Gamdar continues to regard the amulet fearfully. ”I was told that the charm came directly from Orcus’ caverns within the abyss. The work of his own infernal servants. The priests said that if the charm became separated from me, that my allegiance would be plain to all. That my efforts would be known to have failed. Trying to take up the amulet again would…”

A circle of blazing crimson light suddenly manifests on the floor surrounding Gamdar’s chair. The acolyte shrieks. Othar begins to intone a prayer and Mazzahs starts reciting an incantation, but before either can finish, a single, blackened hand, larger in size than the tallest of the adventurers, rises from the circle below. Smoke curls from its flesh and gray bone can be seen through rents in its skin. The hand snaps closed around the wailing Gamdar and in a single, quick motion pulls him down into the circle. Both vanish from sight as the blood red circle fades.

The chair the acolyte sat in is nothing but a charred ruin which collapses to the stone floor along with the amulet, which lands with a soft jingle.

Barnabus looks upon the abduction of Gamdar with both horror and fascination.

In the end, he can only throw up his hands, "He shoulda said something. Why didn't he say anything? There is a time to be tight-lipped and a time to flap the lips."

"Well, it's not like the servants of Orcus are known for making good life choices."

Cough. Right. Off to his now abandoned flat.

 Dilemma starts, and snarls at the hand as it appears... Charley swishes his tail violently, and growls.  When the... hand grabs Gamdar and the charm falls to the ground, she pauses for several seconds and then picks it up... by the chain.  "You are going to Mazzahs.  Later..."

Sir Dryvyk had listened to Gamdar's confession with both contempt and empathy. The evil with which the young man had aligned himself was unforgiving. When the crimson glow appeared, the Paladin of St. Ygg felt filled with a revulsion unlike any he'd ever experienced. He saw Gamdar's eyes widen and heard the choked shriek begin to form...

The young Knight's hands seemed to respond with otherworldly speed. Almost before he knew what he was doing, Sir Dryvyk made an attempt to save Gamdar's soul from eternal torment! The sword of the Order of Night swept to take off the head of the errant acolyte. Sir Dryvyk would attempt to deprive Orcus of his prize!

Dax's jaw drops as the bright red light envelopes the trussed-up acolyte. He starts to draw his word without thinking, but before it can clear its sheathe, the light is gone along with Gamdar.

"Silvanus preserve us! What happened?"

With astounding speed, Sir Dryvyk swings his blade in a horizontal stroke, separating Gamdar’s head from his body an instant before he disappears in the demonic grasp of Orcus’ servant. The acolyte’s head, an expression of surprise frozen on its features, rolls to a gentle stop against Dilemma’s foot.

”Perhaps we should see that…Gamdar receives a proper burial,” Mazzahs suggests quietly.

Brother Othar, his lips pressed into a thin line, nods in silent agreement.

The cottage which Gamdar occupied is a small, single story structure on the western edge of Helix. A pair of long unused wooden racks, of the sort used to dry hides, suggests that the humble residence was once occupied by a tanner or trapper.

The lone door into the house reveals that it consists of a single, sparsely furnished room. A small stone hearth occupies one side of the unadorned chamber, a table and two chairs arranged a short distance from it. A lantern, along with two vials of oil and a book, sit atop the table.

A narrow, wood framed bed with a straw mattress sits against the eastern wall. A small wooden chest has been placed at the foot of the bed. A trapdoor, leading into a cellar, sits a few steps away from the northern wall.

Sir Dryvyk bowed his head, clutching his sword in shaking hands, and offered a quiet prayer on behalf of the errant acolyte. When he finally turned to follow the others from the tower, there were tears glistening at the corners of his eyes though they refused to fall. He simply nodded to Brother Othar who would now deal with the aftermath of the deeds of Gamdar.

"Only after his head and his tale have been presented to Krothos," someone chirps on their way out.

~~~

"Doesn't even have a sitting room," critiques Barnabus after the investigators have entered the cottage.

While the cottage presented more than a few temptations, the visionary's inner eye beholds a panorama of images: the death rattle of a master locksmith; the crash of a massive slab onto the floor of a tomb; the apocalyptic runes on the necromancer's sarcophagus; ... ; ... .

Prudently, he casts Find Traps before directing Ishmael to see about the chest and the trapdoor.

The curate himself has a look through the book, providing that it doesn't bear any ominous wards or sigils. The pride of Gamdar, after all, suggested that he felt safer than his competency warranted.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:28, Wed 15 Feb 2023.

Malivoire stepped back and threw up an arm in defense when the column of hellish light enveloped Gamdar.  The rest happened so fast - the beginning of spells, the appearance of a giant black hand from the netherworld, and Sir Dryvyk's grant of mercy just as the hand dragged what remained of Gamdar down into the depths of the Nine Hells.  He watched with wide eyes as Dilemma picked up the amulet, unable to find words after such a horrific event.

He remained introspective as the group left the tower, lost in dark thoughts about playing with powers beyond one's ken.
~~~~~~~~~

In the acolyte's cottage Malivoire joined Barnabus at the table, inspecting the book's pages as the priest flipped through it.

The divine insight imparted to Barnabus reveals no traps upon the chest or trapdoor, or anywhere else within the cottage's single room.

The book on the table is a history of the expansion of the church of St. Ygg into the northeastern frontier, the area encompassing the Duchy of Aerik and several neighboring territories.

Dax walks to Gamdar's cottage in silence. Entering, he watches as Ishmael examines the chest and Barnabus and Malivoire pore over the book.

"Could you check the cellar door too, Ishmael? Gods know what might be hidden in there."

The ranger moves to the fireplace and examines it, for loose stones or anything else that might appear out of place.

"It's not trapped," Baranbus comments, referring to the cellar door, as he leafs through the book. Probably background material for his role.

The chest at the foot of the bed does not have a lock. It contains only clothing, the simple robes which Gamdar wore at the shrine, along with a pair of leather shoes.

Opening the trapdoor, Ishmael can see that the small cellar below has a dirt floor. A set of wooden shelves to the right of the ladder that descend into the room is mostly empty, save for a few dry foodstuffs. Another chest, this one secured with an iron lock, sits against the room’s western wall.

Feeling about the hearth, Dax finds a loose stone on the fireplace’s right side. It pulls free with a little effort, revealing a small compartment which holds a leather bound book, along with a bottle of ink and a quill.

"Mal! Dilemma! You might want to take a look at this...or not!"

Providing the locked chest isn't trapped (two turn duration for Find Traps), Barnabus waits patiently while Ishmael divests it of its lock.

Sir Dryvyk joined the search on his own way, making his way carefully around the abode while murmuring prayers of insight and guidance.

OOC: Evil Detector (On)/Off

Malivoire gave up on the tome dedicated to St. Ygg when Dax called out.  He agreed with Barnabus about the first volume, which was likely out in the open for show.  The book Dax had discovered likely contained something much more pertinent to Gamdar's real inclinations.

"Let's see that," he asked Dax with interest, reaching out a hand to take the book.  Motioning for Dilemma to join him at the table while the others moved into the cellar, the mage pushed aside the book of St. Ygg and laid out the secreted tome for examination.  After checking the exterior for any signs or indications, Malivoire gingerly opened the cover to see what lay within.

Barnabus’ divinely imbued insight reveals no traps on the chest in the cellar, nor anywhere else within the small underground room. For Sir Dryvyk, the chest below gives off a faint, but easily perceived, aura of evil.

Taking the discovered book to the table, Malivoire pages through it, quickly discerning that it is a journal that Gamdar kept since taking residence in Helix. The entries, written in a spidery script, fill up roughly half of the book. Malivoire and Dilemma estimate that it would require perhaps two to three hours of study to read the journal in its entirety.

The last entry catches Malivoire’s attention:

”I have allowed fear of discovery to stay my hand for too long. There is no doubt that the barmaid saw me about my errands in the darkness and while she may have no cause to ever speak of the matter, the fact that she knows of my movements presents a threat to my service to the Lord of Undeath.”

“Taycee is known by many in Helix, and unlike many who I have made sacrifice of, her disappearance will not go unnoticed. It is that fact which has made hesitant. But, in the absence of the Foul Pheasant, it can be argued that some of the miscreants who spent their hours there, ruffian traders and thieves from Bogtown, will be in search of something else to entertain themselves, an entirely plausible reason for Taycee vanishing.”

“I will have to exercise care when I take her captive. I must be sure to act when she is walking alone and still some distance from the mill. Hendon and his family are said to have sharp ears.”

Barnabus feels a thrill at the detection of the malign taint incommensurate with its magnitude. He would like to have it opened, here and now, to discover what lurks within. Still, all things considered, it would be best to bring it back to their patron before unlocking it.

He studies it in silence for a few minutes. It's not breathing, is it?

If not, he instructs Ishmael to lift it straight up, lest any inimical markings be hidden beneath, the disruption of which might usher in a minor, rather than a major, apocalypse.

Tote the chest and the other items back to Mazzahs.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:05, Mon 20 Feb 2023.

The chest shows no signs of respiration. Moving it reveals no sigils or magical circles inscribed on the floor beneath it. Those who bring it up out of the cellar note that it is not especially heavy.

At the spire, the adventurers find Mazzahs and Brother Othar deep in conversation, along with Cella, who has joined the pair in the wizard’s laboratory. The entrance of the chest elicits a low growl from the invisible familiar in the iron cage.

Mazzahs sighs and nods. ”From Gamdar’s cottage. You were wise to bring it here before opening it. Did you find anything else of importance while you were there?”

Barnabus points at the journal that Malivoire still clutched: "A testimony to his dirty deeds -- done and to be done."

"And done dirt cheap," he adds. "Unless he stored his filthy lucre in his basement chest."

"We collared that child of Orcus just in time; he had his sights set on Taycee. She brews a marvelous pot of tea by the by."

But Barnabus deduces this is not the time for one of his rodomontades and so informs Mazzahs that they plan to return to the barrows in the morning but will check on the chest before they leave.

Malivoire nodded in confirmation of Gamdar's plans toward Taycee, a dark expression on his angular face.  Though he did add another comment on the journal.

"I think if the plan is to head back to the barrow tomorrow, it will be worth a few hours to pore through this diary first.  It may contain useful information regarding the tombs themselves and those within.  I'll just need a quiet place to go over it page by page."

He glanced at Dilemma and shrugged.  "Not exciting, but your welcome to join me if you're interested."

”I am glad that you acted when you did. Taycee is a kind hearted young woman,” Mazzahs says.

He glances back at Brother Othar, then to the company members. ”We will open the chest with great care, using all the means at our disposal to ensure the contents cannot cause harm. I will speak with you before you depart regarding its contents.”

“Rest in the meantime. The catacombs always present numerous dangers and challenges. You will need your strength.”

He nods to Malivoire and Dilemma. ”Should you learn anything of import from the journal, please be certain to tell me.”