Fatherland [IC]

[Vladislav]

Cast of Characters
Hat-Trick, Cardis Cerulean (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheetview.php?sheetid=307427), Cleric//Rogue
Snowbear22, Selendis Cerulean (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheetview.php?sheetid=293798), Beguiler//Factotum

The time of Wizards has gone by. And they probably never even existed in the first place.

The streets were overflowing with people. Craftsmen in grey work clothes mingled with affluent citizens in their colourful jackets. Their wives paraded in skirts of size and coloration similar to rose bushes. Merchants peddled ice cream, sweets and roasted almonds, shooing away street urchins who obviously had no money to pay for such. Street performers were tumbling and juggling wherever a small opening in the crowd presented itself, and further down at the far end of the square, hammers struck and saws buzzed as stages were being built for the evening festivities. It was a carnival day - first Sunday of the month of Thriven - marking fifteen years of New Galadorn under the wise and benevolent rule of the Three Fathers. Their all-watching eye was evident as a small unit of mounted guards circled the square, the chaotic sea of people parting before them.

A little to the side and thirty feet up, a window gazed upon the square. Not different from any other, except a small crack ran though it, brought by a drunken brawl last winter, and kept there by the owner's tight pockets and lack of desire to renovate. There just aren't as many profits in illegal..., eh, semi-legal gambling as there used to be, Tallis would explain to anyone who would like to hear. The two men and woman by the window table listened to him politely, declined to play cards for now, and when the fat Elf stepped away, continued minding their business.

The woman, and the younger of the men were known by the family name Cerulean, and we shall no doubt meet them again in our story. The third customer was older; he was also far more bearded, and far more red-haired than everyone else in the gambling den put together. His name was Prospero, and he was a person of indeterminate address, profession and income. The Ceruleans knew him fairly well, however they suspected he knew them even better. They were getting impatient as he was taking his sweet time to start explaining why he wanted to meet them, here and today, although taking his time was something they got used to from him.

After a sufficiently dramatic pause, Prospero sipped on his Rootwater Ale ("bitter as a pirate's death", was the establishment's slogan), and grimaced slightly as he surveyed the view throught the window, although whether the view or the ale brought about the grimace, was unclear. Turning to the Ceruleans, he commented matter-of-factly, Some party, huh?

[Hat-Trick]

"I'll party with my parents when I'm dead," Cardis Cerulean muttered. As was his custom, he was catching a moment to rest his eyes with his chair leaned back and supported partially by the wall with his feet on the table. With all the time he spends at night not sleeping, he found taking the time to close his eye helped keep him at least partially rested in spite of it all. As for his abruptness, he wasn't known for being the best with people and he did little to hide the point, other than let his sister do most of the talking when it was necessary for some level of tact.

As it was his patience was starting to wear thin. If Prospero wanted something important, he had better speak up quickly before the older Cerulean twin decided it was a better use of time to go home and get some proper sleep. The last thing either of the siblings needed was to be denied what little proper rest they usually allowed themselves... That he allowed HIMself. He did his best to make sure his sister was well rested, if only to make sure she had her mind set properly for her casting.

[Snowbear22]

"Get to the point already, Prospero", Selendis said as she twirled her dagger. "You know I have little patience, especially when I would rather be studying."

Selendis has a few things she hates, and waiting around in a bar is just one of them. Bars are one of the few places where she has never felt comfortable. She'd rather spend her time researching and studying the theory of magic and other miscellaneous tasks than sit around and get stared at by all the strangers. One way she gets around the feelings of being uncomfortable has been to twirl her dagger in public. It keeps the strangers away and if need be, she wouldn't mind throwing it at the closest wall.

"Or would you rather I throw this at you?" Selendis asked, pointing her dagger at Prospero.

[Vladislav]

He smiled at Selendis' threat. Impatient as always. That's what I like about you. Although I guess it must be tiring to those who spend more time around you than myself, eh, Cardis? He takes another sip and finally, something resembling a point emerges...

Gaspar Arnery. Heard the name? Maybe not, no problem. Old man, lives alone. I need you to take a look what he's up to. Recon, sneak into his place if you have to. No violence, no stealing, just information gathering. Here's the address. He passes a note with an address in the semi-affluent area of the city. If he doesn't know you've been there, all the better. Are you young lions up to the task?

Knowledge (Local) DC 13 to open spoiler
Gaspar Arnery has a reputation as a master craftsman and handyman. He is also one of the most learned and knowledgeable men in the city. Some claim he knows everything there is to know, although they probably exaggerate.
If you beat the DC by 5 or more
He was a teacher in the Kronburg Wizardry Colledge. After the 'change of management' the college was disbanded due to the unfavorable family relations of its principal (who was King Galen's cousin, no less), and the teachers were scattered to scrounge a living elsewhere.

[Snowbear22]

Knowledge(Local) check: [roll0]

Selendis looks at the note. She grins a bit. "You going soft on me now?" she asks. She passes the note to Cardis. "Now then, is there anything else you want to tell us, like... about security guards?"

Edit: (13 is good enough for a DC 13 check right?) Selendis recalls some information on the name. She wonders what he is after, but she is wise enough to not try and ask him, knowing it will be revealed to her soon enough.

[Hat-Trick]

"Patrol cycles, traps rigged, lock quality, personal habits like sleepwalking or insomnia, dogs?" Cardis lists, still in his relaxed position. He's not truly hoping for much, but its worth asking now rather than getting the 'should have asked' response later. He takes the note as he feels it brush across his arm and glances at it quickly before slipping it under his bracer for safe keeping.

[Vladislav]

Has no money to hire guards. Hates dogs, sleeps like a baby, which can't be said about his neighbours, as he snores like a rusted saw. Traps? Definite maybe.

[Snowbear22]

Selendis rolls her eyes. She mutters under her breath to Cardis "I hope it's worth the money. Personally, I'm a little suspicious."

Selendis glanced at Prospero, then at Cardis, and then once more at Prospero. She waved her hand at the bartender after putting her dagger away. As long as she was going to go, might as well leave a departing gift for him, also known as the bill.

[Hat-Trick]

"Child's Play," Cardis says, letting his chair fall back onto all fours. "We should be in and out well before sunrise." He finishes off what drink he had sitting ignored in front of him and intercepts Tallis as the bartender moves to collect payment and pays for himself and Selendis.

[Vladislav]

Tallis collects the coins from the table with a smile and a shallow bow, reserved for the non-gambling customers, and returns to oversee the cards tables, where the real money is.

Thank you. Prospero suddenly gets serious. It should be child's play, but be careful, ok? He's old, but not senile. And ... don't hurt anyone unless you have to. Especially not yourself.

With that, he turns to leave.

[Hat-Trick]

Cardis watches Prospero leave and mutters to his sister, "What's he think we are, stupid?" Violence was ALWAYS a last resort. No reason to cause more problems than necessary. He shakes his head and continues, "Anything you need to do for tonight? I'm pretty much set."

[Snowbear22]

Selendis shaked her head. "Nothing that requires immediate attention," she replied. Now that she had another job, all she could think of his how to approach the target. "So, do you have a plan of how we sneak in?" she asked.

[Hat-Trick]

"Through a back door," Cardis replies flatly. "If one isn't available, a window will suffice. Joking aside, we should check the place out while the sun is up. Can't plan too far without some more information." Taking a job on the night of a festival could be good or bad, depending on circumstances. If this guy's place was close to a gathering point, it would be easier to get close, but harder to actually infiltrate as the guards would be patrolling such areas keenly. If there wasn't any such gathering nearby, they'd be suspicious wandering around far from the festivities, but guards would likely be less frequent.

They'll just have to see when the sunsets.

[Snowbear22]

"While it is still light, we probably should go by a shop or two. We are going to need candles and a lantern, unless of course you want to stumble around in the dark," Selendis suggested. "Otherwise, shall we start doing some reconnaissance on the building"

Selendis was extra eager to get the job done right. Although she's done a few jobs with her brother, she doesn't want to disappoint him this time. Especially when it sounded like something interesting despite her suspicions.

[Hat-Trick]

"Stumbling isn't part of the plan, but neither are candles," Cardis answers as he leads the way out into the streets. "We can handle ourselves fine with moonlight, but if you are so keen on having some other light I've seen you create lights before. If you're not feeling up to it, I'm sure the old man has candles at his place." Cardis pulls the note out of his bracer to make sure he has the address right and returns it to its hiding place.

[Snowbear22]

"Fair enough. Just thought to conserve some spells if need be, but it's fine if we use it." replied Selendis. "Though you do have a point. Let's just head out there now then."

[Vladislav]

En route to Mr. Arnery's home, you go through wide paved streets, slowly making your way through the crowds, waving off enticing vendors, then over an arched stone bridge, to cross the river slowly flowing through the heart of the city.

You recall that the address you're seeking is nearby, just one block from the other side of the bridge, but in the time being, a scream from behind grabs your attention. A slim man, wearing a green-yellow entertainer's outfit, runs toward you at full speed, forcefully shoving away any unlucky passer-by that happens to be in his way. Behind him, a small unit of guards cavalry gives chase. Stop that man! they call out.

Spot check DC 10 to open spoiler
Another similar unit of guards approaches from the other end of the bridge

[Hat-Trick]

As the frantic man rushes at the Cerulean twins, Cardis takes a few deft steps to place himself in the path of the runner. As the man attempts to push him over, Cardis attempts to roll off the shove and sweep the man's feet from out from under him.

Trip attempt for [roll0], not hoping for much, as I can't use my Dex to trip and have to use my +0 Str modifier.

EDIT: Eh, at least I didn't hurt myself.

[Snowbear22]

Selendis moved out of the way just before the frantic man came near her. She didn't particularly care for situations like this. As a general rule of thumb, Selendis has found that keeping a low profile is the best way to live. If anything, she believes people tend to have what she would call "sticky hands." Any contact from a stranger was likely to take something of hers (not like she carried much anyways). As such she usually takes the extra effort to avoid bumping into random people in the streets."Doesn't look like that guy will get away," Selendis muttered to her brother.

[Vladislav]

Swiftly jumping over Cardis' sweeping leg, the man continues on his way, then notices the other guards coming from the other end of the bridge to intercept him. Give it up, you're surrounded! an officer shouts.

The runaway, however, has not intention to comply. He hops on the railing, and, as the guards converge on him and draw their weapons, takes a look down. He's at the highest point of the bridge, about 60' off the water. Another command from the officer, Load crossbows! helps his indecision. He'd rather take his chances in the water. A splash is heard from below, and the man isn't seen again, except for his hideously-colored cloak, which floats up a bit later.

The guards try firing their crossbows into the water, but to no visible effect. At least, no blood is seen, and no signs of a body, dead or living. Hrrmmph. Let's get down there and look for the body, the officer says, before turning to Cardis for a moment. That was a brave effort, citizen; what's your name?

[Hat-Trick]

"I'd rather not say," Cardis answers. "What was that about?" He was generally curious, if he'd succeeded in stopping the man, what would have happened.

[Vladislav]

He's a bit surprised by the secrecy, but doesn't argue. Probably because he has more important things to do. A dangerous criminal. Maybe, he manages a wry smile, you wouldn't be so brave if you knew how dangerous.

Alright, let's go, men, dismount, down the stairs, and to the embankment. Whoever finds the trip too tiring, is welcome to jump.

The trained troops quicky follow their commander's lead. Only one is left to guard the horses, while the rest descend to look for the body.

[Hat-Trick]

Cardis Shrugs as the guards head down the stairs and turns to his sister, "Let's go, excitement's done here."

[Snowbear22]

Selendis's curiosity was piqued, but not enough for her to want to engage in more conversation with the soldiers. She nods her head in agreement and follows her brother.

[Vladislav]

You reach your destination without further misadventures. The house in question, too small to be called a mansion, but a rather large two-story house nonetheless, is located on a small hill, in the shadows of old elms and acacias, nested between two slightly larger homes (those ones possibly push into the mansion category). It's about 30' wide, and you estimate, about 40' deep. The backyard probably has a nice river view.

[Hat-Trick]

Cardis slows down a bit, looking at not just the mark, but the other buildings as well. He stops to readjust his greaves for a moment, but otherwise shows no sign of actually staying. Loitering about scrutinizing the building would be too suspicious, so he doesn't. He has a general idea of the layout, he didn't see any dogs or other annoying animals nearby, No guards particularly close, and its view of the river meant they could probably approach from that direction. He had what he needed, but they could loop around again after a time.

[Vladislav]

Cardis notices the following:

- Front-yard grass is trampled and bears the tracks of wheels. Looks like a wagon or carriage might have frequented this place, although nothing of the kind is present right now.

- Generally speaking, the front lawn looks to be in poor state, and something that once probably might have been a rose bush is currently experiencing the last stages of agony.

- No sign of guards, no dog kennels.

- There's one front door (standard-issue oak), several windows on the ground floor (barred), and as many on the second floor (not barred).

- There's a silhouette moving behind a curtain in the second-story window, looks like an adult male. Other than that, the house is devoid of life.

- The adjacent houses seem to house large families, judging by the amount of movement seen through the windows and on the yards. No professional guards there as well, however.

[Snowbear22]

Selendis continues to walk past, noticing her brother slowing down. She stops after a bit to wait for Cardis to catch up. When he does, she asks, "So, see anything worthy of note?"

[Hat-Trick]

"Barred lower windows, what seems to be wagon tracks, the neighboring families are significantly sized, and someone's home," Cardis fires off quickly as they continue forward. "Current plan is to approach from the river, pick the lock on the backdoor, search the place for info, grab some extra pocket change, and join the festivities."

[Snowbear22]

"I thought Prospero didn't want us stealing. I guess taking a bit wouldn't hurt too much, but it might bring suspicion onto us indirectly. Any bystanders or witnesses may just put an arrest warrant on us. But I suppose that would be the worse case scenario, right? But it just..." Selendis spoke, ranting on more about her fears.

Selendis paused for a bit. Getting into the mood for this job was the first and foremost part of any task. After regaining some of her confidence with a deep sigh, "All right then, let's do it shall we?" she asked.

[Hat-Trick]

"When the sun sets we'll get started," Cardis smirks as his sister hypes up. When he said pick up some spare change, he was mostly joking. Although he'd probably pocket some coins if he runs into some, though not enough to be immediately obvious.

Time to head home and prepare for the night.

[Vladislav]

The siblings returned home without further misadventure, and made any preparations that needed to be made before tackling the job. On the way back throught the same streets, city workers were busy lighting the torches on lampposts as it was getting dark. The Ceruleans crossed the bridge, with much less exitement this time, and were on the other side of the river again. A small path turning left, they realized, will lead them above the riverbank and to the rear fence of their mark's house.

[Hat-Trick]

"I hate using my grappling hook, anyway," Cardis mutters, noting the path. With a few glances around, he takes the lead the way towards the mark. Although he was happy it wasn't needed for the climb, he was sort of angry that he had dragged it all the way there. It could be a bit conspicuous if the twins had been searched.

[Snowbear22]

"It might be of some use later on. You never know when you might need things," Selendis replied. As she said that, she took a quick glance around at the surroundings. It was finally time to put the plan into motion. Selendis took a few deep breaths to psyche herself into the job once again. Nerves wouldn't be an issue now, she thought to herself. "So, I'll let you take the lead in this. If we were to need to split up, meet here in a few minutes?" she asked.

[Hat-Trick]

"If we need to split," Cardis began, "We meet at Tallis' Place. Chances are, we won't need to, but if we do, we're going to want to be FAR from here." When he reached the gate of the mark's fence, Cardis vaults himself over and onto the path beyond with little more than the soft tap of his leather boots on the stepping stones. No reason to mess with the gate lock if they could just hop over.

Assuming the fence is waist high, if not we can take ten on climb, as I highly doubt the average fence would be higher than a DC10, as long as the top is in reach.

[Vladislav]

Cardis pushes his way through the wild bushes that grew between the house and the path, and makes it over the fence. He lands softly in the weed-covered backyard. Between him and the house, there's a small stone fountain, judging by the quiet murmur of flowing water, still functional.

There are no lights in the house, although the stones scattered through the backyard glow in a dim shadowy light. Neighbours on the right are having a busy night, so it seems, as a sound of music emanates from their open windows. Neighbours on the left are quiet.

Selendis doesn't notice any threats or potential witnesses roaming the streets.

[Snowbear22]

Selendis followed her brother and quietly climbs over the fence. Noticing the loud music on the house the right, she whispers, "Looks like this should be easy." She then pauses for a bit before carefully stepping, making sure not to make any obvious tracks. "Do you know what we are looking for specifically, or are we there to find any papers lying around?" she asks, still whispering.

[Hat-Trick]

"'Info,'" Cardis says, turning to punctuate the vague term with a pair of air quotes. "Something tells me what ever Prospero is interested in will be obvious. If not, we'll just report everything we find." He kneels at the back door and gives the lock a good long look while he pulls out his tools.

Search Check: Taking Twenty for a change, which should take at most two minutes, although it should be shorter since two minutes is twenty times six seconds and the time to search a standard 5ft by 5ft space. Final result being 27 to notice any foul play on the lock.

[Vladislav]

The backyard door is adorned with a rather simplish lock, and Cardis is almost ready to break out the tools and give it a good solid pick, but ... something doesn't seem right. He moves his fingers gently here and there, pressing lightly on the lock and door panels, listening to every creak and click. There's something there - the simplicity of the appearance is misleading.

Finally, he realizes the door and the lock are protected by a magical trap that will go off when the lock is picked or forced open.

[Hat-Trick]

Cardis looks at the lock, then at his tools before swearing to himself. "It's magically trapped," He informs his sister, "I might be able to disarm it, but one wrong move and I could blow this whole operation." He backs up from the door and looks up at the second story windows, then the first story windows. He could get in the second story with little effort, but Selendis wasn't as good a climber as he was.

He moves closer to take a look at the bars on the lower windows, trying to see if they could be moved.

[Snowbear22]

Selendis rubs her forehead for a bit. She replies, "I would say we should just leave it alone. I don't know any magic strong enough to really take care of this. We could try to go through the second story windows. I may not be able to climb to your ability, but I'm sure if you helped me a bit we should be fine."

Selendis pauses for a bit more to try and think of a strategy that would involve as little magic as possible.

[Vladislav]

Looks like the bars can be pried open, possibly with combined work, but it'll take time and effort. Not sure if the siblings have a crowbar or similar instrument; if they do, the odds of success look much better.

As for getting to the second story, some hand- and footholds could be found in the shape of gutters, decorative alcoves, and vines. In other words, Climb DC 15 :smallwink:

[Hat-Trick]

Cardis takes the time to remove his grappling hook and rope from his bag and starts to swing it in lazy circles before letting loose and hooking it to the rafters holding the over hanging of the roof. He tests the hold by just hanging from it for a little bit before deciding it's secure enough to climb.

Take Ten for Use Rope Result of 15 (+2 from silk rope +3 dex) allowing for forty feet of throw.
Then another Take Ten to climb for a 13 against the new DC10 due to having a rope adjacent to the wall.

I told you it'd be said a lot.

[Vladislav]

The hook connects to the roof with a soft clang, but there are no changes or movement inside the house, and doesn't look like anyone noticed. It seems sturdy enough to climb, and Cardis sets up. Soon, he's handing just outside the second floor windowsill; the room inside is shrowded in darkness, and the window is [roll0]

1= closed
2= open a crack

[Snowbear22]

"So, think you can open the window, or should I do it?" Selendis whispers. She prepares herself to climb the rope. She waited for the response from her brother before doing too much.

I shall be taking 10 to get up. With the DC now being 10, my Climb check is an 10 (+1 from ranks, -1 from ACP) I can climb up. If given the signal, I will cast Open/Close on the window.

[Hat-Trick]

Cardis glances at his sister and waves to stop her form climbing up for the moment. He looks the window over for a bit before trying to open it.

[Vladislav]

Cardis attempts to fiddle with the lock while hanging on a rope in a precarious position, but his tool slips and screeches on the glass. Like fingernails on a chalkboard...

For a moment, he holds his breath to check if he's been heard, but nothing seems to be stirring inside the house, and the neighbors are too busy either sleeping or partying. Only a lone cricket in the garden seems to be disturbed, stopping his racket, only to resume it a moment later as if nothing happened.

[Vladislav]

... but after his second attempt, the window pops open with a quiet click, and there's now a slot wide enough to climb through.

[Hat-Trick]

Cardis slips in quietly and looks around before giving Selendis the go ahead to climb up.

[Snowbear22]

Upon seeing the Cardis's notion, Selendis climbed the rope, taking her time. She entered through the window and took a few moments to look at the ceiling. Knowing that the door downstairs had a magic lock, she was a bit paranoid about what else there might be in this place and didn't want to miss something obvious.

[Vladislav]

You find yourself in what looks like a library; bookshelves cram the space of this 10x10 room, dimly lit by moonlight coming through the window. The shelves are overflowing, and some extra books are stacked in a haphazard way between the shelves as well. There is one window, the one you came through, and one door, leading into the hall.

Under the door, you can catch a glimpse of a stripe of light - the corridor is probably lit. The ceiling is a bit moldy, but otherwise unthreatening.

[Hat-Trick]

Cardis takes his time looking for anything that may be along the lines for what they're looking for, scanning the book shelves and the desk carefully as well as checking more esoteric locations like the floor for a secret compartment and the like.

Take twenty Search checks, takes 8 minutes. One full round times twenty per five foot space times four five foot spaces.

[Snowbear22]

While Cardis is searching for anything of note, Selendis takes the time to listen for anything suspicious. She moves quietly towards the door. Selendis opens the door ever so slightly peeks from a crack from the door briefly. She then listens for a few minutes to hear for any responses or anything suspicious.

So, what I will be doing is taking a full turn and half to do three spot checks (move silenty taking 10, spot check and then the next turn is using two move actions to do 2 spot checks) and then take 20 (if not I will take 10, but I think listen has no consequences for failing) for the remainder of the time that Cardis searches

[Vladislav]

There is no desk in the room
Selendis find the corridor devoid of life, except the steady light of what seems a single lantern set to illuminate it. Peeking through a crack, she can see the corridor goes right and left, a thick carpet covers the length of it, and a downward staircase lies a bit to the right.

Cardis, meanwhile, finds mostly books, books, and more books. Reading anything, even the titles, is impossible in the circumstance, unless he'd be willing to strike a light source. There are a few framed portraits and plaques hanging on the walls, and one unframed picture, stuck between books. There seems to be no hidden compartments on the walls, shelves or floor.

[Snowbear22]

Selendis whispers, "Need a light? Either way, I'm pretty sure we should probably move on." Selendis thought that if nobody came yet, there probably was little reason to worry. However, she did wonder why someone would leave their stuff unprotected compared to the security measures they faced downstairs. However, she felt that there was little the two of them couldn't handle.

[Hat-Trick]

Cardis nodded as his sister filled him in before saying, "Just open the door a bit. I should be able to see well enough with that." No reason to waste resources when what they needed was already provided. With the light soon to be improved, he scans again.

[Snowbear22]

Selendis opens the door so as to give Cardis enough light. Still mindful of the possibility of the owner waking up she whispers, "Hurry up. We can't afford to stick around here too long." With the door now open more, she listens for any signs of movement or other such noises.

[Vladislav]

The corridor stretches peacefully, more or less, before Celendis as she takes a looksee. Concentrating, she can hear a sound of pacing and mumbling to the right (the street side, beyond the above-mentioned stairs).

To the left, not a mouse stirs.

[Hat-Trick]

Cardis finds nothing with his second sweep and decides it's time to move to another room. He takes a look into the hallway, trying to pinpoint exactly where the muttering is coming from before stealing into the next empty room. Once safely inside, he motions for Selendis to follow.

Basically assuming that he pin points well enough to know that its safe to cross and that there is an empty room to sneak into. Take tens all around of course.

[Vladislav]

Layout of the second floor, for the visually-inclined:
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk302/zdrak/Galadorn/floor2.png
W are windows, D are doors, S are stairs.
1 square = 2'.


You entered the library window and are now outside the G11 door.
- Right in front of you, another door
- To your left (backyard side) two more doors.
- Slightly to your right, stairs going down.
- Further right (street side), two more doors. One, as you know from previous observation, leads to an open balcony overlooking the street, and behind the other, pacing is heard.

[Snowbear22]

Selendis follows Cardis into the hallway. She looks at Cardis and points to the door across the way and to her left (I17). At this point her aim is to minimize talking and do with the hand motions for when she can. Of course, she wasn't too concerned, as she thought the person would have woken up by now.

[Hat-Trick]

Cardis nods at the gesture and leads the way into the next room. The fact that the mark was awake was a problem. Hopefully he didn't decide to move about much, otherwise, they'd probably have to put him out if they weren't careful.

[Vladislav]

You tip-toe across the corridor and open the door to the opposite room. The first thing that is illuminated by the wedge of light from the corridor is a bare-chested one-legged man lying on the floor, gazing at the ceiling indifferently. After the initial moment of shock, you realize this is not a living creature, but a mannequin, very realistically done.

Once your eyes get re-adapted to the darkness, a quick gaze shows the entire room is filled with various mannequins, stored in standing, lying and crouching positions, on top of shelves and each other.

[Snowbear22]

"Creepy. Just remind me why a master craftsman has these mannequin dolls around?" she whispers. Selendis was caught off guard from what they saw in the room. She rubs her forehead a bit and tries to think what it could mean. She spends a few seconds trying to think, but knows now is not the time to be flustered... or creeped out. She glances at Cardis hoping for he can explain this mystery and if this relates to anything he read in the library.

Knowledge check (the usual if needed/hoping its the right check) on the mannequins [roll0]

[Vladislav]

Upon examination, these don't seem to be simple dolls for wearing clothes on display windows. The ones you try to examine are heavy, definitely not hollow. You can peek into the ones that have a head or a limb missing, and there are jumbles of wires and cogs inside. Some are hard, as if carved from wood, but others' skin is soft, almost humanlike.

[Hat-Trick]

"Well," Cardis muttered to his sister. "I think we found what we were looking for." He looks over the mannequins and the room itself for anything else that might be of interest. If they could find some evidence of who or what the mannequins were for, they could probably call this job done and go join the festivities.

Taking Ten as Taking Twenty would take half an hour by my estimate. So, minute and a half to thirty minutes, Search Check 17.

[Vladislav]

Cardis finds on one of the shelves a small panel with three buttons, red, green and black. At the rear of the panel is a three-pronged fork. You also note that some, but not all, of the mannequins have a hidden place on their body (sometimes in their armpit, or on the head under their hair, or under some clothing), with three holes matching the prongs of the fork.

[Vladislav]

Also, while contemplating the meaning of this, you hear very clearly someone saying Tutti! from the street side of the house in a youthful, almost childish, voice.

[Snowbear22]

"It seems we may have another problem on our hands. Any suggestions?" she whispered. Selendis was in no hurry to botch the situation. Hearing the child-like voice, she could have guessed it might just be a kid in a secret romance. However, on the cautious side, she thinks it is probably something else, something much worse. The thought phased her a bit. She took a deep breath and awaited her brother's response.

[Hat-Trick]

Cardis motioned for silence and crept over to the door. He took a peak out into the hallway while slipping his dagger into his hand. What ever that was, it unsettled him just as much as it did his sister. Whatever it was, he hoped he didn't have to hurt anyone. He was a thief, not a murderer.

[Vladislav]

Everything is completely still in the corridor, but ... Apple! (pause) Horse! (pause) the same voice keeps going. It seems to be coming from behind the G4 door.

[Snowbear22]

Selendis used hand motions to signal her intents. She used a few gestures to attempt to convey walking out the door, pointing at Cardis first. She by no means wanted to go out first, not when it was something so weird and perhaps dangerous. She then waved her hands around, as if to say she would use a spell on them.

[Hat-Trick]

Cardis hesitated for a moment. He really didn't think investigating was a good idea, but what ever that voice was might have to do with the project with the mannequins. He finally nodded to his sister and slipped out of the door and made his way quietly towards the sound.

[Vladislav]

The siblings slowly advanced through the corridor, while the childish voice said a few more words, each after a brief pause; and then there was a longer pause, and a frustrated groan by a completely different and definitely adult voice came from behind the door.

[Snowbear22]

Selendis smirked a bit. It's about time she got to practice some magic, she was thinking. At this point, she has one plan. She sees the old guy and puts him to sleep. She taps Cardis to get his attention. Upon his attention she motions sleep by clasping her hands and lying her head on them for a second. She then motions to her eyes and points to the door. At this point she realizes the only way to obtain more information is to reveal herself.

[Hat-Trick]

Cardis motions his sister to hold off and that he'd get closer first to get a better view. He positions himself right next to the door and glances inside. He takes a moment to see what he could before repositioning himself on the other side of the door. He readjusts his cowl to make sure his face was obscured and gives Selendis a gesture to do the same before rapping the door frame with the hilt of his dagger lightly, just enough to sound curious, but not alarming.

[Vladislav]

Just as you approach the door and are about to tap it, it swings open inward, revealing a slim grey-haired man of about sixty years, dressed in robes that span the entire spectrum of the rainbow, and wearing a pair of goggles on his unshaved face. He's stunned for a moment, surprised to see you, and just stands there in the doorway, flat-footed.

Behind him, sitting on a table, is a small girl in a flowery dress. Her face, framed in blond curls, remains unseen, because her head is bowed low, as if in despair.

[Hat-Trick]

Cardis holds his dagger ready, but gestures for Selendis to stand down. What the hell am I doing? The moment that door opened, he should have knocked the old man out. Now, however, he couldn't help but feel overly curious of what he was working on. He was being a damned fool, but he couldn't fight the urge.

"We don't want to hurt you, you don't want to get hurt," Cardis begins. "Just back up into the room and sit down."

[Snowbear22]

The smirk she had disappeared as soon she saw her brother motion to her. Selendis thought to herself, Just when I thought I would get to practice some magic, I'm told to back off. Selendis relaxed her hands, but kept one hand in her spell component pouch in case the negotiations went bad. Though she wasn't happy with her brother's orders, she obeyed them as usual since he was in charge.

[Vladislav]

The old man snaps out of his surprised state and surveys you, then takes a deep breath and decides to obey. He slowly takes a few steps back, feeling his way to the table, and crouches in the chair. If it's about money, there's some cash and jewelry in a blue vase downstairs, take it and go. Please.

The girl just sits there, head bowed down, not paying attention to any of this. Next to her, a children's book is lying on the table, with large-lettered text and bright-colored pictures, and next to it, a small satchel.

You may try a Sense Motive check for some interesting information

[Snowbear22]

Selendis hated to be the antagonist, but for this job it was a must. Although she was not surprised by the reaction of the man, there was something in her gut saying he might not be exactly straightforward. She attempts to discern any additional meaning from his words and actions. Selendis remains quiet and maintains her hand in the pouch.

I'll be using Cunning Knowledge on this Sense motive roll. So this roll will be a 1d20+2 check. [roll0] In addition, I'm curious what your definition of an encounter is (and I refresh my inspiration points).

[Vladislav]

Selendis ...
... thinks the old man is more annoyed than afraid

[Hat-Trick]

"While tempting, I'm more interested in your mannequins," Cardis says, as he steps into the room, his dagger still held ready. "What are they? Who are they for?" He takes note of the girl and asks, "She okay?"

[Vladislav]

The girl raises her head for the first time. She points her blue eyes and perfectly shaped button-nose at Cardis and says I'm fine, Sir, thank you for asking.

Just display dolls, for storefronts, you know. The old man shrugs. I'm sure you saw some of them in the richer areas of town. If you're the kind of person to frequent those. However, and introduction seems to be in order. I am Gaspar Arnery, and this is my niece. And you, dagger-wielding gentleman and his ... friend... no, wait, probably sister, who entered my house uninvited, will be..?

[Hat-Trick]

Cardis ignores the man's digging and continues his own. "Do those mannequins usually have hardware?" By this time, it's apparent Gaspar isn't going to try to fight them, so the older Cerulean sibling lowers his dagger. "I'm pretty sure they don't. Last time I checked they weren't suppose to up and walk away."

[Snowbear22]

Selendis was a bit puzzled by the introduction and the reaction of Gaspar. Normally one does not try to talk and negotiate with burglars, let alone thieves. His correct conjecture as to her relation with Cardis did not surprise her, but could lead to trouble if he went to the local authorities after this. Selendis kept her hand in her spell component pouch, ready to cast a spell should this interrogation go south.

[Vladislav]

Ah, no common burglars, then. Interested in my work, I see? Well, let me show you something. Where was I? Oh, I was about to get... Come with me, young man. Suok, can you show the nice lady some pictures?

Yes, Uncle. The girl smiles, jumps off the table and gets the book. She opens it on a picture of a horse, smiles at Selendis and says, Horse.

Meanwhile, the old man makes his way through into the corridor, waving for Cardis to follow.

[Hat-Trick]

Cardis twirls his dagger a bit and slips it into its sheath, thinking to himself as he does. He glances at his sister and says, "Be back in a moment," before following Gaspar out of the room. This was unraveling into an interesting situation. Hopefully, it wasn't one that would catch them with their hands tied in later days.

[Snowbear22]

Selendis gives a nod back. At this point, she knew Cardis would be able to hand the situation from here. Her attention moved to the niece and the book. She smiled and gently said "Yes, that's a horse." Selendis moved slightly closer, trying to be friendly. She removed her hand from her spell component pouch.
The action I take next depends on the circumstances. If the little girl is similar looking to the mannequins, I would like to have Selendis stealthily feel around for the back of the girl's head looking for the three pronged hole. I would take 10 with the check if possible and act as if she were gently stroking the girl.

On the otherhand, if the girl is completely different than the mannequins, Selendis would place her arm around the girl and turn over the page.

[Vladislav]

There does seem to be some measure of resemblance between the girl and the lifeless mannequins, and Selendis carefully strokes her head, and there they are - under her hair, three tiny holes. The girl meanwhile slowly turns over the pages, naming each picture, until she stumbles at the picture of a boat. She looks at Selendis with a question in her eyes.

Meanwhile, Gaspar takes Cardis to the library room where the siblings have been before. He picks a volume from one of the shelves. There, Siloise. Now she will understand. He mutters to himself and heads back, not even bothering to check if Cardis is following.

Back with the girls, he lays the book open on a table, looks like a dictionary. He speaks to the little girl; a short sentence, made quite longer by him having to look up a few words in the dictionary, and she nods her head. A boat! It's a boat, uncle! Good girl! He turns back to the siblings. Now, you were asking?

[Snowbear22]

Selendis' reaction to her findings did not make her feel comfortable. If anything, it stirred up more questions in her mind. What in the world is Gaspar trying to do? To what purpose would this serve? she thought to herself. When Cardis came back into sight, she tried to catch is attention by looking at him. As soon as she got his attention, she move her hand away from the girl and mimicked the plug with three fingers in an attempt to indicate that the girl was in fact a mannequin.

[Vladislav]

No questions? Well, let me just finish off here... he asks the girl a few simple questions, such as what color is this and what does the horse eat, to which she answers with only a slight pout. He pats her on the head and smiles.

As he does so, the silence of the sleepy street is broken by a thunder of hooves. Gaspar pulls a curtain sideways and takes a peek. Well, that would be your cue to leave. Unless of course you want to meet Captain Bonaventura and his loyal guards, yes?! Quickly now, the same way you presumably came. By the way, which window was it? I really need to get those reinforced...

[Hat-Trick]

I thought as much, Cardis thinks to himself as his sister gives him the sign. He withheld his questions and instead watched as Gasper interacted with his supposed niece. When given the prompt to leave, he said shortly, "Through the library, I plan to use the front door next time," as he rushed his sister and himself to leave. He'd asks his questions when there wasn't a platoon of guards breathing down their necks.

[Vladislav]

Tsk tsk. The library.

You make your way out the window and jump over the back fence, the way you came, as torchlight illuminates the front yard, and catch the glimpse of a carriage, flanked by several horsemen, stopping in front of the house, and hear commands barked in hoarse voice. Secure the perimeter, and all that.

Should you choose to leave now via the small trail
you can do so unmolested. Nothing interesting will happen until your next meeting with Prospero at the gambling den tomorrow ... unless you choose to initiate something, of course

[Snowbear22]

Selendis follows the small trail they took earlier to get into the house. Now that she was out of the house, she realized she could have been able to sneakier. After a while of going on the path where nobody else is around besides Cardis, she stops. She face-palms gently remembering she could have used the spell Silent Image to recreate the corridor of the mansion such that they would have been able to not get caught. She turns around asks Cardis, "So now what do we do? What is that lunatic doing with those autonomous dolls? And what are we going to mention to Prospero? Especially since Gaspar saw and could easily turn us in?"

Despite her barrage of questions, she knew one thing. They needed to find some way of using the information gathered to keep Gaspar quiet.

Edit: If Cardis doesn't respond, can we skip to the meeting with Prospero?

[Vladislav]

On the way back through the now-empty streets, the siblings stayed alert to every sound. Every window opened a crack, every drunkard retching in the alley, every stray cat, seemed to be observing them as they trekked to their humble abode. But in reality, the city was fast asleep and paid them no heed. If they talked things over on the way, only the streetlamps heard them.

feel free to fill in the conversation later

Come next morning, they were in no mood to sleep in, and headed for Tallis' den as soon as the sun was in the sky. Among the gamblers and revelers, some having an early start to the day, while others late to leave from last night, Propero greeted them, reclining by his usual table. Back in one piece, I see. Good, good. So, do tell...

[Snowbear22]

Selendis sits down in a hurry. "Wasn't too hard to get in to that old man's house, but we got to take a look around. Despite the complications during the visit, we got to know a few things. Besides that the man is mad out of his mind, he is quite the technological genius. I would say his mannequins are excellent quality, but I am no expert in that field. Though from the dolls comes the interesting part. I'll go out and say it since I suppose it was what you were paying us for, but he made artificial life out of them. Quite disturbing really in my mind. However, I do admire his talent..." she ranted. Her voice trailed off as she looked around briefly. She wasn't quite sure if she should mention that they caught in the act. However, she didn't want to bother mentioning it unless asked. He probably already knew about it already.

[Hat-Trick]

Cardis let his sister ramble for a moment before bringing up his own comments, "We didn't have much time to look around for anything else," Cardis began. "Shortly after discovering the mannequins and observing his active one, the guards showed up. We didn't stick around much longer after that." Cardis got himself comfortable leaning back in his chair and closed his eyes, as was usual.

[Vladislav]

Artificial life, you say? That's got to be ... And what can you tell me about his active one? And why would the guards show up, did he raise the alarm?

[Snowbear22]

"Well the active one was just a child. She was attempting to identify pictures. It's mannerisms were exactly like a child's. It was able to identify most objects, though it still struggled with a few. We believe that Gaspar called in the authorities," Selendis replied. Selendis was sheepishly admitting they hadn't exactly done a good job of being unnoticed, despite sneaking in. Something in her mind figured the pay would be docked a bit.

[Vladislav]

A child, you say? Recently, a platoon of guards escorted an unknown girl from the palace to Gaspar's house. Don't ask how I know. He provides a description, which, despite of being secondhand, clearly matches the girl you saw.

Didn't think it was important before. She's some kind of mannequin or doll, you say. Artificial life. I wonder what she was doing in the palace. And those guards you saw, maybe they took her back? But where are my manners, you young lions expect to be paid, yes? Don't be shy, admit it. Well, you deserve it.

He reaches out and tosses a bag on the table. Normally, a bag of gold would draw attention, but in this gambling den, sums larger than that are won and lost routinely. There are a total of 200 gold in the bag, should you care to examine it

So, how about it? Care to find out more about this girl?

[Snowbear22]

Selendis smiled as she grabs the bag. She shakes it for a bit and then looks inside. Seeing the contents are gold pieces and examining that they are real, she smiles. "You pay well for an old man. I think if you pay as well as this job we have a deal. I wouldn't mind getting some more information out of that creep and his weird doll. Pending his approval of course," she replied nodding at Cardis. She passed him the bag and was clearly hoping that Cardis would take the hint that she wants in. Selendis wanted to humiliate Gaspar as he obviously was full of himself.

[Hat-Trick]

Cardis opened his eyes and took the bag of gold, weighing it in his hands. His sister was right, it was well worth the job. "You have the leads and we'll look into them," he said finally. The pay was nice, but he wanted to know more. The whole deal intrigued him. He wouldn't admit it, the pay was too good, but he had planned to dig deeper anyway, whether they were hired for the job or not. He tossed the bag once or twice and added, "Just keep up the incentive." He handed it once more to his sister and went back to resting his eyes.

[Vladislav]

Good, good. Glad to see such eagerness. So, how do you intend to go about it? Another visit to Mr. Gaspar, or ask about at the palace guards?

[Hat-Trick]

Cardis opened his eyes in thought. "No reason we can't do both," He said, dropping his chair back to all fours. "We can hit Gaspar's again, then we can glean some information from the guards." By 'we' he of course meant Selendis could glean, she was magnitudes better at it than he was. The only reason he'd tag along would be to make sure she didn't get in over her head on anything. She was smart and could take care of herself, but sometimes even the best needed someone to have their back.

[Snowbear22]

"I think we should avoid Gaspar for now. The worst thing we can do is come back to the scene of the crime the day after. I'm sure he'll have his guard up and replace the window we came through. It's best we go see what information we can gather from the guards. Perhaps your contacts, Prospero can held us get into the door," Selendis replied elaborately. "Of course, before we do anything I think it's best we hold off on any immediate snooping as the guard also is most likely aware of the stunt we pulled last night." Selendis wanted to at least spend some of the hard earned cash on new equipment or some sort of bank for future needs.

[Vladislav]

Not sure I can get you in the door, but I can ring the proverbial doorbell. Let's see - there is the Twin Rivers tavern, formerly known as King's Rest. A lot of palace guards and staff come to relax there on their day off. The owner is a good friend of mine, just drop my name casually.

If you're ambitious, I also heard the palace is hiring. Assistant cooks or something like that. Sheesh, they just hired twenty last month. I wonder what their food is like, with so many cooks. But I digress. If you want to try your whisk skills, just come to the gates and ask for the Head Chef.

[Snowbear22]

"Not sure I am that ambitious to get into the palace immediately, seeing how I'm not so stunningly good at cooking. However, King's Rest sounds like a good way to get some information without being too suspicious. I think we should go to King's Rest as a stepping stone to finding out more information about the palace. I'm sure there will be more chances to get closer to the palace, but it's best not to be too hasty," Selendis said. Whatever the case, she didn't think it was good to apply directly to the palace. If anything, it would be hard to make it as more than just an assistant. All she needed now was to get a job at King's Rest.

[Hat-Trick]

Cardis listened as Selendis reasoned and conversed with Prospero. He didn't agree with her aversion to Gaspar, though he could understand it. The old man wasn't normal and specialized in a very unnerving field. Still, Cardis sensed no malice, in fact, he could have sworn the man was rather willing to share his knowledge with the twins. He would visit again, without his sister, at a later date for more answers. For now, he'd just work on the next job with Selendis and wait for a good chance.