Pathfinder 2e: Legacy of Nex (IC)

[Syless]

Adria nods at the others. "Hallway it is. Does anyone need some more mundane treatment before we go? I can try and patch up lingering wounds."

[DigoDragon]

Adria nods at the others. "Hallway it is. Does anyone need some more mundane treatment before we go? I can try and patch up lingering wounds."

Ellie raises her hand. Then, realizing she's not in class, lowers her hand slowly in embarrassment. "Uh, I have a few cuts I could use tending to."

[Xacha]

Adria nods at the others. "Hallway it is. Does anyone need some more mundane treatment before we go? I can try and patch up lingering wounds."

Zarra probes at her wounded side. "Not completely healed, but I think I'd rather wait. It's not slowing me down and this is likely to get worse before it gets better. Let's try this hallway."

[DigoDragon]

Zarra probes at her wounded side. "Not completely healed, but I think I'd rather wait. It's not slowing me down and this is likely to get worse before it gets better. Let's try this hallway."

"Oh, well alright then. We probably should move on before whatever is down here sends more monsters after us." Ellie steps carefully to the hall, crossbow in hand.

Perception: (1d20+6)[9]

[Estralita]

No more hesitation. Raka knew what that black powder could do. Without a word, she chared off after the runaway cart.

[Inspector Valin]

Zarrachia, Adria, Ellie
The three of you, plus Peridora and Yara proceed past the smashed and bloody barracks into the white tiled corridors of the purification node. The light here is almost distressingly bright - the pure white tiling seems to almost glare at you, blinding the five explorers at first. After that however you spy a few more traces of garish pink, lengthy yet faded stains that run across the walls. But no movement. You can hear the gentle lapping of water against the closed sluice gate on the other side of the wall, your footsteps against the stone tiles beneath you, and absolutely nothing else.

The area appears generally dishevelled. Some doors are closed, some are left open, creaking gently as you move by. There's no more evidence of struggle, like back in the barracks. If you'd come here first, you could've been forgiven for seeing the facility as perfectly fine, simply deserted.

After a while, it seems clear you're in no immediate danger in the hallway at least. Yara breathes a sigh of relief, but the little guard doesn't look happy. He gestures around, down several branching paths. "This side of the facility is dedicated to personel. You've got quarters, parts lockers, and a few offices for shift foremen. Plus the rear exit but that's likely locked down now too." Yara grimaces. "Most of the stuff I'd assume we want is on the other side, damn it. Central control and security. But to get there we'd have to pass the works, either back in that room with the armor or the central chamber."

Peridora, having been quiet for a while, raises her hand and tries to speak. "Maybe we could find some clues around here? Some idea of just what happened to this place, and the workers? Right now we still don't really understand what's going on, or why, or what we can do to stop it. It might help to answer some of those questions before we get much further."

"Maybe. But remember that laugh?" Yara grits his teeth at the thought, glancing towards the wall that separates the group from the main chamber. "That wasn't a creature or some sorta automation. That was sentient. Someone or something knows we're here. I don't like the idea of giving it more time to be ready for us."

Belginabo, Sachni, Raka
Now aware of what the strange adversaries were doing, the rescue party move swiftly to follow the now withdrawn cart down the tracks. Thankfully, this seems to be a direct route, no more branches to decide between or twists and turns to slow your path. Raka races forward, while Sachni and Belginabo follow close enough behind.

Before all three come to a dead stop in a small cave, veins of brassy ore glinting on the walls..

The tracks ahead have been blocked by a rockslide. Other tunnels spiral off to the left and right, but the path to this 'blast point' is no longer accessible. However, there's no sign of the cart baring Maha Zane, not even twisted metal shards beneath the pile of debris. This cave in must have happened minutes before they arrived, if that. And none of them felt any rumbling of the ground. What could've...

"Going somewhere?"

The voice isn't loud, but somehow it fills the chamber - a rich, warm tenor that would've been at home upon a theatre stage. Looking up, the trio see the speaker perched on a rocky overhang right above the entryway they'd stepped into the room through. A young looking man, with pale ivory skin and long golden hair, tied back in a shoulder length braid. He's wearing a leather-ish dark green waistcoat, a silk cravat, formal breeches and hefty boots. Somehow a man of noble blood is also exploring this dingy mineshaft today.

The stranger bows, "Greetings adventurers. My name is Azariah. Baron Azariah Kanau, of the Kingdom of Geb." He smiles beatifically down at the three of you, spreading his hands graciously. "I think it's time we had a little talk. Don't you agree?" He's not so rude as to point it out, but Sachni spots the glint of gold at the right of his waist. A sword hilt. This is unlikely to be an enjoyable conversation.

Spoiler

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This isn't a fight [I]yet, so no call for initiative. If you want to start a fight, you are welcome to roll, but that's on you. And just a reminder Gwyn, yeah, Azariah's the guy all those letters were addressed to. It's a safe bet that he's in charge of this whatever-it-is.

[Gwynfrid]

"The baron! It's him! Oh my gods what are we going to do he's the one who organized the goblin attack on the city and oh it's awful he's going to... Er... I don't know but I'm sure this is really bad! He's the mastermind behind all this!"

His voice full of barely contained panic, the gnome looks at the newcomer with a terrified fascination, and appears frozen in terror. His eyes dart this way and that around the room as if looking for an escape route.

Spoiler

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Belginabo tries to gain a bit of time, and maybe induce the baron to offer a bit of free information, by feigning terror. Deception (1d20+7)[22] (I think it's correct but not 100% sure, Mythweavers is down right now). In reality, he's scanning the room to check if there are other enemies and anything else that could be useful to know, in the likely event of a fight.

[Inspector Valin]

Belginabo, Sachni, Raka
Azariah raises a hand to his forehead, frowning. "Don't. Do not associate me with that incompetent show of buffoonery the wretched little goblin termed a plan. I hired him to take one unenchanted item from the city's archives, not make a production that swept up half of Oenopion. That was the exact opposite of what I wanted! The archivists assigned no value to the device, had placed it in an unsecured display for months. How hard is it to steal a single, worthless wand?"

The pale Gebbite grits his teeth for a second, scowling at the memory of Koma and his antics. Still, soon enough the polite facade returns and he looks calmly down upon the assembled group. "But no matter. You are here, meddling in things that do not concern you. You left Zane a bloody wreck and I've heard nothing of Cadenza. You three have decided to make yourselves my enemies."

There's a gentle thud sound, coming from somewhere on the floor above. Azariah does not react to it, instead sighing as he considers the matter of his fallen aides. "I on the other hand, have no particular desire to fight any of you. I don't know who you are, and in all honesty, I don't care. Proceed back the way you came to the surface, and we will call this even. I will forgive you your trespasses against me and mine, seek no justice for their loss, and everything will be fine for everybody. What do you say?"

Spoiler

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Since our sheets are down, and I'm feeling generous, the three of you auto pass this perception roll. Azariah's not lying about letting you off free, but 'everything will be fine for everybody' is a half truth. Not a flat lie, but he picked that phrase carefully

[Anyr]

At first, Sachni thought the cave-in was natural. That misconception didn't last long. A voice from behind prompted her to spin around. She found herself face to foot with the mastermind himself. So he was brave enough to fight on the front lines? Sachni had expected him to keep throwing minions from a distance. Hmm, perhaps all his minions were dead. That was a heartening thought.

The monk glared up at her adversary. No polite diplomacy for this monster.

"Seek no justice? Selfishly save ourselves? Absurd. Such an act would cause my soul to plummet. I'd be lucky to reincarnate as an earthworm."

[DigoDragon]

Ellie Sprocket

Ellie moves gingerly toward the offices. "While this... entity may have time on his side to attack us, we know nothing of who or what he is. If we could find something, we might then know what to expect or even a weakness to exploit."

She points at one of the offices. "Surely your foremen keep vigilant notes and precise paperwork?" She doesn't wait for an answer and walks in to search for a journal or something like it that might have chronicled events

Perception (1d20+5)[24]

[Xacha]

Zarachia

Zarra looked around at the destruction, trying to imagine it as a wagon load of trade goods: what was hidden here, where was it hidden, and how much could she soak the owner for once she found it?

OK, maybe not so much that last part.

"I think we have to assume that whoever is pulling the strings is already prepared. That entryway wasn't just an ambush, it was an outright trap. I don't fancy walking into anymore. Anything we can learn now could save us a lot of danger down the road.

"... and honestly, if it gets impatient and comes after us, that's better than walking into whatever surprise it has waiting next."

Zara nodded to herself. "Strategic delay" was a well-worn strategy among bureaucrats of every stripe.

Spoiler: Perception

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(1d20+8)[21]

[Syless]

Adria takes her time. "Well... if we really want to annoy whatever it was, we could go back to the town for a day or two. We aren't on a time limit, as long as we don't wish to return to Oenepion. But... I can't imagine going with that route. So I'll side with the rest of you and just take our time moving forward."

Perception- (1d20+8)[28]

[Inspector Valin]

Ellie, Zarrachia, Adria
Yara looks a little unsure of this, but isn't up for defying the group consensus. The homunculus guard nods, as Peridora follows swiftly behind the three of you, going through the offices of the three shift foremen. The rooms run side by side, with plaques labeled based on which shift they oversaw, and all seem to have suffered a bit more devastating than the corridor. The desks are upturned, chairs lie upon the floor, as does a majority of the paperwork. It would take a miracle to find anything in this mess.

Or a quartet of dedicated, smart people working very quickly.

There's a lot to get through. Each of the officials kept an account of the state of the river water in Node Sigma on their shift - which meant that to get a full picture of each day requires cross referencing books from three offices. Once that's begun however, the initial results seem strangely tame. Almost every report reads as fine, noting occasional purification work needed, but rarely feeling obliged to go into detail. Node Sigma had been functioning perfectly well. Even the final entries from ten days ago don't break this pattern. These are the sort of reports Zarrachia filed on dull, boring days - the routine result of officials doing a simple job.

No, the revelation comes instead from what's missing. Beneath an upturned cabinet in the Third Shift's office, Adria happens to spot a small book that looks damaged. With a little effort, she slides it from its hidden spot to take a closer look. While many of the items here have been broken or thrown into disarray, someone has ripped a sizeable sheef of pages from this one small tome.

Showing it to the group, all hands peer at it, studying the writing. What pages remained were in some kind of shorthand, giving three column entries. A time, a description, and a location? Peridora exchanges glances with Zarrachia and Ellie before offering her suggestion aloud.

"It looks like a log of flotsam. Items that washed up in the stream. Time of arrival, item's nature, then what was done with it. There's animal corpses, I think that's 'rusty sword...' Why would someone tamper with this?"

Belginabo, Sachni, Raka
"Justice?"

Sachni's words seem to amuse Azariah more than anything. The Gebbite noble leans back against the rough rock wall, looking down on the three of you with the slouched posture of someone not exactly worried about the people before him. "Tell me, monk. What crime do you seek my head for? Petty theft of a strip of wood?"

He waves a hand skywards, dismissing that idea. "The goblins' whole spectacle was their idea. All I've done since I entered the mine has been attempt to recover the thing I came here for. Your friend, meanwhile, bears the axe I earmarked for the office guardian. So you have apparently stolen my possessions, worth considerably more than the item I intended to purloin, destroyed a zombie, slew Cadenza, and reduced my aide to a bloody wreck."

Azariah chuckles, but it doesn't quite reach his eyes. He gazes at Sachni quite intently. "Both of us have stepped outside the bounds of typical behaviour. But I don't think my misdemeanors are quite so glaring as your course of action. Borderline savage, if you ask me."

Spoiler

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I'm gonna call for a Will save from Sachni over this. I'll go into effects if you fail.

He's not wrong 'as such'. Borume confirmed the wand wasn't enchanted. Cadenza didn't take any action until Bel entered the office to try and take stuff. The worst you've got on Azariah is that he summoned minor kytons, which while morally objectionable, isn't a crime in Nex (Quantinium has Outsiders from across the alignment spectrum as residents). The letter seemed to imply he's up to something more, but without a full translation you've not really got much specific you can say he's doing.

[DigoDragon]

Ellie Sprocket

"Perhaps they wanted to hide something specific that was getting smuggled into Sigma disguised as flotsam?" Ellie suggested.

[Inspector Valin]

Sachni, Belginabo, Raka
Azariah holds that gaze for an uncomfortably long time. The room seems to fall silent, the moment in time frozen for Sachni, Belginabo and Raka. Finally though, the Gebbite breaks the tension with a smile, a laugh and a clap of his hands. "But all that is in the past! Go now, and I'll let you keep the axe, the gold, whatever else. I'm not the type of man to hold a grudge." He nods to Sachni. "Please, ma'am. Withdraw, and take your friends with you. I'm guilty of no crime, and you're too good a person to beat me just out of a misguided sense of justice, I'm sure."

[Gwynfrid]

"W... we can w... withdraw, yes, yes. Withdraw. Great idea." The gnome seems ready to run for it. But a nagging thought stops him.

"B... but, if... if you don't mind if I d... dare asking, I ha... have a question. Why? W... why is a piece of wood important? And... why collapse this tunnel?"

Spoiler

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He continues his pretence of terror while trying to ask a few questions.

[Anyr]

There was a long, ominous pause. Sachni held Azariah's gaze. Then, at last, she nodded.

"...Fine. We'll withdraw. Let's go, you two."

She began walking back the way she'd come. She gestured at her companions to follow.

[Inspector Valin]

Belginabo, Sachni & Raka
The Baron pauses at Belginabo's question, Sachni speaking before he answers it. The monk's words make the Gebbite grin, a vicious looking expression displaying two more sharply pointed fangs. "Quite right, your monk-ieness. And what I'm doing down here... well, that would be my business. A little gnome who was good and ran along would have no need to know what goes on down here."

Azariah gives Belginabo the most condescending smirk imaginable before clapping his hands. "Now, chop chop! Follow your friend, you two, and stay safe on your way up. There are dangers in this mine other than me, you know."

That may well be true, but Azariah is not moving. He seems intent on waiting to witness the three of you leave.

[Xacha]

Zarachia

Zara nods "That would be my guess. Someone was covering their tracks. Maybe whatever 'debris' floated in had the enemy hidden inside? That would explain how laughing boy got inside this outpost and did so much damage before they could get warning off to the city."

She turns to Yara. "That may be a place to start tracking this thing down. Any idea what they would do if something interesting washed downstream?"

[Syless]

Adria nods. "I can't help but agree... something was smuggled in, and someone didn't want to leave evidence. Oh, how I wish my restoration magic applied to objects as well as people... I'd mend it in a heartbeat to see what we missed."

[Inspector Valin]

Adria, Zarrachia, Ellie
"If it was strange, we'd take it to the Wardmeister. Or at least that's what should've happened." Yara strokes his chin pensively. "Shift supervisor would've made the decision. I don't know them personally. Could be they stored it here, in the security section, maybe the Overseer's office? Somewhere on the other side though - that's where the senior staff spend most of their time."

Peridora chimes in. "Or maybe they hid it by the rear entrance? If they were smuggling it, they'd need a way to get it out of the building, right?" The little mage hums, starting to share Yara's expression "How could they have smuggled it in though? Other than us, no one knows about Hekephra outside, right?"

[DigoDragon]

Ellie Sprocket

"I guess we have a bigger mystery than just a clogged canal. We still haven't learned anything about our mystery villain," Ellie says. "In particular, his motivations. Hmm, well, shall we continue?"

[Syless]

Adria looks at Peridora. "What if... someone does? After all, there's our mystery man who got the goblins to steal the wand... what if he knew what it was for? What if someone was trying to steal Hekephra away from underneath Oenepion...? If they slipped things in, they may already have an insurgent force in place..."

[DigoDragon]

Ellie nodded. "It is logical that whoever hired the goblins to steal the wand knew what it was for; in fact, they knew where the wand was in order to set up the goblins to steal it."

[Syless]

"We just need to be prepared that there's active forces against us here, and we shouldn't ignore this entirely... but you're right. We should focus on our mission, and just learn more as we go."

[Gwynfrid]

With a dejected air, Belginabo follows Sachni and Xacha on the way out. When he's sure of being out of earshot, he says: "It doesn't feel good leaving this jerk free to hurt more people. I don't know if I was able to fool him and make him think we were utterly terrified of him. It looked like he didn't really care. Nevertheless, I have a gut feeling that we'll meet him again. The next time, we'll be in a better shape, and hopefully we'll make him eat his words!"

[Inspector Valin]

Belginabo, Sachni, Raka
Azariah jumps to the ground as the three adventurers file out behind him. "Bye bye, you three! Happy Abjurant Day next week!" He spares the group a wave and one final grin before fading away into a puff of insufferable mist.

The trek back to the turntable junction takes a while. Somewhere distant, you hear that same thump that you caught in the cavern with Azariah. You're roughly level with it now, drawing past it to a different area of the mine.

And finally, as the three of you reach the crossroads once again, Sachni stops dead in her tracks. As if something strange had suddenly come over the monk.

Spoiler: OOC

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Okay, Anyr, the Dominate is down. Sachni also knows basically what Azariah just pulled on her. Feel free to react appropriately.

[Anyr]

Sachni departed the scene with surprising consistency. There were no backward glances. Her step never faltered: Until, that is, she reached the crossroads. Her whole body suddenly froze. For a moment, she just stood there. Then she screamed. A flurry of desperate, chaotic words flew from her mouth. It felt like they'd been piling up for ages, and just now found release.

"WHYCOULDN'TIWHYCOULDIONLYWATCHPRISONOFMYOWNFLESH!"

She took several deep, panting breaths. She'd clearly been through a deeply disturbing experience. Her next words were much more coherent.

"That...that wasn't me. Back there, in the cavern. I didn't say those words. I didn't take those steps. It was him. He made me dance like a puppet!"

[Estralita]

Raka stayed silent throughout the exchange. Words were not her speciality. But her hand never left her axe, and as the man spoke, she wanted to draw it more and more.

Go ahead. If you think this axe belongs to you, prove it. Earn the right to call it your weapon. Try and take it.You already took all the food from the tribes. What's stopping you now?

But he seemed uninterested in combat, and her allies also seemed hesitant. And Raka had already caused too much pain by rushing into a fight. So she held back and followed silently down the path, trying to focus on their goal. People were still missing and that was their goal. Not picking a fight with a random man, even a creep who hid his evil behind laws and deceit.

At least until Sachni revealed what had really happened.

"THAT BASTARD!" Raka's axe slammed into the nearest wall. "SLIMY THIEVING MIND BREAKING BASTARD!

[Gwynfrid]

Belginabo is completely gobsmacked by this turn of events, and by the powerful outburst from the normally impeccably mannered Vudrani seeker of Perfection. It takes him a moment to process what just happened.

"Please believe me, Lady Sachni, Lady Raka, when I say I was preparing to fight at your signal. But when you said you didn't want to, I honestly thought you didn't wish to take this monster head on at this time... Controlling others' mind is a terrifying power."

He takes his spellbook out, and starts scribbling notes. "I remember you recommended having a clear plan for self improvement. Let's face it, I didn't know what to make of that. But we will face him again, and next time, we will need to be prepared for this... So I must take your advice, and think of some plan. Now, what could that be..."