Cato moved into the room, keeping an eye on the enemy mage, mouthing words to begin a casting that might disrupt her if she tried something.

"Tsuto.  Listen to reason!  You don't have to suffer more damage to your pretty face..." Cato trailed off, suddenly aware he had vocalized his plans from the moment he entered the chamber.

Ready Action: Cast Acid Splash if Mage begins to cast
(+4 to hit, 1d4+1 damage)
Move: To F4

13:51, Today: Cato Crispin rolled 3 using 1d20+1. Diplomacy: Aid Another

Active Effects:
Protection from Arrows (Kellan)
Mage Armor (Cato)

Combat Stats:
AC 16
BAB: +2, 1d6 damage
This message was last edited by the player at 18:53, Thu 26 Feb 2015.

She saw the rictus of hatred soften and melt from Tsuto's face.  Left behind, however, were eyes tight with suspicion, resentment, and a general dislike.  "Good going, Lys," said the gnome through her Whisper Magic.  But, to save Ameiko's Evil Younger Brother, they would have to do better than this.  They would have to talk him into leaving Noozmeena, and he didn't look quite ready to listen to any ideas of that sort.  This would take more.  It would take ... magic.

"Tsuto," Pisca began, "we don't want to hurt you.  For your own sake as well as your sisters, you need to understand this.  We just want the attack on Sandpoint to stop.  There's nothing to be gained from it.  I think you understand this now.  The only one who'll benefit from it will be the Goddess of monsters."

"You can walk out of here.  Leave this behind.  If you do, we can also try and help you see Ameiko later.  If we live, that is.  But you have to make that decision now.  It has to be now.  I'm sorry," said Pisca Neep Freemish.  Then she gave a little twitch to her nose and tugged at the cloth of reality, arranging the fabric such that it lay more to her liking.

11:58, Today: Pisca Neep Freemish rolled 6 using 2d4. Gallant Inspiration.

Position: F3

Active Effects:  Message 40m (On All in party.)

Lvl 0 - At Will
Lvl 1 - (1/4)
Lvl 2 - (0/2)
AL: 4/8

HP 30/30
Befuddlers 1/2
Potion CMW 1/1

Abadar's Blessing +2 Morale / Used

In Hand: ARD
Melee +3Base +1RacialvsGoblins +1MagicDagger
Ranged +6Base +1RacialvsGoblins +1PointBlankShot +1MagicDagger
AC15
CMD13 or ...
AC21 w/Total Defense
CMD 19 w/Total Defense

This message was last edited by the player at 20:51, Thu 26 Feb 2015.

---

---

As Kellan ran into the room, Tsuto’s fist connected solidly with his armor, knocking him off-balance and back into the wall.  The young guardsman was able to recover without difficulty, although he was a little woozier than he had any right to be; it seemed like Tsuto’s fists could pack an extra punch.

Kellan lost no time in reaching out with his polearm and sweeping Lyrie’s feet out from under her.  She landed on her curvaceous rear with an audible grunt, the fear in her eyes even more pronounced now that she saw how well-armed and plentiful the intruders were.

“Come on, Tsu,” she said, the note of panic in her voice broadening, “we have to go.”  The scholar stood, ducking another swipe from Kellan’s poleaxe, and stepped into the hallway.  “Tsuto,” everyone could hear the desperate, pleading tone in her voice floating from the corridor.  “Come ON!”

Tsuto, however, was otherwise engaged.  His eyes flashed at Cato’s inopportune comment.  But Pisca’s words seemed to start penetrating his battle trance.  “My sister.”  He said simply, some of the rage leaving his eyes.  “She really sent you?  I tried to get her out of there.”  He looked around to the others, as if pleading for understanding.  “I didn’t want her to get hurt.”  He paused.  “She didn’t understand.”

His eyes hardened again.  “But we’ll never be able to be a family.”  He grimaced.  “Father would never permit it.” He stopped short at Liseth’s revelation.  “Wait.  Father’s . . . dead?!?”  He seemed truly shocked.  “How . . . how did he die?”

He paused again, for several seconds.  “Sandpoint,” he said suddenly, with more sadness than real anger.  He seemed deflated.  “They’ll never let me go back.  They’ll put me in prison, at best.  A real one, this time.”  The side of his mouth quirked up in a bitter half-smile.  “Not that living there has ever been anything but a prison for me.  But I can’t go back.”  He lifted a questioning pair of eyes to the group.  “Can I?”

“Tsuto!”  Lustrous, piled dark curls poked hesitantly around the corner of the doorframe.  “Who are these people?”

“They’re from Sandpoint,” Tsuto responded dully, waving his hand dully at the party.  “Come to,” he chuckled bitterly, “take me away from all this.”

The dusky woman’s expression softened; her eyes suddenly filled with something that looked a lot like hope.  “Away from here?  You’d leave . . . her?”  She paused, as if this might be a joke.  “Really?”

“You saw how she was,” the half-elf half-turned toward his companion.  “Leaving this,” he pointed toward his damaged face, “’as a lesson.’”  He voice took on a high-pitched note, clearly imitating a female voice.  “You said it yourself, Rie.”  His shoulders slumped.  “You were right.  You’ve been right the whole time.”  Ameiko’s brother sat down on the table, bringing his knees up to his chest, wrapping his arms around his legs.  “I just wanted,” he paused, a tear rolling down his cheek, “but she’s never loved me.”  He was the picture of inconsolable grief.  “Has she?”

   A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z
  +--+--+--+--+--xxxxxxxxxx--+--+--+--+--+-xxx-+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
1 |  |  |  |  |  x  |  |  x  |  |  |  |  | x| xx  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--xxxxxxx--+--+--xxxxxxx--+--+--+x-+--xx-+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
2 |  |  |  x  |  x  |OO|  DM |  S13|  |  |x |  | xxx |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--x--+--x--+11+--xxxxxxx--+--+--+x-+--+--+-xxxxx--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
3 |  |  |  x 12  D P|OO|T x  |  |  |  |  |x |  |  |  |  xx |  |  xxx| x|  |  |  |
  +--+--+--x--+--x--+--+--xxxxxxxxxxxxx--+-x+--6--+--x--+-xxx-+xxx--xx xxx+--+--+
4 |  |  | 14  |  x C| K|R DL |  D  |  x  |  x  |  | xx  |  |xxxx |  |  |  x  |  |
  +--+--+--xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx-10--x--+--xxx+--xx-+xxxx-+x-+--+--+--+--x--+--+
5 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  x  |  x  |  |  xxxx  |  x  x  |  |  |  |  |xx|  |
  +--+--+--xxxxxxx--+--+--+--+--xxxxDDx--+--+--+--+--+-x+--x--+--+--+--+--+-C+--+
6 |  |  | x|  |  x  |  |  |  |  |  x  x  |  |  |  |  |x | x|  |  |  |  |  | C|  |
  +--+--+x-+--+--xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx--x--x--+--+--+--+--x--+-x+--+--+--6--+--+-C+--+
7 |  |  x  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  x  x  x  |  |  |  |  x  |  x  |  |  |  |  | C|  |
  +--+xxx--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--xxxx--xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx+--+--+x-x--+--+--+--+-C+--+
8 |  x  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  D  |  |  |  |  |  D  |  |  | x|x |  |  |  | C|  |
  +--x--+--+--+--9--+--+--+--+--D--+--xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx-+xxx--+-x+--+--+--+x-+--+
9 |  x  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  D  |  x  |  |  |  |  | xx  |xxx  |  |  |  x  |  |
  +--+xxx--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--xxxxDDx--xxxxxxx--+--+--+--+--xxxx--+--+-xx--+--+
10|  |  x  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  x  x  x  x  |  x  |  |  |  |  |  |x |  |x |  |  |
  +--+--+x-+--+--xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx--x--x--x--x--x--+--+--+--+--+--+-xxxxx--+--+--+
11|  |  | x|  |  x  |  x  D  |  x  x  x  x  x  x  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--xxxxDDx--+--x--x--8--x--x--x--xSSx--x--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
12|  |  |  |  x  x  |  x  x  |  x  x  x  |  x  x  |  |  |  |  | xxx |xxx  |  |  |
  +--+--xxxxxxxDDxxxxxxx14xxxxxxx--xDDxxxxxxxDDxxxx--+--+--+--+xx+xxxx-xxx+--+--+
13|  |  x  |  |  |  |  |  x  |  |  x  |  |  |  |  x  |  |  |  x  |  |  | x|  |  |
  +--+--x--+--+--+--+--+--xxxxxxxxxx--+--+--+--+--xxxxxxxxxxxxx--+--+--+xx+--+--+
14|  |  x  |  |  7  |  |  D  |  |  D  |  |  |  |  D  |  |  |  D  |  |  xx |  |  |
  +--+--xDDxDDxDDxDDxDDxDDxxxxxxxxxx--+--+--+--+--xxxxxxxxxxxxx--+--5--xx-+--+--+
15|  |  x  x  x  x  x  x  x  |  |  x  |  |  |  |  x  |  |  |  xx |  |  |x |  |  |
  +--+--xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx--+--+--xxxxDDxDDxDDxxxx--+--+--+--+xxxx-+-xxx-+--+--+
16|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  x  |  x  x  |  x  |  |  |  |  | xxxx|  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--xxxxxxxxxxxxx--+--x--x--3--x--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
17|  |  |  |  |  |  |  x  |  x  |  x  |  x  x  |  x  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--xxxxxxx--4--x--4--x--+--x--xxxxxxx--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
18|  |  |  |  |  x  |  x  |  x  |  x  |  x  x  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--x--+--xxxxDDxxxxDDxxxxxxx--x--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
19|  |  |  |  |  x  4  D  |  |  |  |  |  |  x  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--x--+--xxxxDDxxxxDDxxxxxxxxxx--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
20|  |  |  |  |  x  |  x  |  x  |  x  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--xxxxxxx--4--x--4--x--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
21|  |  |  |  |  |  |  x  |  x  |  x  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--xxxxxxxxxxxxx--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
22|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
23|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
24|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
25|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
26|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+

1 = Dining Hall                           8 = Gabriel's Chambers (Rescue!)

2 = Wives' Quarters                       9 = Lamashtu Chapel (Dangerous!!!!!)

3 = Nursery                              10 = Gallery

4 = Bedchambers                          11 = War Room

5 = Storage                              12 = Research Room

6 = Cave of Death (Keep Out!!!!!)        13 = Stairs Down (Nualia - Dangerous!!!)

7 = Prison                               14 = Secret Door!

SS = Stairway                            CC = Cliff View to Ocean

T = Tsuto                                 M = Mage

O = Oak Table

OOC:

PARTY TURN

Tsuto Kaijitsu AoO v. Kellan

10:24, Today: The Raconteur, on behalf of Kellan Storval, rolled 15 using 1d20+8. Fort. Save vs. Stunning Fist.
10:23, Today: The Raconteur, for the NPC Tsuto Kaijitsu, rolled 5 using 1d6+1. AoO Damage vs. Kellan.
10:22, Today: The Raconteur, for the NPC Tsuto Kaijitsu, rolled 5 using 1d20+4. Critical Confirmation vs. Kellan.
10:22, Today: The Raconteur, for the NPC Tsuto Kaijitsu, rolled 24 using 1d20+4. Stunning Fist AoO vs. Kellan.

Result - Successful Diplomacy Check v. Tsuto.


OPPONENT TURN

Lyrie

Standard Action:  Total Defense.

Move Action:  Stand from prone.

10:33, Today: The Raconteur, on behalf of Kellan Storval, rolled 21 using 1d20+7. AoO Non-Lethal Power Attack v. Mage.

Result - Miss

Free Action:  5-foot-step to I2.


Tsuto

Successful Diplomacy check influences attitude.

Result:  Now Indifferent to Party.

COMBAT ROUNDS HAVE CONCLUDED.

---

---

"Well, technically your sister didn't send us.  The council sent us to stop your attack on Sandpoint."  The ARD snicked back into its sheathe as Pisca began filling the young Tian in on various and sundry.  "But we also promised Ameiko that we would try our best to save you if we ran into you.  So ... " the gnome shrugged.  " ... same thing, I guess."

"We all love your sister.  She's a wonderful person.  And, evil or not, you must not be that bad a person either.  I mean, you seem to have at least one other person aside from your sister who thinks so," Pisca said with a knowing sort of glance in the direction of Lyrie At Last.

"And, Lysa's right.  You're all she has left.  After the gobbies that you left your father with turned him into a glasswork corpse, that is.  Gobbies really have very little impulse control, you know."

"Oh, sorry.  Once again, I'm Pisca," said the gnome hooking a thumb in her own direction.  "This is Liseth Thoradin, Kellan Stomper Storval, Cato Crispin, and Kerr Mollin the Boyfriend."

"If you want to leave now, just head on up.  Ripnugget has decided to support us - go figure.  I don't think he'll stop you.  Orik Riddleport has already gone up and might even have left by now.  Bruthazmus is dead - I did say he had a problem, didn't I?  Oh, and there's an unconscious man up there who used to be wearing this."

Pisca fished in her pack, returning with the One-Eyed Mask.

"You wouldn't happen to know anything about him, would you?  Because I think he had something to do with the killing at the White Deer Inn a few years back.  The only problem is that I can't prove it."

"Oh, and anything you might be able to tell us about what waits below might be very helpful too."  The gnome came around the table casually and seemingly without a thought to the fact that they had, only moments ago, been on the verge of mortal kombat with this man and this woman.  She peeked around the corner first before slipping into the stairwell along with Lyrie At Last, squeezing, in fact, in beside her.  She peered down the stairs, eyes piercing the gloom.  Then she looked up into the dark face of the female human scholar who might or might not have a thing for Tsuto.

"She's down there.  Isn't she?" asked the gnome, as much with her large violet eyes as with her whispered question.

Position: I2

Active Effects:  Message 40m (On All in party.)

Lvl 0 - At Will
Lvl 1 - (1/4)
Lvl 2 - (0/2)
AL: 4/8

HP 30/30
Befuddlers 1/2
Potion CMW 1/1

Abadar's Blessing +2 Morale / Used

In Hand: One Eyed Mask
Melee +3Base +1RacialvsGoblins +1MagicDagger
Ranged +6Base +1RacialvsGoblins +1PointBlankShot +1MagicDagger
AC15
CMD13 or ...
AC21 w/Total Defense
CMD 19 w/Total Defense

This message was last edited by the player at 02:20, Fri 27 Feb 2015.

It was an amazing thing to watch as their words sunk into Tsuto.  To see him go from being angry and combative all the way to the lost, hurt, and lonely boy who only really wanted to be loved and accepted.  Liseth's heart couldn't help but go out to him, nobody should be treated in the way that Tsuto had been his whole life.

"Tsuto...nobody who tells someone that they have to hurt other people can really love them.  Causing pain to others also causes pain to yourself; nobody who loves someone would want to see them hurt themselves like that."  The diminutive acolyte had moved around Kerr in order to lay a comforting hand on Tsuto's arm.  The risk of him striking her seemed well in the past.

Liseth looked towards Lyrie, peeking at the scene in confusion and fear laden with what looked like hope.  The girl still didn't know Lyrie's reasons for even being here, helping Nualia and Lamashtu.  But it seemed that maybe the scholar had had enough and wanted to get away herself.

"You must know a lot about Lamashtu and what Nualia is doing here, Ms Lyrie.  Mr Orik told us that you were here to help Nualia's research before he left.  So you would know that Lamashtu is the goddess of demons, madness, and trickery."  She returned to addressing Tsuto directly, "Lamashtu can never be trusted.  She tricks people into doing her bidding by finding them when they are angry, lost, and vulnerable; then she offers them the things they want most.  But she is never really interested in helping anyone but herself."

The blonde sighed, "Nualia is too far gone; Lamashtu has her so tightly in her grip that I don't think there is any way Nualia can be reasoned with by anyone.  So we have to stop her."  Liseth continued to look up at Ms Kaijitsu's brother, "It's the only way to stop the goblins from destroying Sandpoint.  The only way to keep her from fulfilling whatever madness Lamashtu has her doing.  And the only way to protect everyone, including your sister, from her."

"And of course you can go back to Sandpoint."  She decided to add, "I won't lie though, many people will be angry.  A lot of people have been hurt and killed by the goblins.  But I promise to speak on your behalf; they'll listen to us.  And everyone likes your sister, they would listen to her too." The acolyte thought for a moment, glancing back at Kerr as though seeking his support.  "And, if you asked him, I'm sure that Father Zantus would even grant you Sanctuary within the Cathedral, while everything got sorted out."

Active Effects:
Light

Position: I 4

Kellan set the butt of his pole axe down against the flag stone and breathed a sigh of relief. He was not looking forward to fighting these two, not because he feared them, but because he knew it would break Ameiko's heart to see him dragged back in chains.

Tsuto deserved punishment what what he had done, but in the name of greater good, that would have to wait.

"I can't speak for the Mayor, or the Sheriff, but I'll put in a good word for you, seeing as how we are trying to get past this. Too many are dead as it is" he added in a tired sort of way.

"But for now, we need to get down there...and any advice on what we might find...well, it would help us out"

The gnome, for as many questions as she'd already asked, seemed little interested in waiting for the answers to each.  No sooner had one been birthed into the world than she seemed to move on to the next.  Perhaps she trusted in others to keep up - or to catch up - meeting with her later to present a whole load of answers all at once.  In this, perhaps, the questioning process had its similarities to the way in which gnomes brought their offspring into the world, rarely remaining to raise them, but, instead, leaving them to the care of various and sundry uncles, cousins and others whose inclinations ran to caring for and educating the young.

In this vein, Pisca seemingly abandoned her enquiries into the stairs leading down to the lower level and turned back to the room above.  "Love is a funny thing," she said, though she might have been speaking to Liseth as much as to Tsuto.  The gnome paused at the top of the stairs and reached out to take the hand of the dark-skinned Lyrie At Last and gently coax her back up into the room before closing the door.  By way of reason, Pisca pointed at the door as though indicating what lay beyond, and then put that same finger to her lips adding a quiet shushing sound.

"Love doesn't always last forever.  Rarely, I'd say.  In so far as forevers can be very very long, that is.  And love isn't always the same for one person as it is for another.  Who knows, maybe she did love you at one time.  But maybe it was not in the same way that you imagined it to be.  Then, maybe, even that different sort of love went away.  Maybe swallowed by the overwhelming, bitter, and hateful monster-love of Lamashtu.  Things change, you know.  All the time.  And, like I said, forever can be much longer than you expect it to be."

"All in all, best to find someone who loves you now and be with them."  The gnome coughed into her hand and shifted to the far end of the table, taking Lyrie At Last by the waist and moving her, in a not too subtle manner, to a place next to Tsuto.  "Who knows.  The love that you find where you were not expecting it might turn out to be as strong and wonderful as the love that you were chasing and pining for.  But you'll never know unless you let go of one for the other."

Position: Now H1  (Door closed.)

Active Effects:  Message 40m (On All in party.)

Lvl 0 - At Will
Lvl 1 - (1/4)
Lvl 2 - (0/2)
AL: 4/8

HP 30/30
Befuddlers 1/2
Potion CMW 1/1

Abadar's Blessing +2 Morale / Used

In Hand: One Eyed Mask
Melee +3Base +1RacialvsGoblins +1MagicDagger
Ranged +6Base +1RacialvsGoblins +1PointBlankShot +1MagicDagger
AC15
CMD13 or ...
AC21 w/Total Defense
CMD 19 w/Total Defense

Cato watched with wide eyes as Liseth again managed to talk their way out of a fight.  People who moments before had seemed intent on killing them had just...stopped, with scant more than a few words on her part.  Cato thought back to to the twists and turns his life had taken, and wondered how much easier things would be if he could convince people as well as she could.  He shook his head, wondering if there was anything he could add that would help the situation.  Judging from his last comment, and his contribution to Tsuto's cosmetic problems, Cato judged he was better just watching the situation for now.

---

---

Various emotions flickered over the half-elf’s face, each more fleeting than the last.  “Father died in the Glassworks,” he said dully, eyes unfocused.  It looked as if the young man was in something of a fugue state.  He shook his head slowly.  “I didn’t even know.  I didn’t even get to see it.  I’d dreamed of that day for years, you know.  Father begging me for mercy.  Having him in my power, after all the things he’d done.”  It wasn’t really clear if Tsuto even realized there were other people in the room with him—it was almost like he was narrating an internal monologue.

“I thought I would kill him.  I’d dreamed of it.  It was one of the things Nualia promised me.”  He shifted slightly on the table, as if suddenly uncomfortable.  “But I couldn’t do it.  Fighting is one thing.  But my father, strapped to a chair?  He just disgusted me.  So I left him with the goblins.”  He jerked a thumb over his shoulder, towards the door at the opposite end of the room from the one through which the party had entered.  “She said it showed how weak I was.  How I couldn’t exact justice on the one man who so richly deserved it.”

“You were not weak.  You were merciful.”  This from the barely-dressed scholar-woman, who had crept into the room.

“Yeah, I’m such a hero.”  Tsuto’s laugh was redolent of bitterness and self-loathing.  “The things I did for revenge,” he paused, then shook his head quickly, as if he wished to eject the memories from his mind. “And once I had it?  I couldn’t even take it.”

He suddenly looked up, as if realizing that others were listening.  “Oh,” he said shortly.  “Well, you’re lucky Orik didn’t decide to filet you with that sword of his; he’s really good with it.  Best I’ve seen, anyway.  But I don’t think he was ever very comfortable here.  I told her that insisting he come to the chapel services was a mistake.  She said it would prove his loyalty.”  He shrugged.  “I think it just drove him away.  Man’s a professional, but money only goes so far.”

“Yeah, she’s down there,” Tsuto nodded, looking back at the door.  “And no, you’re never going to separate her from her goddess.  It’s the most important thing to her.  It’s what drives her.  For the longest time, I just couldn’t see it.  Lyrie kept telling me, but I thought she and I were stronger than whatever she wanted from Lamashtu.”  His voice wavered.  “I was wrong.”  He looked over at Lyrie.  “You were right.”

The woman blushed and ducked her head, unable to hide her pleased smile.

Tsuto turned his gaze back to Liseth.  “But yes, at this point she must be stopped.  She’s down there.  Probably in the Observation Room, where she always is.  You can get reach it through the secret door in there.”  He jerked his thumb over his shoulder again.  “It takes you down to a large hall.  The door to the west leads to a hallway.”  He glanced over at Lyrie.  “It’s trapped.  We lost Jargen to it.  Just don’t put any pressure on the center tile and you should be fine.”

“Once you’re through the hallway, take a left.  That’s the Observation Chamber.  You’ll find Nualia there.  She’ll probably have her two devil dogs with her, but I’m sure a group of your obvious abilities won’t have any problems with them.”

“But.”  Tsuto looked up.  His eyes were clear—all traces of his previous self-pity were gone.  “The reason she’s down there is that she believes there is a power trapped here at Thistletop.  She is trying her best to release this power, believing it will reward her for its freedom.”  He cocked his head to one side, then glanced over at Lyrie.  “I’ve never felt anything myself, but . . . .”

“I have,” the woman jumped into the conversation with her smooth, husky voice.  “And from what I’ve discovered from these texts,” she gestured about the room, “there is something here.  It . . . summoned the goblins to Thistletop.  But they were too weak to free it.”

“Whatever else she is, Nualia is not weak.  She has bent all of her efforts on freeing this being, believing that if she does she will wield power unimaginable.  And,” the woman paused, as if she suddenly realized that she sounded too excited about this prospect, “well, I believe her.”

“So.  You have dispensed with the masked man, have you?”  Tsuto looked on dispassionately at Pisca’s mask presentation.  “No, I do not know exactly who he is.  A representative from some sort of Varisian cult, from what Nualia told me.  She felt that this cult could be used to her advantage, and that they would be willing to be so used because they shared similar goals.”  He shrugged again.  “I don’t know much more than that.  She wasn’t eager for anyone else to be present during their . . . negotiations.  Although now that I think about it she had Orik there as a bodyguard for their first meetings.  So you might ask him about it.”

“Father Zantus.”  Tsuto barked a laugh as first Liseth, then Kellan brought up the subject of repatriation, scratching the back of his head as he did so.  “You think he’d offer me sanctuary?  After all I’ve done?”  The youngest Kaijitsu’s voice was heavy with skepticism.  “And why would I want to live in Sandpoint?  With all those hateful memories, for them and for me?”  Tsuto looked at Liseth as if he thought she might have temporarily taken leave of her senses.  “I think it would probably be better for everyone if I just disappeared.  I’ll write Ameiko a letter.  She’ll understand.”

---

---

This message was last edited by the GM at 07:19, Tue 03 Mar 2015.

"Malfesknor."  The gnome nodded her head in an understanding way as she put a name to the Power that both FAN's (Former Allies of Noximia) had been speaking of.  "Yes," Pisca added then.  And, without further explanation as to what she was referring she also added, "we've seen the picture."

"Well, thank you for being so very helpful.  But, I think we really need to be going.  The sooner this unpleasantness is over with the better, I'd say.  You've given us a lot to think about.  Evil powers and such.  Thank you again."

"If you'd like to write a quick note to Ameiko," she said to the Tian, "we can take it now and give it to her later.  Or, if you'd rather write a long one, you can leave it with the Gobbie King upstairs where we can pick it up later."

"Oh, and if you're looking for places to settle, let me recommend Kaer Maga.  It's free," said the gnome of the city from which she hailed.  Then, "Free!" she added and spread her arms wide to show just how free and unfettered it was.

"So ...  You're Varisian."  The gnome turned the mask in her hand to look it in its single eye.  She favored the ugly visage with a dubious look and then waggled a finger at it in admonition.  "I think I know someone who may know a little more about you," she added, as she considered the not too inconsiderable store of knowledge regarding things Varisian.  Then she tucked the mask back into her pack and stalked off in the direction of the secret door which, all things considered, didn't seem to be all that much of a secret.

Knowledge check History, Religion, Geography, Arcana to any info on a Varisian cult associated with the symbol of a single eye.

Active Effects:  Message 40m (On All in party.)

Lvl 0 - At Will
Lvl 1 - (1/4)
Lvl 2 - (0/2)
AL: 4/8

HP 30/30
Befuddlers 1/2
Potion CMW 1/1

Abadar's Blessing +2 Morale / Used

In Hand: One Eyed Mask
Melee +3Base +1RacialvsGoblins +1MagicDagger
Ranged +6Base +1RacialvsGoblins +1PointBlankShot +1MagicDagger
AC15
CMD13 or ...
AC21 w/Total Defense
CMD 19 w/Total Defense

This message was last edited by the player at 15:56, Tue 03 Mar 2015.

"Thanks...and, Tsuto. Not everybody get's a second chance." Kellan advised as he turned to followed Piscs "Don't waste it"

The guardsman moved towards the area where he had indicated the secret door, but spared a glance to better commit the woman's face to memory. One could only hope that she would also need his advice, but just because they had managed the upper hand today did not mean that the day might come when they would meet again under less...ideal, circumstance.

As he neared the next room Kellans blood began to quicken again. If these two were believed...they were just moments from facing Nualia herself. Hopes beyond hopes and what had seemed at the outset the barest glimmer of a chance, to storm Thistle Top in order to end the threat of invasion to Sandpoint. To depose the adherent of a degenerate and evil goddess and scatter her cadre to the wind.

They were almost there.

He wanted to try and comprehend it. Even if they were successful he knew in his heart that their lives would never be the same. That they all could never be the same. He had been a guardsman a few weeks ago...a door shaker, a key holder, an amateur marriage counseler and expert drunk wrangler. He had been in a handful of scraps, but had never even drawn a weapon in anger. And now...he had spilled more blood that he had ever imagined. He had beheaded an ancient daemon (albeit a rather small one)...held the bodies of his dead friends and played his part in the felling of Bruthazmus. The recent unpleasantness suddenly seemed like a ruined picnic in comparison.

But he had to put all that aside for now, he needed to focus. If, and only if they were able to see this through to the bitter end would they have have earned the right to a respite. He just hoped that they all would be around to enjoy it.
This message was last edited by the player at 15:20, Tue 03 Mar 2015.

"The quest for revenge takes more out of the quester than they can ever hope to gain by achieving their revenge."  Liseth said sagely to Tsuto.  "That's one of the things that Father Garrick taught me.  All that it does is burn you up with hatred, until you find yourself doing such things as you never would have imagined before."  The girl looked around the dungeon they were standing inside, "I...think you know that better than most."

She took an involuntary step backwards as Tsuto barked out a laugh in response to her suggestion that he seek sanctuary at the Cathedral.  It wasn't difficult for her to understand why he might not want to step foot in Sandpoint again, but Liseth knew that Tsuto would have to if he was ever to find peace and redemption.

"Of course Father Zantus would grant you Sanctuary, if you were truly honest about wanting  it; and redeeming yourself."  Liseth glanced at Lyrie, she must want what was best for Tsuto; it was just a case of convincing them of what was best.  "I know that it is difficult to think of going back into Sandpoint and facing everybody after what has happened.  But running away from Sandpoint and everybody will never help you or solve anything."  She looked up at Tsuto, suddenly very serious, "The last time you ran away from Sandpoint, all that it did was cause you to be filled with so much hatred and anger that you came back at the head of an army; ready to burn the town to the ground and kill everyone who lived there."

"You don't have to stay there and live there if you don't want to.  But the only thing that can really ever bring you peace is if you forgive Sandpoint for everything that's happened to you.  Everyone there already knows; and most of them agree that no one should ever have been treated like you were growing up.  They understand why you are angry."

"And then, once you've forgiven Sandpoint, and yourself, you can show the people why it is they should forgive you too."  Liseth laid her hand atop the half-elf's, "There are more people who want to help you than you think."

The acolyte turned to look towards the secret door which Tsuto had indicated as leading to Nualia.  This was it, they were almost at their goal.  "Please, just think it over.  We still need to...stop Nualia, but once we are ready to return home, it would be great if you would come too."  Once more she looked up at Tsuto, "You owe yourself, and your sister, at least that much."
This message was last edited by the player at 16:54, Tue 03 Mar 2015.

Cato listened as Tsuto spilled out his heart, comforted by Lyrie.  I suppose love has saved the day? the wizard mused to himself.

As Tsuto gave directions to find Nualia, the mage's heart quickened, as he thought about what would be facing them again.  Finally, he stepped forward, putting a hand on Tsuto's shoulder.  "Thank you, Tsuto, for all of your help.  This is the kind of thing that we won't forget.  I understand why you'd want to never see this town again, but take it from someone who..." Cato faltered, unable to figure out how he would finish that.  "Well, someday you might realize you want to see your family again, see your home again.  No matter how many bad memories are there, it's your only tie to who you are."  He swallowed.  "And I'm truly sorry for everything that's happened between us.  If I can do anything..." the young arcanist spread his hands, looking hopeless, "Well, especially with what you've done for us, now.  Thank you."

He turned to regard the other mage.  "Thank you, too.  For what you've told us, to confirm why we're here.  Hopefully we can stop Nualia, and figure out what's in Thistletop.  It sounds like stopping her won't be enough.  This whole thing will be repeated again, unless we find whatever's at the root of the problem, trapped somewhere deep inside this rock?"


Active Effects:
Protection from Arrows (Kellan)
Mage Armor (Cato)

Combat Stats:
AC 16
BAB: +2, 1d6 damage

---

---

“I do,” Tsuto was looking at the wall, but responding to Liseth.  “When your whole life is centered around it, and then it happens?  The moment isn’t what you thought it would be.  And then, afterwards, you feel kind of empty inside.  Like your purpose is gone.  Is this it?  You think to yourself.”   He looked down at the floor.  “And then it feels like you have wasted years of your life for nothing.  Nothing at all.”

“And yes, I have some things that Ameiko needs to hear,” Tsuto nodded at Pisca.  “I’ll leave something with Ripnugget.  Have you talked to him?”  Almost in spite of himself, the half-elf chuckled.  “The Hero of Goblin Civilization.  He’s a strange one.  But he doesn’t have the same hatred of writing that most goblins do.  So it should be safe.”

“A second chance.”  Tsuto shrugged at Kellan.  “Somehow I don’t feel like I got much of a chance the first time around.  Maybe this time things will be different.”  He nodded at Cato.  “You’re welcome.  But it seems that whatever I’ve done to help you here pales in comparison to the other things I’ve done.  The ledger, I think, is far from balanced.”  He blew out a breath.  “But maybe you’re right.  I don’t know.  I just don’t know that going back to Sandpoint will help anything.  I’d love to see Ameiko again, but,” the young man’s emotional pain was evident, “I don’t know.”

“And maybe you’re right about forgiving Sandpoint.”  His attention returned to Liseth.  “But I don’t think I necessarily have to be living among its citizens to forgive them.  In some ways, that might even make it harder—being reminded again and again of all the slights and offenses that hurt me so much as a child.”

At this, Lyrie hesitantly put an arm around Tsuto, and he leaned into her.  Looks of wonder and joy fought for residency on her face as the half-elf wrapped his arms around her.  “I think you’re right,” she said, responding to Cato as she ran her fingers through Tsuto’s dark hair, comforting him.  “Whatever power is here?  It wants to be free.  And it will keep on calling out to those who will listen.  This may not be a problem for today, or tomorrow, or this year, or this decade.  But it is certainly not a problem that will disappear simply because you destroy its most-recent listeners.”

Lyrie helped Tsuto to his feet; the half-elf nodded at her, and they walked towards the door through which the party had entered.  “We’ll talk about what you said,” she assured Liseth.  “And good luck down there.  Nualia has made some fascinating discoveries, but,” she held Tsuto closer, “she is insane.  And evil.”  She paused.  “Destroy her.”

Then the scholar and Ameiko’s brother passed through the door towards the gallery.  In a matter of seconds, they were gone.

The party regrouped and moved through the door Tsuto had indicated, on the opposite side of the room from which the party had entered.  On the other side they found another chamber.  A large wooden worktable sat in its center—its surface was cluttered with scrolls, books, stone tablets covered with dense, spiky runes, and fragments of carvings that appeared to have been chipped off of carvings or other bas-reliefs.  To the north, a floor-to-ceiling set of wooden shelves sagged with picks, shovels, brushes, lanterns, and other equipment that one might expect to find at an archaeological site.

Perhaps most interestingly, a door to the east—sealing what looked as if it was intended to be a secret stairway—actually hung ajar.  A quick peek through the door showed a staircase descending for ten feet, then turning to the left towards whatever mysteries were contained below . . . .

---

---

... a dish best tasted cold ...   The words had came to Pisca two or three decades ago, drifting on the whimsical breeze that blew from the Ancient Fey Barrow, the ancestral birthplace of all of the gnomes of Golarian.  And here, in the bowels of this Goblin Controlled Fortress, which the goblins, or so it seemed, were not in complete control over after all, the words came back to her.

"I think I understand now."  The gnome paused at the Doorway to the Depths and looked up at her human friends, nodding her head with sage understanding.  "Revenge is a dish best tasted cold," she quoted.  "After all these years, I think I finally understand that.  I mean here.  In here," she said, and pointed to the heart that beat within her gnomish chest.  "Looking at Tsuto, listening to him talk about how he feels.  I understand those words at last.  Yes ... "  Her large violet eyes, filled with thought, gazed off into the unknown lands of the middle-distance, and Pisca nodded again in understanding.

"I don't know why everyone says that there's nothing to be learned from humans," added the young gnome then, as she took a deep and satisfying breath of air and turned herself back to the task at hand.  "You know, I was going to get all of these smelly bugbear clothes off of me, but, if there are going to be more hounds down here, I don't think I will."

The soft whisper of her steel sounded as Pisca drew the ARD and began a cautious creep down the stairs.

"I wonder what this place was before?" she mused, now switching to her Whisper Magic for the sake of stealth.  "I mean, it's not just any place that you'd chose to trap a thirty-foot tall goblin monster, is it now?  Trans-dimensional Monster Prison?  Or, maybe an ancient pre-Lamashtu temple.  And, and, and the priests here once milked the monster of its pre-Lamashtu evilness, using it to fuel their unspeakable rites.  Yes.  That sounds right.  Wow.  What a find.  Eh, Cato?"

Stealth and Perception checks, please.

Active Effects:  Message 40m (On All in party.), Swaddled in Bruthazmus' clothes.

Lvl 0 - At Will
Lvl 1 - (1/4)
Lvl 2 - (0/2)
AL: 4/8

HP 30/30
Befuddlers 1/2
Potion CMW 1/1

In Hand: ARD
Melee +3Base +1RacialvsGoblins +1MagicDagger
Ranged +6Base +1RacialvsGoblins +1PointBlankShot +1MagicDagger
AC15
CMD13 or ...
AC21 w/Total Defense
CMD 19 w/Total Defense

Kellan gave off a suspicious sound as he spotted the ajar door, then cast a glance back at the others. "Guess they weren't expecting company?" He mused using the whisper magic. The young guardsman briefly considered how one went about designing and arranging for a secret door. Did you have to trust the job to some lone trusted mason? We're the crafters killed afterwards to ensure secrecy? Would you have to isolate and guard the area during construction? Maybe this was how dwarves made so much money...

In any case he stayed with close behind Pisca as they went down the steps. Even if his beloved pole axe was not well suited to these cramped corridors, it was better than nothing should Pisca's curiosity get the better of her once more.

Cato followed close behind Kellan, trying to prepare himself as best he could for the confrontation with an insane devotee of a god of monsters.  Possibly who had become part-monster herself, given Tsuto's past revelations.  Cato latched onto Pisca's questions with a fervent desire to avoid thinking about what might lay ahead.  "Yes, Pisca.  Brodert has a few thoughts about this place.  He thought it was almost certainly a Thassilonian-era relic, possibly connected to the Old Light itself in Sandpoint.  Separated from that landmark in some sort of magical apocalypse or traumatic event, honeycombed with ancient rooms, etc.  I wouldn't be surprised if the powerful entity trapped here dates back to those times.  I've read some ancient lore about binding powerful outsiders to provide energy for powerful arcane magics - slowly sapping away their life energy.  Perhaps the Old Light really was some sort of arcane war machine, and whatever's in Thistletop provided the power for it to operate."  Cato stopped sending his thoughts for a moment, and shook his head, trying to dismiss the worst of the possibilities flooding his brain before the upcoming fight, to no avail.  "Well, suffice it to say that whatever the ancient Thassilonians thought was a powerful force would be doubly so in the modern era, millenia of degradation notwithstanding."

Active Effects:
Protection from Arrows (Kellan)
Mage Armor (Cato)

Combat Stats:
AC 16
BAB: +2, 1d6 damage

There wasn't much else that Liseth could say or do to try and convince Tsuto to come back to Sandpoint with them.  Even if only for a short time; long enough to see his sister at the least.  But in the end it would all be up to him, the girl knew that they would have his answer by the time they returned to speak with Ripnugget.

If Tsuto was there waiting it would mean that he was prepared to make the trip to Sandpoint.  If he wasn't...then at least they would have a letter from him to bring to Ms Kaijitsu.  And the news that he was alive, that they had managed to convince him to let go of at least some of his anger.

Liseth sighed after Tsuto and Lyrie left.  It was still difficult to believe that they had actually succeeded in getting through to him!  Lyrie had proved to be an entirely unexpected help, to be fair.  But that was just another added bonus.  Liseth had not known what to expect from her, she had been so worried that Lyrie would have been just as bad as Nualia.  She never would have imagined that the only reason the scholar had stayed with Nualia was because she was trying to get Tsuto away from these evil plans as well!

"You can always learn something from other people,"  Liseth answered Pisca.  "All that you have to is pay close attention.  But it's still good that you learned such an important lesson.  And that Tsuto did as well...even if it did take him so long, and cost him so much."

She stayed silent after that, not having anything to add onto Pisca and Cato's musings about what the ruins might have been used for.  And what manner of monster or demon Nualia was attempting to set free.

"We're almost done."  The girl whispered as she slid her hand onto Kerr's arm.  "Just a little further...and one final battle."  Now that they were so close to the end Liseth was almost excited.  Excitement mixed with dread; for whatever horror Nualia had in store for them.

Sarenrae had sent her for a reason though.  They had already done so much better than she could have ever hoped.  Liseth knew that they would be able to handle whatever evil Nualia and Lamashtu could bring to bear.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:49, Thu 05 Mar 2015.

---

---

Kerr quickly put an arm around Liseth and--for a brief moment--held her close, murmuring something into her ear.  Then he straightened, looking at the open, not-so-secret door.

"Well, I have to say that things could have gone much worse, don't you think?"  He gave the others a tired smile.  "We managed to parley with Ripnugget, defeat Bruthazmus, defeat the cultist, and pare away three of Nualia's chief lieutenants."  He looked at Pisca and Liseth.  "I think there's a lesson here too, isn't there?  About how loyalty is earned, and how it is not?"  He sighed.  "Like Tsuto said, money only goes so far.  And not even love can survive the flames of obsession and madness."

He shot a glance toward the door through which Tsuto and Lyrie had departed.  "Poor Tsuto.  To finally think that you've found love and acceptance, only to realize that the woman you love views you as a means to an end."  He shook his head.  "That's a tough thing to admit to yourself.  I think a lot of people wouldn't accept it.  Says something about Tsuto's strength of character, at least, doesn't it?  I mean, whatever else he is."

"But yes," the dark-haired acolyte said, holding Liseth close for one more moment before releasing her, "just a little further.  Only one more fight, and this time for everything.  The safety of Sandpoint.  The plans of Abadar."  He gave a slight grin.  "Not to mention our lives.  All on the line.  But you know what?"  His grin grew wider.  "I think we can do it."

And with that, the party crept down the steps that descended into Nualia's lair.

A stone door just around the corner from the final step hung slightly ajar, the detailed carvings that once covered its surface now defaced by chisel marks and hammer blows to the extent that only a few remnants of images--mostly of gemstones and crowns--remained.  Its most notable feature, though, was that the floor beneath it slanted downward towards the west.

Pisca pushed the door open to find a large room with two pillars supporting its stone-like roof.  In many places the stone walls, floors, and ceiling were caked with ancient grime and soot.  Alcoves in the north and south walls contained partially-damaged statues of a man in robes clutching a book and a glaive.  Here too the entire room was canted towards the west, and whatever ancient upheaval caused the complex to tilt had knocked the statues from their bases so that now they leaned against the western walls of their alcoves.

Another, less-defaced stone door stood closed at the opposite end of the hall, the snarling face engraved upon it expressing its endless displeasure with whatever might be happening in the area that it sealed off from the rest of the complex.  The room itself was empty and silent, with no evidence that it had entertained visitors any time in the recent past.

   A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
1 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
2 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
3 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
4 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--xxxxxxxxxx--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
5 |  x  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--x--xxxxxxx--+--+xx+--+xx+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
6 |  x  x  |  |  |  x  x  x  x  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--x--x--+--xxxxxx+--+xx+--+xxx--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
7 |  xC x  |  x  |  |  |  |  |  x  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--x--xxxxxxx--+--+--+--+--+--x--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
8 |  xL |R |K D P|  |  |  |  |  D  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--xxxxxxxxxx--+--+--+--+--+--x--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
9 |  |  |  |  x  |  |  |  |  |  x  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--xxxxxx+--+xx+--+xxx--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
10|  |  |  |  |  |  x  x  x  x  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+xx+--+xx+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
11|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
12|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
13|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
14|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
15|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
16|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
17|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
18|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
19|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
20|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
21|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
22|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
23|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
24|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
25|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
26|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+

---

---

Suspicious eyes.  Even though Tsuto had described the way, along which there was at least one trap capable of stealing one's Jargen (Whatever that might be), Pisca still greeted the slanted room with suspicious eyes.

"So ... " surmised the gnome, revealing a fairly surprising degree of observation.  "We probably have three layers of occupation here, right?  Right, Cato?  There's the goblin level on top.  Then, there's a second level below, older, worked in stone, probably built by Lamashtu-lovers if the chapel is any clue.  Then, there's this ancient Thassilonian level that probably never quite landed right.  That explains why the upper two levels don't slope like this one does."

With those suppositions supposed, Pisca began the climb up the slope to the far door, eyes and ears alert to danger.

"The trap is supposed to be in a hallway just on the other side of that door," she said to the others.  "Let me see if I can discontigulate it before we continue on.  If we have to leave in a hurry, I'd hate to have to tiptoe carefully around something that's dangerous.  And I don't know that I'd like having my Jargen sucked out, never having known that I had any withstanding."

"Observation Room ... " the gnome said then.  "Tsuto said that NodOffia was in the Observation Room.  I wonder just what it is that the room was built to observe?"

Stealth and Perception checks, please.

If we move on, Pisca wants to study the trap.

Active Effects:  Message 40m (On All in party.), Swaddled in Bruthazmus' clothes.

Lvl 0 - At Will
Lvl 1 - (1/4)
Lvl 2 - (0/2)
AL: 4/8

HP 30/30
Befuddlers 1/2
Potion CMW 1/1

In Hand: ARD
Melee +3Base +1RacialvsGoblins +1MagicDagger
Ranged +6Base +1RacialvsGoblins +1PointBlankShot +1MagicDagger
AC15
CMD13 or ...
AC21 w/Total Defense
CMD 19 w/Total Defense

Kellan looked about the room as he followed Pisca in, and remembered quite clearly that the rune dogs they had faced in the glass works were clever ambushers.

The markings, the statues, even the way the floor was skewed all probably meant something to an educated gentleman like Cato. Kellan sometimes wondered what his life may have been like if he had spent his early years with a tutor instead of plowing fields and weeding gardens, but he was happy with his lot in life, and proud to serve in his own way.

As he was reflecting on thid, Piscas efforts to be silent were by and large eclipsed by his own ponderous clattering as he marched along just behind her.

A not so secret smile and blush found their way onto Liseth's features.  Kerr was so sweet!  She couldn't believe how lucky she was to have him there with her; her hero and protector.  Not to mention the best boyfriend in the world.

The girl snuggled into Kerr's arms when he hugged her, murmuring something happy sounding; at that moment it didn't seem as though there was any danger ahead of them at all.  How could there be?  Certainly not anything that they couldn't handle.  They were going to defeat Nualia and save Sandpoint; she should start planning what they would do when there was no longer a giant threat to everyone's lives getting in the way anymore.

Liseth continued holding Kerr's arm as they descended the secret stairs, following behind Pisca and Kellan.  "Do you think that the Lamashtu worshipers built on top of this ruin because of Mal...Manesh...because of the demon monster trapped here?"  She asked when Pisca mentioned her observations on the ruin.  "But even that must have been a long time ago, with the goblins living here now.  And if they couldn't free the monster then, what do you think makes Nualia think she can free it now, all by herself?"

She stopped before stepping foot into the chamber, where there were supposed to be hidden traps awaiting them.  She wasn't sure enough on her feet to even think about going through there before Pisca pointed out how to get around it, "Careful Pisca, Kellan.  If Nualia is just through there, she might hear anything noisy."

Active Effects:
Light

Cato walked through the doorway into the lowest level of Thistletop, running his hands over the aged walls, marveling at its existence, just as he marveled at the secret dungeon beneath the Glassworks back in Sandpoint.  He peeked around the corner, past Kerr, his eagerness for exploring the ancient ruins outweighing the imminent risk of an encounter with Nualia.  "I think that's exactly right, Pisca.  These statues, books and glaives.  It looks like more monuments to the Runelords.  A man, though.  Which is interesting because Malneshfekor was supposed to be associated with Runelord Alaznist, and this certainly can't be her.  Maybe her predecessor, perhaps?"  Cato fell silent again, mulling over the possibilities in his head.

Knowledge: History Check on Statues to identify them.
Knowledge: Engineering Check on construction to identify approximate age.
Active Effects:
Protection from Arrows (Kellan)
Mage Armor (Cato)

Combat Stats:
AC 16
BAB: +2, 1d6 damage

---

---

As the group moved out from the stairwell into the large room, they could not help but notice that the air quality on this level was surprisingly good despite the lack of apparent ventilation.  They also found that the temperature in the room remained an almost eerily-constant sixty degrees Fahrenheit.

The party crept across the chamber, alert for traps or any sign of an ambush.  They found none.  They did, however, discover strange scratches on the floors and walls which seemed to indicate that at least one clawed creature had spent significant time in the room.

Having made it to opposite end safely, Pisca opened the stone door to find a short hallway rising in a slope towards the east.  Five feet from the western door where she stood, the floor was polished and shiny—a sharp contrast to the grime elsewhere.  A pair of stone statues depicting stern, glaive-wielding men stood in alcoves north and south of this section of the hallway.  At the eastern end of the corridor stood two stone doors, one to the north and one to the south, their faces carved with strange runes.  Just past the doors was a third alcove containing a partially-collapsed statue.  The top half of the statue was missing, leaving behind a ragged stump of a torso.

Forewarned of a trap, Pisca took her time examining the hallway.  As she did so, she spotted what looked like the bottom part of of two iron portcullises recessed into the ceiling around the polished section of the floor.  It seemed as if the portcullises could drop down at any moment, sealing off the area next to the two statues.  Unfortunately—despite her intense scrutiny—she could not seem to find any way to disable whatever mechanism might lower the gates.

OOC:  Just as an FYI, the slope on this level is so pronounced that any combatant to the east of an opponent will receive a +1 “to hit” modifier for occupying higher ground.

Also, if you wish to jump over the polished area, you may do so, but must determine an order in which you are jumping.  The Acrobatics check to successfully jump the area is DC 5.  Or—I don’t want to limit your creativity!—you can try and figure another way to deal with the issue.  Good luck!

   A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
1 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
2 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
3 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
4 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--xxxxxxxxxx--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
5 |  x  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--x--xxxxxxx--+--+xx+--+xx+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
6 |  x  x  |  |  |  x  x  x  x  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--x--x--+--xxxxxx+--+xx+--+xxx--+xx+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
7 |  x  x  |  x  |  |  |  |R |  x  x  x  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--x--xxxxxxx--+--+--+--+--+--xxxx--+xxxDDxxx+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
8 |  x  |  |  D  |  |  |L |K |P D  |  |  |  |  x  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--xxxxxxxxxx--+--+--+--+--+--xxx+--+xxxDDxxx+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
9 |  |  |  |  x  |  |  |  |C |  x  x  x  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--xxxxxx+--+xx+--+xxx--+xx+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
10|  |  |  |  |  |  x  x  x  x  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+xx+--+xx+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
11|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
12|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
13|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
14|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
15|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
16|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
17|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
18|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
19|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
20|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
21|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
22|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
23|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
24|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
25|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
26|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
  +--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+

---

---

This message was last edited by the GM at 16:41, Fri 06 Mar 2015.

Hmmm ... the gnome humm'ed.  "If this hallway is trapped, I wonder how it is that Newpooptia and her dogs get through?" squatting on the floor just outside the hallway, Pisca ran her eyes across the floor between the two polearm wielding statues.  "Especially the dogs."

"I bet there's a way to turn the trap off.  There must be." Pisca swiveled on the balls of her feet and looked over her shoulder at the greater expanse of this room in which she and her friend now stood.  "If we assume that the trap is now on and active, then that would mean that the mechanism for turning the trap on and off must be on the other side from here.  If it were on this side, then Noosleasia would have had to pass over an active trap to get to the Observation Room on the other side."

The logic was clean and reasonable, proving that the gnome was not incapable of what might be considered normal human-style reasoning.  "And, if we can't disable the trap, then maybe we can get Notapplicabilia to deactivate it for us.  That, or use it to our own advantage.  I mean, you have to wonder how smart Hell Dogs are.  Smart enough to know to jump over this area between the two statues, you think?"

She glanced up at the towering humans then, the question that she had just posed still writ plain upon her face.  "Here's what I'm thinking," Pisca whispered.  "I can easily, and more importantly, quietly, jump over the pressure plate.  Once on the other side, I can also jam the door to the south shut.  After that, I can take a peek into the room to the north which is what Tsuto describes as the Observation Room, and the place where ... She ... likely is."

"If the Hell Dogs spot me, all the better.  I jump back here.  And, hopefully they charge after me and get caught in the trap.  Either way, in order to come out and attack us, Noonoo has to deactivate the trap."

"What do you say?"

Active Effects:  Message 40m (On All in party.), Swaddled in Bruthazmus' clothes.

Lvl 0 - At Will
Lvl 1 - (1/4)
Lvl 2 - (0/2)
AL: 4/8

HP 30/30
Befuddlers 1/2
Potion CMW 1/1

In Hand: ARD
Melee +3Base +1RacialvsGoblins +1MagicDagger
Ranged +6Base +1RacialvsGoblins +1PointBlankShot +1MagicDagger
AC15
CMD13 or ...
AC21 w/Total Defense
CMD 19 w/Total Defense

This message was last edited by the player at 22:24, Fri 06 Mar 2015.