![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
<<< || Previous || Next || >>>
The door before the party is large, ornate and considerably older than most of the other features in this area and with a keyhole at the center. Hughes tells the party that beyond is a rotating mechanism which positions a different puzzle-room behind the door depending on the time of day. Solving the puzzle gives access to the areas beyond, failing typically results in a potentially fatal encounter. Anthony is the only person who passes through this door and even then only at certain times.
Markos remembers that the Verric Commander of the Keep gave Zedezir a key while mentioning something about a door under the town [unlogged] which should not be opened if the Kingsguard were nearby. Zedezir tried the key and the door split down the middle and slide apart revealing a small chamber with glowing runes flowing across the rear wall and a pedestal with a button to the left. The runes were ancient but magical and quickly yielded to Markos and Aiu's expert knowledge - although much was superfluous gibberish the message contained within read "Press the Button when the time is right". The doors slid closed and the entire room shuddered and moved away, coming to a stop before another door.
The runes on the wall shifted to a countdown from 10. The party tried pressing the button at various points during the countdown - which only had the effect of resetting it. Eventually it was allowed to run its course and the door opened revealing an indoor garden, fountain and raised goldfish pond in the centre and moss-and-lichen covered mounds in each corner. From the left wall a mass of roots have broken through. The runes now read "trust not in your eyes".
Markos entered first - using his staff to feel the way. As he approached the pool a tile shifted under his staff and a large amount of the floor to the left fell away, revealing a pit descending to a dull red glow far below. The pool itself appeared to be bottomless - descending to a point of light which mirrored the impossibly high ceiling. [someone] tossed in a coin and it sat there spinning, making no sound but appearing to fall forever. [someone else (Daggakorian?)] attempted to catch one of the goldfish, which popped out of existence a bit like a bubble.
Zenon meanwhile was examining the rock gardens in the right hand corners, which proved to be illusions covering piles of bones. Ominous much?
Still unwilling to touch the "water" in the pool directly Markos unsheathed one end of his sword-staff and used the sheath to probe for the bottom of the pool. As the sheath hit the floor level the illusions covering the room were dispelled, the now empty pond and fountain at the centre of a small plain stone room, the piles of bones still in the corners and the tree roots obscuring some sort of door. From the shadows cast beneath the roots two large dog-like creatures appeared - sticking close together and moving cautiously they came across the pool to attack the party who simply spread out around the edge to wait for them. [I've an idea someone shot first - Zedezir (crossbow) or Zenon?]. Daggakorian, Markos and Hughes engage, badly injured the dogs vanish utterly back into the shadows, later reappearing to attack Zenon as the others moved to examine the door and he alone picked through the piles of bones.
This door was carved to resemble a face, and responded when Aiu addressed it, on request whistling at "it's" shadow mastiffs who broke off the attack then solidified in to stone statues. Negotiations to pass through ensued during which the party learned
- they were the first to pass through this room in a "millennia or two" [which doesn't gel with what we later recalled about when the complex was built, but I guess time passes pretty slowly to a door stuck in a wall with no company]
- there are a couple of "sleeping" giants around who seem to think the door is some sort of a dragon - reinforcing Markos' theory that it wouldn't be difficult for Anthony to convince said giants that he was their deceased master returned.
- if we have come in from "the other way" we must already know the password (which Frank N. Door, named by the party to it's great pleasure "I've never had a name before! I've always wanted one.") and the trick to it. It can not tell them the password but there is a clue in the room.
Markos returned to the fountain to search that for clues only to find "The password is forge" written in clear view of the door. The ensuing conversation went something like:
M: Is the password "forge"?
F N. D: No that is not the password!
M: Oh, because it is written here that "the password is forge".
F N. D: What?! show me where it is written "the password is forge"! [FN.D immediately begins to slide down into the floor]
F N. D: [furious]: You tricked meeeee......
Beyond was a small dusty room around which were scattered a variety of scrolls. A repeated set of tracks led to and from the wall by which the party entered to a ladder on the far side of the room. After a short while Frank N. Door slid up again, a blank wall on this side, and then the sound of stone moving against stone let the party know that the fountain room had moved away.
Examining the scroll suggested that they might be Anthony's (or someone else's) research notes from creating the werewolf medicines. These were quickly passed through Aiu's sack to the box in the smithy workshop. Meanwhile the sounds of a party echoed down the shaft above the ladder and Daggakorian carefully climbed this to find out what was above. The shaft went up much further than seemed possible - a gruelling climb.
Periodically there were about-arm-sized recesses in the walls, at the end of each could be made out a red gem. Prudently no-one reached inot these although Aiu did test with a staff which suddenly shuddered then came back notched.
At the top was a panel set with a rune - Daggakorian made the long climb down to draw a copy in the dust from which it was identified as the signature rune of the architect who built the complex, then back up again to press it. On pressing lines of energy spread out from the recesses and the shaft "shortened' to a more reasonable length. Climbing and exiting through the trapdoor at the top the party found themselves in what Hughes recognised as a small goods-storage room off the great-hall of the Kings Guard barracks. From beyond the door was the sound of drinking and revelry, and the oft-repeated refrain "We're going home!". At this Hughes got a distant look in his eyes and murmured "home". He offered to aid the party in escaping by going out and getting the soldiers as drunk and as noisy as possible to cover the attempt.
Markos preferred to look for options which did not involve losing "custody" of the werewolf and checked the mini-map. Although the room was so crowded that it was hard to pick out individual names the remaining werewolf Juno was identified as being present, more interestingly Anthony was not, his name shown leaving the barracks. Behind this storeroom was the kitchen, above were the baths and to one side the armoury - separated only by an unreinforced wooden wall. In fact when the party came to pry this wall apart it popped off in one neat section - as if someone went this way regularly...
Hughes equipped himself from the armoury and the others also grabbed gear that would enable them to pass as Kings Guard from a distance / state of intoxication. Nothing here was really much better than they have, except the magical items in a locked and probably alarmed cabinet. Markos also noted that technically this was not the property of Anthony and his personal army (in which case it might be considered valid "loot") but actually property of the real Kings Guard and thus the proper king.
From the mini-map it could be seen that there were two guards on the exit of the barracks, but in the town-watch booths outside were "Ricket" (Jurro) and "Guts" (Earl/Kaska's "wife"). Hughes and Aiu were easily able to bluff the guards that they had been relieved of watch duty and could go and join the party - as soon as the coast was shown clear on the minimap the rest of the party also exited and made for Earl's inn.
Inside Jeffery was waiting for them - but was surprised to see Hughes and summoned two men dressed in white who grabbed the (struggling) werewolf - whom Jeffery declared "the enemy" - and possibly would have killed him without the party intervening on his behalf, Markos pointing out that they specifically negotiated this as a possible outcome of the mission. Reluctantly Jeffery concurs admitting that they do believe they can create the medicine themselves based on the research notes supplied. On being asked about Anthony's movements he tells them that he was seen leaving town travelling towards Gloom - a town on the far side of the canyon recently destroyed by Wrath [possibly not a coincidence that is also the direction Wrath took his hatchlings].
Jeffery had "decided that you've proved your worth enough for the rest of the story" and revealed that they believe there are not one but three Anthony's - one the werewolf we already know, one a mage and one an alchemist. All are similar in appearance but there are differences. It is unclear whether these could be three versions of the same person taken on by a shapeshifter or three distinct individuals. There have been no reliable sightings of the other two in Brimsworth since he has been observing Anthony W.
This is about the point Markos has gotten really fed up with things being revealed to the party piecemeal at a time and often after the fact, and while he still believes Jeffery and his White Lotus organisation to be on the "right" side of events is not inclined to trust in their honesty and motives for asking the party to undertake missions going forward.
Additionally Earl has decided to go elsewhere and has apparently signed the inn over to the party - an unexpected development which the party puts to one side for the moment - there will be plenty of time to discuss it on the road to Gloom, after some much needed rest. It has been a very long two days since they set out to thwart Anthony's attempt to gather eggs from the wyverns' lair.
