I hope you can figure out the writings and I'm happy to stay in your service. If you need me, I think I will search for a room in Animesh's tavern. Best of luck for you.

He bows, then he turns to Animesh, waiting to go with him and sell the items.

[Mordokai]

Handing her mother's journal back to Lavinia, Adrie once again speaks up.

"Of course. I appologize for my words. As for arrangements, I will find something for myself, you don't need to worry.

One more thing. There were some animals in the cages on Blue Nixie when we liberated it from Vark. In our hurry we forgot about them last night. It may be prudent to alert somebody to them, so they could be set free."

Hearing Animesh, Essel and Heolly she walks after them.

"Hope you three don't mind me joining?"

She takes some of the loot from Animesh, to make it easier on him.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh nods at Heolly.
"A wand is an excellent idea, especially if our little group is going to be working together in the near future. They are rather expensive, but if we all chipped in from our share, we should be able to afford a basic wand of healing magic. And the more the merrier, Adrie. We could certianly use someone with your social graces this afternoon."

As those following Animesh head out, they gather the recovered goods and set off into the Merchant District to find buyers.

[Callos_DeTerran]

It's (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_O3IHI3RCMQ) almost four days before the five companions hear from their new employer again, four days spent recovering from the wounds gained in that action-packed two days while selling the spoils of those adventures and acquiring new supplies to prevent such almost disastrous loss of life again. The message is sent by courtier this time instead of by Kora, and all five arrive without issue to find the manor a far more lively place. Several courtiers in the livery of different noblemen wait patiently for an audience with Lavinia even as three large mastiffs stampede into the foyer when each of the company arrive, barking boisterously and playfully nipping at the heels of the adventurers as they head into they are directed to the study by an irate Kora that reminds them to take off their shoes or face some unintelligible threat spoken in the halfling tongue.

They find Lavinia seated at a teak desk, surrounded by a small mound of parchment and paper, looking weary but happy when she turns around to face the five with a glowing smile.

"My aunt and uncle have sent word back from Cauldron, they've been able to secure some funds from friends and family there. Things will be a little tight until they arrive, but the edge of the woods is definitely in sight! Once I sort out all of this thrice-damned paperwork anyway!" she says with a cheerful laugh, throwing down her quill as she settles back into her leather chair, "I've even contacted the Dawn Council about obtaining a charter for you five to make your band official! Over all, things have definitely taken an up turn and it's all thanks to each of you!"

One of the mastiffs, a great and shaggy beast with black hair saunters into the room and sits beside his mistress, laying his great head in her lap. Lavinia pats the beast on the head and begins to lightly pet the large hound as her expression turns more somber.

"However...something still troubles me. Vanthus. I would hear from his own lips about why he's stolen my inheritance because the brother I know would never have done such a thing." she says thoughtfully, "Our parents weren't around much when we were younger, always off on some exciting new adventure so we grew close. Depending on one another, even as we got into some trouble with each other. Heh...I remember this one time he convinced me to help him in pouring several love potions into the nearby water tower. The next day was very funny for Vanthus and I but our parents didn't...ah...share the same sense of humor. I was sent to the Thenalar Academy for five years while Vanthus was sent to work on an uncle's plantation."

"I only returned to live in the family manor about a year ago, a couple of days before Vanthus returned as well. I must say, I might not have agreed with my parents' decision to send us away at the time, but I believe Thenalar was good for me. They taught me business, etiquette, even some fencing though I'm probably rusty now. Vanthus though...he was different. He didn't have any time for me anymore." Lavinia says a bit regretfully as she scratches the dog's head, "He slept all day and spent all night with...disreputable people from what I've heard. Eventually he moved out entirely, I think to move in with some lover in the Azure district, but I'm not sure."

"I didn't see him again until my parents had died and he returned for a week or so...He had changed even more since last I saw him. He didn't laugh or smile...he'd become so cynical and morbid that it un-nerved me to think this was the same brother that had defended me from bullies. Every time I tried to talk to him about it we just started to argue until, finally, he struck me." Lavinia pauses, frowning as she remembers the incident, reaching her free hand up to feel along her right cheek, "That was the first time I saw my old brother. For a moment, just a moment, he was as shocked as I was and I saw Vanthus again. Then he was back to the scowling and menacing man he's become, packed up his things and just left. I haven't seen him since then."

The noblewoman pushes away the dog with a sigh as she gets to her feet, the irate animal plodding over to Essel and sitting at his feet with a disgruntled expression on his face. Lavinia stands and begins to pace back and forth as her own anxious expression settles across her face.

"I know something happened to change him, but I don't know what! I'm sure he's fallen in with a bad crowd, maybe smugglers or thieves, maybe even killers! But...I don't care about that. I know some shred of my old brother remains within him and I intend to find it, I just have to talk some sense into him before he's past the point of no return." Finally her hard blue gaze turns to each of the five in turn, those steely sapphires conveying just how intense she was about this subject, "Which is why I've called you here. I don't know where my brother is and my own contacts haven't had any luck in finding him, but they are mostly merchants and minor noblemen, they don't span the breadth of Sasserine that Vanthus has likely fallen into. That's why I'm asking you to find him, and quickly, to bring him back to my side while there's still a man to redeem. You can go places where my contacts can't, ask questions they wouldn't dare too...will you help me in this?"

For those who speak Halfling:
Kora threatened to break their wagon wheels, something disastrous for a wagon in a halfling caravan.

[Zar Peter]

Heolly listens to Lavinia's speech, then he takes his slate and writes

You can count on us dear Lady! We will find your brother.

He smiles at her, than he turns around, looks at the others and writes

So, where to begin the search?

[Dr Strangelove]

I don't know, Heolly, Davina says, looking to Adrie. Finding people isn't really my area of expertise. I guess we could split up and ask around the city, particularly the docks - see if anyone remembers him.

[Mordokai]

Sasserine is a big place to look. It will probably take us quite some time to find the right people to ask, but I'm sure that given enough time, they will be found. But splitting up sounds like a good idea, yes. We'll be able to cover more area faster and get more information. The only place where anybody shouldn't go alone is probably Shadowshore. I propose we tackle that first or last and we do it together, or at least with two or three people together."

Giving a look at Animesh, she awaits for his input. She didn't want to say it out loud, but the dark man looked like somebody who would know more about Shadowshore than her.

[The Tygre]

Essel wiggles his toes. He slipped out of his boots almost the moment he heard Kora's old threat, with just a tinge of nostalgia at his back. It had been such a long time since he had heard anything about caravans, much less a threat! Essel sits down and listens to Lavinia. When the mastiff comes over, Essel can't help but scratch the big oaf's head. When she's finished with her explanation, the halfling explains, "I still know some folks from my wilder days. I'll see what they know, but I can't make any promises. Faces blur together in the muck." The statement would have more of an air of wisdom to it were it not for Essel still scratching the lumbering dog's head.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh listens quietly and intently. He strokes his oiled, jeweled goatee slowly.
"Splitting up is probably a good idea, Davina. If we're asking strange questions as a group, it would look more suspicious. Individuals are less threatening, and thus more likely to eke out clues. We've got the Azure District as a lead... we could probably skip the Cudgel District. That leaves the Nobles District, Champion's District, Merchant District, Sunrise District, and Shadowshore. I'll take Shadowshore; I've some contacts there. And don't worry Adrie, as long as we do our investigation during the day, we'll be fine."

[Zar Peter]

Heolly listens to Animesh, then he writes on his slate:

I'll take the merchants district. Basically it's the only one I know since I arrived but some of the rich guys owe me a favour for minor healings. And the beggars, too. I wonder who of them knows more.

He smiles.

[Callos_DeTerran]

"Well it seems that you have a solid course of action then." Lavinia says with some relief, swiveling back towards the small mound of papers demanding her attention, "I'll leave you to the work at hand then and wait for news that you've found my brother. Sadly, I must focus on how to out weasel families of weasels trying to avoid their due debts..."

After a brief discussion about who would search where, each of the five split up to try and cover more ground as quickly as possible. In the end, it was decided that Davina would search the Azure district, Heolly would check out the Merchant's district, while Animesh would investigate Shadowshore for signs of the wayward Vanthus. Adrie and Essel, lacking a strong lead to follow, decided to broaden their own searches in the hope of catching rumors or tidbits in less likely places. At the end of each day they agree to meet and discuss their findings at the Pearl and Parrot, an inn known to most of the group.

Heolly quickly finds over the course of a day or so that many people in the Merchant's District remember seeing Vanthus at one time or another, but never recently. Many of them are actually surprised to find out that Vanthus is no longer living at the Vanderboren Manor. While Heolly doesn't get any good leads on Vanthus, and has the sneaking suspicion that he's set the rumor mill to churning about the Vanderborens, he is still confident in his findings that Vanthus isn't hiding out in the Merchant's District.

Davina's search bares frustratingly little fruit, despite her efforts, for over two days. Most of the salty types she speaks to have no idea who's she's talking about, or are skilled at feigning ignorance of the man in question. She hears more about the increased activity of a band of savage pirates known as the Crimson Fleet among worried salt-crusted sailors then she does about Lavinia's missing brother. The most she can discover is the same that Lavinia herself has, that her brother is supposed to have shacked up with either a small-time petty thief, a semi-legitimate artist, or (in the more untrustworthy rumors) both named Briessa Santos though the woman can't be located and after two and a half days of fruitless searching hopes that her compatriots were having more luck then she was...

Unfortunately, Essel's trawl through the Cudgel and Champion district proves just as unlucky as Davina's search. Acting on a hunch that Vanthus might hide where he was least expected to be, Essel figured that districts devoted to priests and religions or boisterous combat would be alien and unfamiliar enough to the Vanderboren man that he may try to hide there. As it is though, it seems they are TOO alien and unfamiliar and hears no trace of Vanthus.

Adrie's sends out probes to the Noble and Sunrise Districts, operating under a similar theory that Essel had constructed, but it bears the same results. Though many seem eager to talk with the half-elf bard, it only takes a half day before Adrie figures she's chasing moon-light where she's at and joins Davina in her own search, comforted that Vanthus wasn't hidden in either.

It's Animesh's hunt in Shadowshore that bears the most fruit there. To his great excitement, he finds that the shadowy thieves and criminals of the district have seen Vanthus, and recently, in the company of the semi-notorious Penkus. A man known for his drunken binges and violent temper, it seems that Penkus had begun to dwindle from the public eye over the past year...until a few weeks past when he was seen with Vanthus Vanderboren, having a loud argument with the owner of a boatshop called 'It Still Floats!'. With such a promising lead to follow up on, Animesh decides to inform the others before checking up on 'It Still Floats!'.

It's on the third day that Davina and Adrie's luck changes. Just as they are about to set out for another day of searching the Azure district for Briessa or Vanthus after meeting with Animesh, Essel, and Heolly, the two are approached by a nervous looking half-elf with messy black hair, a ragged suit of leather armor that's seen a lot of wear-and-tear, and dirty hands that he wrings nervously. He's a shady looking fellow but, at the sight of the two, he makes a beeline for them both.

"H-hey. Y-y-yer the two dames searchin' for dat Vanthus bloke, right?" he says in a quiet voice, glancing around uneasily as if expecting someone to leap from the shadows to assault him. Likely one of the lowlier residents of Shadowshore, "Name's Shefton. Shefton Posk as me mama tells it. Ya know dere's lots of people searchin' about for dis guy, specially in Shadowshore....whatcha yer interest in him?"

[Dr Strangelove]

We're in the employ of his sister, Davina says easily. He's been away for a while and she wants to know what's become of him. If you've solid information, I could be persuaded to a touch of material gratitude. She smiles pleasantly at the half-elf, but keeps her hand close to her rapier.

Prepared action to draw rapier if anyone attacks.
Diplomacy (for the hell of it): [roll0]

[Mordokai]

Adrie decides to let Davina take care of this. It was nice seeing the woman besides her attempting to be diplomatic. And she was good at it. Adrie didn't really understand why Davina was reaching for her rapier... this Shefton fella didn't look like much trouble and the bard was sure even the two of them could handle him easily if he got too brave. She hopes Shefton won't be intimidated by this gesture, so she smiles at him and nods encouragingly.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh approached the ramshackle boat store It Still Floats!, under a magical disguise. Instead of his normal visage, he looked like a completely different person. He was about an inch taller, with paler (sunburned) skin, receding red hair, and small, close-set, piggish eyes. A boil throbbed on his smashed nose. Thick of neck and muscular, his disguise was designed to look intimidating, but also unintelligent.
The wooden wharf creaked under his boots as he opened the door with a meaty fist. The first human being he spots he approaches.
"You the owner o'this shop?"
His voice is deep and gravely, wholly different than his own; indeed, until he learned more control of the binding arts, the tenor of his voice was the telling sign of the vestige currently bound to his soul; Naberius, master of disguise.

[Callos_DeTerran]

Adrie, Davina, ?

The greasy looking half-elf looks alarmed as Davina's hand drops down to her rapier, raising his hands up defensively as he flinches back from the two obviously well-armed women.

"Hey, hey, hey! There's no rea'on ta get like dat! I ain't ever hurt a fly in me life!" he protests frantically, waving his two empty hands about as if to reassure the two that he had nothing in them, "Listen, I ain't un ta care about the affair of others, but Ah figure I can get some compensation out of ya two in return fer showing ya where he is. Five gold orbs, more then fair price all things considered! Der's lots of people I could go after all, dozens of'em!"

Shefton's words sound sincere enough, though in an oily, only-sincerer-as-long-as-you-have-the-money, kind of way. The sort that Davina is rather familiar with from her own criminal exploits and jobs, but that's hardly a comforting thought on it's own. He doesn't look to have any weapons openly displayed though, if Shefton carries one then it's likely a concealed dagger at best.

--------------------------------------------------------

Animesh and ?

The trip down the wharf is uneventful, lacking sign of any kind of regular, or reputable, customers as the binder approaches 'It Still Floats!' and enters quietly. A slightly moldy and musky scent fills the air, seeming to come from several tarred and pitched rowboats that dangle from the ceiling, hopefully not the boats one could actually buy. At first, there's no sign of the proprietor until a down-trodden looking dwarf comes out from behind a stack of casks at the far side of the shop and wipes his hands on a tar-smeared apron. Beady blue eyes stare out at the piggishly disguised Animesh from some of the fiercest eyebrows he's ever seen, obscuring a heavily lined face with a bushy beard tied into two points and thrown over his shoulders.

He clumps across the creaking floorboards to the disguised binder and shoves his hand out at him, turning his head to the side for a moment to spit out the window.

"Welcome to 'It Still Floats!'. The name's Panchi, what kinda raft ya looking for?" the dwarf glumly asks, looking up brazenly at the thuggish human that has come into his shop.

Heolly and Essel can insert themselves into whichever scene you two want. :smallwink:

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh squints at the owner, keeping his expression as dumb and brutal as possible.
"I ain't interested in buyin' none o'yer dingies, messer Panchi. I'm lookin' fer two men, and a little bird told me they wuz shoppin' here not some few days past. I'm lookin' fer one Penkus and Vanthus. They owe my boss some coin, they does, and there's somethin' in it fer you if you got any 'fermation what could help me on me way."
He jingled his coin pouch, then cracked his thick knuckles, hopefully sending the right message.

[Mordokai]

Seeing Davina's approach being less than successful, Adrie takes a step forward.

"Five gold it is Shefton. However, you will understand that we are also taking some risk by trusting you. So I'll propose it like this: we pay you three gold now and three gold after we are sure your informations are good. What do say about it?"

To emphasise, Adrie pulls three golden coins out of her purse and shakes them in Shefton's general direction.

[roll0]

The offer is real.

[Zar Peter]

Heolly was lurking around the „It still floats“. It took him time to convince Animesh to come with him, at last he agreed to split long before the shop and meet outside after Animesh dealt with the owner. There was something about this man, a unease, a fright, something Heolly couldn't really catch. Animesh was a puzzle, he was hiding something. But he was one of the people RAO told him to take care of. No matter what. And since Adrie and Lavinia backed themselves Heolly didn't want Animesh to go alone.

[Callos_DeTerran]

Animesh and Heolly

"Uh huh." is all that Panchi grunts once the disguised Animesh admits his business, falling silent to scrutinize the human asking for information. Large hands come to rest on the gloomy dwarf's hips as he glares up at the thuggish person before he finally speaks again, "An' why should I tell ya a damn thing? Do I look like a gossip, waggling my tongue about all manner of useless things? They paid me good coin, got no reason to go spilling the beans."

Despite the harsh words, there's no real malice in his town, rather a bored sense of business-like pride, a valuable commodity to foster in Shadowshore where loose lips could sink ships. Still...he doesn't seem entirely unwilling either...

============================================

Adrie, Davin, and Essel (Assuming on his part)

At Adrie's words, the shifty looking half-elf brightens up immensely, turning avarice filled eyes on the two women as he licks his lips and nods.

"Oh for six orbs Ah'll do more den just tell ya where to find dat slimey git, Ah'll show ya!" he says eagerily, stepping closer once more despite the hint of violence that Davina offers out of a desire to ensure this oily looking man doesn't try anything fishy. "This all of you right? We could meet down at the docks Shadowshore docks later if ya want to find dis guy today!

[CockroachTeaParty]

There was still a chance that words could eke out some useful information before things got unpleasant. Animesh let Naberius guide his tongue, as if the vestige was providing him with the perfect things to say before he even knew what they were.
"A gossip? No, you look like an intelligent businessman. It ain't easy runnin' a shop in Shadowshore, and me boss knows that. I'm not lookin' fer trouble meself. You could make my day a whole lot easier, and I could make yours a whole lot nicer, if ye just answer some basic questions; what you sold'em, when, and did they mention where they were headed? Come now, sir, what's a few harmless words 'tween upstandin', level-headed folks like us, eh?"


Taking 10 on Bluff and Diplomacy, thanks to Nabby, getting me a 17 in both skills.

[Mordokai]

Offering the three gold coins promised, Adrie presses them into Shefton's extended palm.

"As per our agreement. We'll meet you in... four hours at Shadowshore's docks. We have a couple of friends to find first and I believe that's all the time we're going to need. Be there if you want the rest of your payment Shefton."

Waiting for the other half-elf to walk away, Adrie then turns towards her friends.

"Does anybody of you two know where to look for Animesh and Heolly? I seem to remember Animesh mentioning a certain locale, but my mind has been preocupied and it... slipped on me."

[The Tygre]

"I think he and the young master Heolly were headed to a local dive, but I can't be sure. Usually the best sort of place to look for gossip. But to the matter at hand, do you think we can trust the vagabond we just chatted up? We've been searching around town for most of the day, and been in Lavinia's employ still longer. What if Vanthus knows we're coming?"

[Dr Strangelove]

You're right, Essel, Davina says tersely. I think we ought to be wary. Usually informants are much less eager to get involved; this could be a trap. She frowns thoughtfully. He didn't seem to know about Animesh and our taciturn friend; if we arrive at the docks separately, they could be our hole card. Just in case.

[Mordokai]

"It's the best lead we have at the moment though, so I'm afraid there's not much left we can do. Still, some precautions would probably be wise. When we get to Animesh and Heolly we can let them in on the plan. But to do that, we need to find them first. Shall we get going?"

[Callos_DeTerran]

Animesh

At first it looks as if Panchi is going to remain stead-fast in his silence about the subject, but finally the hint of a smile touches upon his frown. "Heh, suppose your right 'bout that. Your 'friend' came here with a surly bloke named Penkus. Both of them bough some crap raft from me and loaded it all up with rope, oil, and lanterns when they came for it. Dunno what they were planning but they seemed awfully excited and set out west from here."

The dwarf wipes his tar-smeared hands across his rough tunic as he finishes up, holding out one hand expectantly as a touch of avarice comes into his eyes.

"Sorry I don't know anything else for you, but there it is. I don't want to know what ya intend to do when you catch up to your mate either, my part in this is done with, hear?" he says pointedly.

==================================================

Adrie, Davina, and Essel

It doesn't take long for the trio of companions to deduce where Animesh had mentioned he'd be following up on a lead the previous night, setting off en mass for 'It Still Floats' to see what has become of the mute Heolly and decidedly peculiar Animesh. They find the duo quietly conversing outside of the boat-shop, or rather discover Heolly conversing with a brutish looking thug that none of the three recognize. After a moment's surprise, they realize the man is really Animesh and quickly fill the other two in on their prospective plan.

Still, the combined leads were too good to avoid following up on and the five are back in Shadowshore a half hour before the meeting with Shefton to check out the scene. The informant seems to be alone, pacing nervously back and forth in front of a leaky-looking raft that's certainly seen better days. The sun is still high in the air, ensuring there's a somewhat sizable crowd to provide the adventuring companions some cover while they decide their next move...

Basically looking for confirmation if you're going separately or all at once. :smallwink:

[Mordokai]

Turning toward Heolly and now changed Animesh, Adrie whispers to them.

"As per Davina's plan, you guys follow us at a distance. Hopefully, this will allow us to avoid any unwanted surprised that either Shefton or Vanthus has planned for us."

She then turns to the other two and gives them the look that will hopefully convey the right message. After that is done, she walks over to Shefton and greets him in amicable tone.

"We're ready Shefton. You can take us to see Vanthus now. I just hope this raft ot yours holds water?"

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh plants a gold piece in Panchi's hand before joining his companions. He strokes a non-existent goatee out of habit as he ponders the news of this Shefton character. His voice remains convincingly gravely as he speaks.
"That's a good plan. It's always useful to have back up when going into an unknown situation. The only problem I can see is that Heolly and I don't have a boat. I can swim just fine, but I can't speak for Heolly. If need be, he could go with you, and I could follow alone. I just need to keep an eye on your boat from the shore and see where you go."

Inwardly, Animesh cursed not having more time. Given the opportunity, he would bind Malphas again, and keep an eye on the group via bird, but that wasn't an option now. He'd have to adapt to the circumstances on the fly.

[The Tygre]

Essel stays close to Adrie. He casually puts his hand on his waist, resting it near the hilt of his scimitar. The lanky halfling looks around, making sure that nothing unexpected is lurking in the shadows, or on their guide..

Spot check:[roll0]
Listen check:[roll1]

[Zar Peter]

Heolly looks at the shabby boat, then points a finger at the boat, than at himself and shakes his had. He takes out his chalc and writes a few words on his shield:

I'm not taking this boat. Stay with Animesh and watch. Maybe we find a boat to rent.

A fast look over the piers if there is any small row boat for rent there:

Spot: [roll0]

[Dr Strangelove]

Yes, let's get down to business, says Davina, echoing Adrie. She glances around mock-carelessly, looking for a possible ambush or watcher.

Spot [roll0]

[Callos_DeTerran]

"Well it has so far, 'sides isn't like we's far to go anyway." Shefton replies easily as Essel, Davina, and Adrie climb into the rickety looking raft. Despite the sharp-eyed look-out that Essel and Davina keep, they don't spy any hidden watchers keeping tabs on them as Shefton grabs the long pole that rests inside his raft and begins to push the three out into the current.

"Thought you three were gonna go get some friends of yers or sumthin', couldn't find'em Ah guess?" he says conversationally as the half-elf clumsily manuevers around other boats and rafts, oblivious to the small row-boat containing Animesh and Heolly that keeps within eye shot. Luckily it doesn't seem like there's a long way to go, Shefton pushing the raft out towards Parrot Island. Thirty foot cliffs surround the small island, which is more of a rocky outcrop then anything, in the middle of the Thunder River to prevent easy passage up to the thick vegetation atop the island. However, the informant is clearly aiming for a narrow beach on the east side of Parrot Island and slides the moldy raft up unto the thin stretch of sand without another word while Animesh and Heolly hang back for a couple of minutes to see how things progress.

"This way my friends, it's not much farther." Shefton says amicably, trudging across the muddy beach towards the veritable wall of greenery that borders the landing beach, slipping into it along a partially over-grown trail that leads upwards. It's easy to see how this island has it's name though, a veritable swarm of brightly colored birds noisily converse and caw at one another above the head of the three companions. The crass animals rudely refuse to take flight despite the intrusion, eying the quartet of intruders with avian malice as the nervous Shefton guides his employers up to a small clearing at the center of the island with several large boulders scattered here and there.

Quickly the half-elf moves to the southern side of the clearing and begins to stamp, smiling triumphantly when he hits something hollow and quickly scoops the dirt away. "Ah ha, here it is! Dis place has been a home for smugglers fer a good stretch but fell ta disuse. My infermaton says Vanthus been spending'is time down in de tunnels underneath this here island. But ya ain't paid me to do more then just show ya this so Ah'll take me three gold and be on me way now..."

I'm assuming Animesh and Heolly hung back until some sort of pre-arranged signal was given to tell them to come on up, feel free to contradict me if they'd head up after everyone else. :smallwink:

[CockroachTeaParty]

Animesh keeps his eyes locked on the raft with the others. When they reach Parrot Island, he waits until the group disappears among the trees, before putting his back into the oars.
"Let's give them a few minutes, I say, then we'll land by the cliffs and follow them into the trees. It's not a very big island, so we should be able to find them. Keep an eye out for a spot to hide the boat. And keep a sharp eye and ear out for anything suspicious."
Animesh bit his lip, feeling somewhat helpless. He and Heolly were the cavalry should anything befall their companions, but a lot could happen in such an isolated place. At least they had help waiting for them, but his instincts were filling him with doubt.


Animesh will land the rowboat on the shore of Parrot Island after about ten minutes have passed. If he sees anyone returning to Shefton's raft, he'll wait and see what they do first.

Let me know if we need to make any skill checks, such as finding a place to hide our rowboat when we land, or if we need to search for the trail they took into the island. Hide and Move Silently checks might also apply should we follow, as we'll be attempting to do so stealthily if possible.

[Mordokai]

"We couldn't find them, yes. Lets just go find Vanthus, I'm sure they'll turn out later."

Adrie responds to Shefton's inquiries, hoping to set his mind at ease. She then leans back in the rowboat, as Shefton rows, pulling out her flute and playing a soft melody on it. When they finally reach their destination, she quickly clambers out of the boat and follows Shefton. Seeing the colorful birds, she can't help herself but whistle couple of notes in their direction, waiting to see if any of them will respond.

Once they arrive to their destination and Shefton scoops the dirt away, Adrie does the same and scoops three golden coins from her purse, handing them to Shefton.

"We thank you for your help Shefton. However... you seem to be familiar with more than you say. I won't ask you for more information, but we could use a guide with experience. Would you be willing to help us in the tunnels down there? For another ten gold coins? I think the price is more than worth a little extra effort, what do you say?"

Taking her purse into her palm, she weights it, for coins to jingle. She smiles at Shefton, awaiting his answer.

[roll0]

[Zar Peter]

Heolly nodded at Animesh and pulls the oars. That was not exactly what he had expected when Rao showed him his favour but it wasn't bad either. A lot more exciting then teaching in the monastery, for sure, and this Animesh was an very interesting guy. "These transmutation skills of his are amazing", Heolly thought, "and he fights pretty well, too".

Following Animesh, as him please tell me when Heolly shall make skill checks.

[Dr Strangelove]

Yes, a guide would be invaluable, Davina says, doing her best to smile at Shefton. And if you lead us astray you'll get my rapier in your back.

Aid Another on Adrie's Diplomacy, if that's possible.