Good Strikes Back (IC)

[Toliudar]

Otrera and Hillock

Otrera smiles. The dwarf's obfuscation clearly means that he KNOWS how the pickups happened.

"As you wish. I'll be more specific. How often did the pickups occur? Where they regular or irregular? When was the last one?

"Who or what came to pick up the ore. How did they arrive? How did they leave? How did they carry all the ore.

"Do you know the name or names of the ones who got the ore? Always the same individuals, or different. Did they ever pay anything or leave anything when they picked up the ore?

"Now, as to the voices that seem to be ubiquitous in these mines. Do you hear them? Do the miners? What can you tell us about the source or nature of these voices?"

She leans in, eager for responses.

[MikelaC1]

"Tell me. Aside from the sargentum itself, is there anything particularly valuable or important here? Documents perhaps? Do you know why the fiends mine for sargentum?"

The fiends mine for sargentum because its almost more valuable in the lower planes than souls and certainly more valuable
than gold. What it does for them, I dont know, and they want as much as they do, but its hard to get, a whole lift worth of rock produces a finger size quantity of sargentum.
There are no documents that I know of.

Sora takes out a monocle, casts a simple, then starts studying the items taken.

Spoiler: OOC

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Detect Magic + Artificer's Monocle

amulet of health +5, morning star +5, chain +5, ring of protection +1, battle axe +5, amulet of health +4, plate +5, ring of protection +2,, ring of protection +5

Otrera and Hillock

Otrera smiles. The dwarf's obfuscation clearly means that he KNOWS how the pickups happened.

"As you wish. I'll be more specific. How often did the pickups occur? Where they regular or irregular? When was the last one?

"Who or what came to pick up the ore. How did they arrive? How did they leave? How did they carry all the ore.

"Do you know the name or names of the ones who got the ore? Always the same individuals, or different. Did they ever pay anything or leave anything when they picked up the ore?

"Now, as to the voices that seem to be ubiquitous in these mines. Do you hear them? Do the miners? What can you tell us about the source or nature of these voices?"

She leans in, eager for responses.

The dwarf is clearly irritated by Otrera's continued questioning and clams up, looking to Mulcri.

[Toliudar]

Otrera and Hillock

Not wishing to interfere with Mulcri's newly-created bond with the dwarf, Otrera also turns to Mulcri with a clear, if silent, request for asssistance.

[Aracor]

Tessa will refill Starlight Grace with a new Vampiric Touch spell while we're waiting.

I assume we have no way of actually chasing the pit fiend down conveniently. That's unfortunate, but here's the thing. We should hurry. I have no idea what kind of assets it has - what are the chances it can teleport right back to us in under a minute with reinforcements? Because if so, then our best shot is to get the earthquake done sooner rather than later. I would really hate to get interrupted and chased out.

She taps her foot impatiently while hovering in midair.

[Toliudar]

Otrera and Hillock

While waiting for Mulcri to take the dwarf in hand, Otrera responds mildly to Tessa.

*Honestly, I don't care where this conversation with the traitor happens, as long as we do it. And, frankly, this pit fiend returning with underlings is more or less our best case scenario, isn't it? It would give us a chance to finish the job of banishing it for centuries.*

[Aracor]

I have absolutely no problem with taking another shot at it. I have a problem with it bringing in enough reinforcements that we're forced to flee the mine without finishing the job. To me, the best way to prevent that is to collapse the mine sooner rather than later.

[Debatra]

"Actually, now that my friend here mentions it, when would the next pickup be? I'm sure we would hate to leave them without any answers as to what happened here. And yes, the voices have been quite peculiar as well. What can you tell me about those?"

[Cavir]

Sora

"The mission is to destroy this place. That will cause chaos for devil and demon alike. The details of how this place was run won't matter once the scroll is read. We also want to stay as unknowns to keep the enemy's guard down elsewhere in Daystor."

"I have no interest in loafing around here. The other dwarves know what is coming and have had time to make some distance. I'll teleport the first group of dwarves out while you finish up the questioning. Mulcri, would you join me when I teleport the rest of them so that the traitor will be willing to go too?"

Unless there is objection Sora speaks to the dwarves. "I can teleport you all in two groups to a safe distance. First six, please circle up and make contact. I'll return then teleport the rest."

As the dwarves gather Sora studies the area to make returning easier. Once they are ready she casts Greater Teleports on the six dwarves and herself to the insertion point, then casts the spell again to return to the group by herself.

[MikelaC1]

"Actually, now that my friend here mentions it, when would the next pickup be? I'm sure we would hate to leave them without any answers as to what happened here. And yes, the voices have been quite peculiar as well. What can you tell me about those?"

There should be a pickup in one or two days. They arent on a definite schedule since the refining process is not guaranteed to produce the same amount each time, I think the pit fiend has some way to contact them. The "voices" arent really voices, its reaction in your mind to the fumes of sargentum, hallucinations if you will.

Sora

"The mission is to destroy this place. That will cause chaos for devil and demon alike. The details of how this place was run won't matter once the scroll is read. We also want to stay as unknowns to keep the enemy's guard down elsewhere in Daystor."

"I have no interest in loafing around here. The other dwarves know what is coming and have had time to make some distance. I'll teleport the first group of dwarves out while you finish up the questioning. Mulcri, would you join me when I teleport the rest of them so that the traitor will be willing to go too?"

Unless there is objection Sora speaks to the dwarves. "I can teleport you all in two groups to a safe distance. First six, please circle up and make contact. I'll return then teleport the rest."

As the dwarves gather Sora studies the area to make returning easier. Once they are ready she casts Greater Teleports on the six dwarves and herself to the insertion point, then casts the spell again to return to the group by herself.

The dwarves gather around and the spell is cast without fail, re-uniting with the other dwarves who were expecting you to meet at that point

[Debatra]

"Well of course those details don't matter. And I only meant 'answers' in the form of potentially being here to kill them if it was convenient. Though I do want this last one answered just in case we have to deal with sargentum again."

Externally, Mulcri attempts to show no sign of this side conversation as she attempts to coax a few more details out of the Dwarf.

"Oh, now that's interesting. You mentioned a 'cleansing' to help with that earlier. How much do you know about how that works?"

Once that question is answered, the Elf will lace her next words with magical Suggestion. "Now go peacefully with the other Dwarves, and remember that at this point cooperation and honesty are likely your best options."

Spoiler

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A Suggestion spell instead of the Amazon SLA, for the sake of the higher save DC of 26.

[MikelaC1]

color=darkorange]"Oh, now that's interesting. You mentioned a 'cleansing' to help with that earlier. How much do you know about how that works?"[/color]

Once that question is answered, the Elf will lace her next words with magical Suggestion. "Now go peacefully with the other Dwarves, and remember that at this point cooperation and honesty are likely your best options."

Spoiler

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A Suggestion spell instead of the Amazon SLA, for the sake of the higher save DC of 26.

They bring in a cleric every so often and he casts spells on us. Not sure what they are, Im not a cleric, but it makes us feel much better
With that, the dwarf lines up in the teleport group

[Cavir]

Sora

"Well of course those details don't matter. And I only meant 'answers' in the form of potentially being here to kill them if it was convenient. Though I do want this last one answered just in case we have to deal with sargentum again."

"Point taken. Once the mine is destroyed getting to kill more of the enemy would be bonus but since the fiend sends word for them to come I doubt that will happen. More likely that the fiend left his ring behind as a way to track us, or whoever we give it to. As valuable as it is, perhaps we just leave that ring here to get buried and frustrate the devil?"

They bring in a cleric every so often and he casts spells on us.

"That is interesting information. Something to keep in mind but without more detail not something we can act on. Anything else before I deliver them?"

Spoiler: OOC

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If there's no more questions for the dwarves I'll teleport them (and Mulcri?) to the meeting point then return. That gives a little time to decide if we're leaving the +5 ring behind.

[Toliudar]

Otrera and Hillock

Otrera lifts her palms upward.

*If we are in a hurry to finish the job of the earthquake, then I am content to wait until we gather at our starting point to continue this conversation.*

Spoiler: OOC

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Not too hard for us to take the ring with us and either offload it or melt it down later, if we get some hint that it's More Than It Appears. I'm good to have us take it.

[Cavir]

Sora

With no other questions raised, Sora teleports the remaining dwarves and Mulcri to the insertion point, then teleports Mulcri and herself back to the lift room.

She turns to the seven earth elementals. "Thank you for your service. You helped stop a lot of evil today." She then dismisses them all.

"Oretra, Hillock, and I should remain behind to collapse the mine. Mulcri, would you teleport everyone else back to the council? Otrera can use the scroll and I can teleport us back. If there is an issue using the scroll I can cast the spell myself then use a quickened teleport to get us out."

[Toliudar]

Otrera and Hillock

*That sounds wise.*'

Otrera pulls out the scroll and looks it over, making sure that there will be no difficulties with its use once the rest of the group is safely away. Hillock shrinks down to the form of a small seabird and lands on Otrera's shoulder.

[Debatra]

Mulcri will nod to Sora, but before casting the spell to return them to the council, she will take a small precaution regarding the Pit Fiend's ring. She sculpts the shadows into a small box made of solid lead around the item, placing it in her pocket separate from everything else. The Elf will then gather everyone around and take them back to the Priestesses.

Spoiler

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Spontaneously casting Heightened Major Image into Major Creation for the box, then Greater Teleport.

...I'm basically just ignoring the fact that nobody brought up our potential worry about the ring in-character before now.

I'm also assuming they wouldn't want us to appear directly in the main chamber, so I'll be aiming for any sort of side room, or even a specific "teleportation reception" area if Mulcri happens to know of one. (Unless you want to retcon it so that someone was smart enough to bring this up before we left?)

[MikelaC1]

With all the non-combatants safely extracted, Otrara and Sora stand at the designated point in the mine. Otrara casts the spell off the scroll and as Sora casts teleport, they hear a low rumbling as the spell starts. They teleport out just as the cavern begins to collapse. The mine however, was dug on a fault line and as the first wave of the earthquake hits, the added pressure and weight causes the whole hillside to collapse with a mighty roar and huge plumes of dust and smoke, followed by seconds later, the ocean rushing in to cover new area. With one casting, the group has created a new inlet bay on the coast of Corsada and buried the sargentum mine under not only thousands of tons of rock, but also the newly created ocean bay that the group is standing near the edge of. If that were not enough to discourage any further efforts, whatever veins of sargentum that existed have been completely disrupted. The mission has been a total success.
The dwarves say their goodbyes and begin their trek back to Iron Hall, bringing the traitor with them. In the meantime, Mulcri teleports the group back to the designated arrival room for an audience with the priestesses. Before they are brought in, Raodan turns to the group and says that this sort of mission was beyond what his power level was made for and he will be leaving the organization, promising not to reveal any knowledge of the group's activities. At that point, the group is escorted in to see Elinon and Tishtina II (Tiffany does not seem to be currently present) and with her famous "right to the point" style, Elinon simply says Report?

[Debatra]

Mulcri will step forward, taking the lead box from her pocket and handing it to an attendant. "Before anything important is said, we believe this ring should be taken for closer examination. None of the divinations we had ready at the time revealed anything untoward, but the circumstances of its acquisition were somewhat suspect. Perhaps it's merely a cursed parting gift, but some of us believe it might be used to spy on us, hence the lead. I'm uncertain myself, but it would be best to be cautious."

[ngilop]

Tinac shrugs "either way.. a very angry pitfiend is probably stewing in some loathing towards us currently."

[Toliudar]

Otrera and Hillock

Otrera and Hillock return to the forms that they first appeared in for the audience with Elinon and Tishtina II...goodness, just an hour or two ago. A very eventful time! She is calmly matter-of-fact in her response.

"The mine was in active use. There were 8 cloud giants, three dwarf foremen, an ice devil and the aforementioned pit fiend. As Tinac has alluded, the pit fiend escaped.

"The Sargentum, both in ore form and at the mine face, created intense hallucinations in the form of voices, sometimes painfully so. We eliminated as much of the gathered ore as we were able. The devils used clerical magic, administered every few days, to block the effects on the miners.

"One of the dwarf foremen was captured alive, and will be brought by the surviving miners to face the tribunal of King Gorvan Greybeard.

"We found no sign of a demonic agent or a double-dealing at play. We collapsed the mine, and Sora and Mulcri got us home."


She turns to look at her colleagues, clearly inviting further comment.

[MikelaC1]

Did the pit fiend teleport away, or did he plane shift back to Hell?

[Cavir]

Sora

"He plane shifted. He did resist a Dimensional Anchor and left before hitting him again with another. Come to think of it, he was able to use Meteor Swarm and Plane Shift even after taking two empowered Energy Drains. Curious...."

"The dwarves also said that Sargentum is more valuable than gold and even souls in the lower planes."

[Debatra]

"He escaped via Plane Shift, presumably back to Hell. That ring was left in his place instead of going with him, which is why we're suspicious of it. But other than his escape, the mission was a success."

[MikelaC1]

His "escape" to Hell will be rather short lived, I think. Combine the fact that he was put in place by the old guard and the fact that he not only lost the mine but had it completely ruined instead of just being taken and I suspect he will be in for a demotion at least, if he even manages to survive Askaretha's judgement. And then all the other devils he stepped on to get where he was and they will be itching for revenge. He will have more than enough on his plate rather than you. Sniveling and whimpering about a new party will not be taken seriously, not yet anyway. Take a month off and reconvene then.

So we now know that even sargentum fumes cause hallucinations in mortals, as opposed to outright killing them upon consumption, and you also discovered that it is almost a trade good in the lower planes The Teacher is busily taking notes. Did you find out anything else about it? On our side, we are pretty sure we have identified the Nocticulan connection to a corrupt loading worker in Paramibo and a corrupt customs agent in Erandol.

[Cavir]

Sora

"At least where we were the dwarves said a lift worth of rock only produced a finger sized portion of sargentum, which is a silvery grey material. There were several boxes of it collected and disintegrated. There was a refining machine that processed the ore. Only the fiend had the magic to use it. We did not take a closer look at it. It is beyond crushed now."

[Toliudar]

Otrera and Hillock

There is a moment of silence, and Otrera clears her throat.

"It's worth noting that, this morning, I had heard of only a few of these women and men by reputation, and some of them were completely unknown to me. I have had occasion to fight many things in my life, but never witnessed such a combination of skill and dedication as I did from this group today. You have assembled a formidable group.

"I am sorry to see Raodan go. I only saw him in action in the most abstract sense, given his use of invisibility, but I have the utmost confidence in the capability of these people, even without him."

She nods, and steps back.

[MikelaC1]

During the party's downtime, the party hears the following news.
King Adlin Sator, of Pericarta, has been deposed. King Adlin was a devil worshipper, of Asmodeus, and his rulership was propped up by the support of Asmodeus and the revenues of his sargentum mine. When Asmodeus was deposed in the coup by Askaretha, he was relying solely on his sargentum mine revenues and when that collapsed, he missed his first payment to his army and they immediately supported what was already a brewing revolt after he lost the support of Asmodeus.
Representatives of both Odelin and Oshala have already volunteered to come to the city to oversee the installation of a democratic government and supervise the first democratic election in centuries.

[MikelaC1]

Once the month passes, the group reconvenes with Tishtina II and Tiffany leading the meeting.

I am sure that you all heard about the fall of the government in Paramibo and a new democratic one in the process of being installed. Even if you do nothing else, that in itself was an accomplishment.

As well, your actions in freeing all of the enslaved dwarves has been noted by King Gorvan Greybeard and he wishes to award you all the Dwarven Medal of Honour This is a very prestigious award and few humans have ever received it. Of course, it would be quite rude to teleport directly to Iron Hall and while it would be possible for you to teleport to the amazon home the City of Gardens, again, it it would be considered impolite, even for full blooded amazons such as yourselves.

We are going to arrange to teleport you to New Kroy, that center of scum and villainy at the mouth of the Amazon River, and we have a contact there who is one of the few river captains able to navigate the Amazon River to the City and then from there you can follow the dwarf trail through the mountains to Iron Hall and present yourself to the King.

[ngilop]

Sounds good. A boat trip on a river might be pretty relaxing. Tinac smiles as he speaks.

[Aracor]

Works for me! Wouldn't due to be rude.

Tessa gathers up all of her new upgrades and gets ready to leave again.