Opening Scene
The chattering outside has summoned the building's occupant as the front door opens wide. Standing in the doorway is an older member of the sleeth race. Gender is difficult for most beings to know on this reptilian race without both genders being side by side as females tend to be slightly bigger than the males. The groups knows this particular sleeth as Articania, the very person who called them to the Seeker's lodge. "Ahhh!" he says through her mouth full of needle like teeth. "Come in, come in," her reptilian face is naturally frozen in a smile as sleeth are incapable of showing facial expressions. They compensate for this by hand gestures and head movements. Many who have run afoul of the sleeth have reported the unnerving juxtaposition of a smiling lizard swinging blades or firing pistols. The reports of actual violent sleeth are rare though as they are a race that believes in the storage and dissemination of information. Probably the vary reason the Seeker cryptic alliance was started in the first place. Even those handily defeated by the reptiles admit that they provoked the lizardmen in the first place.
She leads the group through a receiving room that has racks of ancient artifacts that are in various states of decay or brokenness with small books under them that contain information about the item above them. Moving into a back room, through an eating area and a simple kitchen which has a door to the outside that a chicken coop, smokehouse, and outhouse can be seen through windows, a large round table is set up with book shelves set against the wall. A desk has been pushed up against a wall blocking most of a large window that points toward the building that has fallen in on itself. There is also a door to the left of the entryway "Pleassssse have a sssseat. I apologizzzze for the delay, asss I must conclude my business with Seeker Azmeren before we meet. In the meantime, though, I thought you could help us with another minor issue. This metal coffer is an ancient puzzle, a cunning feat of engineering known as a paradox box. As you'll see from even a casual investigation, what appear to be seams on the sides are only shallow grooves there's no obvious way to open the thing. Each paradox box has its own secret method of being opened. Essentially, a paradox box substitutes hidden catches and triggers for a lock. Given time, anyone clever enough could figure out how to open a paradox box, just as given time, a locksmith can open any lock. This particular box was among those items recovered by Koriah the scrolls next to the box are her preliminary notes on possible triggers or methods of opening it, but she's not yet had a chance to sit down and properly investigate the thing. So ... why don't you put your heads together and see if you can't do that for me? Even if the box is empty, as I suspect it probably is, knowing the method of opening it makes it a valuable find anyway. I'll return shortly, and I hope to see that box open! Think of this as an audition, if yo u will because the actual task I want to speak to you about soon will require as much wit as it will brawn!"
"To give you the space you need to work, you may enter the other door to this room. It leads down to an open basement with only items unfit for display in the front room. There is also a workbench with a few minor tools to assist you in your work in case you don't have them. Now if you'll take this and head down stairs, I will see you soon."
She jestures to a mechanical box and a rolled up piece of parchment for the group to take.
Do you accept?
