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D&D 5E [D&D 5E] Tattered Memories: An Adventure in Tethyr (COMPLETE)
Forged Fury
First Post
Still feeling the effects of Vials' spell, Greycastle moved in behind Brue, to back her up if needed. Whispering prayers to Helm, he traced a symbol on his forehead and healed himself of a portion of his wounds.
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Forged Fury
First Post
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With the dog dead, Vials looked around the room feverishly. "Dao Bastard! You've ruined everything! But you'll never take me alive!" The gnome yankeda ring off his finger, pulled a vial from his cloak, and drank it deeply. Smiling a horrible rictus grin, Vials face turned an interesting shade of green and he dropped to the ground, spasming and coughing up blood. Finally, he grew still.
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CanadienneBacon
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CanadienneBacon
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[section]
Brue hunkered down beside the gnome and shook him like a rag doll. She checked him for signs of life. "Ilmater's ill grace you insipid little inkspot!" Vials didn't appear to be getting up anytime soon, so Brue left off and retrieved her torch from the stone work table.[/section]
[roll0] to see if Vials can be healed or if he's dead-dead.
Brue hunkered down beside the gnome and shook him like a rag doll. She checked him for signs of life. "Ilmater's ill grace you insipid little inkspot!" Vials didn't appear to be getting up anytime soon, so Brue left off and retrieved her torch from the stone work table.[/section][roll0] to see if Vials can be healed or if he's dead-dead.
CanadienneBacon
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CanadienneBacon
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[section]Brue remembered Greycastle has been badly injured. She returned to his side and eyed his injuries. "Nasty little gnome. Nearly got the better of us, both. I won't tell if you won't." She grinned at the Lawkeeper. "You alright to help me search down here, or do we need to return up top?"[/section]
Brue remembered Greycastle has been badly injured. She returned to his side and eyed his injuries. "Nasty little gnome. Nearly got the better of us, both. I won't tell if you won't." She grinned at the Lawkeeper. "You alright to help me search down here, or do we need to return up top?"[/section]
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Forged Fury
First Post
When Brue shook the gnome's corpse, something slipped from his fingers; a metallic ping ringing out as it hit the floor. Examining it closely, Brue identified it as a platinum ring with a marquise cut amethyst set within it.
Greycastle nodded, "Coward and sneak, he was. It would have been nice to take him alive to find out if he had accomplices, but it's probably better this way. Sorcerers tend to be sneaky." The paladin nudged the gnome's corpse with a foot, then took his blade and made sure both Vials and the death dog were truly deceased.
"That thing's a nasty piece of work," Greycastle continued, pointing to the dog. "Diseased and insane, the two heads don't make things better. Why the Hells would he be keeping that thing down here? In any event, you're right, let's look for some answers."
Brue collected her torch from the table, it had only just started to burn a few papers, which were easily put out. Walking the perimeter of the room, the genasi lit a few more torches that rested in sconces on the wall, bathing the room in light. Walking to the northwest corner of the room, she examined the hole she had seen earlier. It only took her a few moments to figure out what was going on when the woman spotted several bone scroll cases resting on the shelf closest to the hole. The cases looked exactly like the one she had found with the troglodytes. Vials had probably dropped messages down the hole. Sniffing, she smelled the acrid stench of the burned hay coming from the hole, confirming her suspicions.
The bookshelf itself contained equipment related to the pursuit of alchemy and medicinal compounding. Beyond that, there seemed to be little of value or interest.
On the table, Brue flipped through the papers. Some found two stacks of parchment, one written in a language she didn't understand and the other written in the Common tongue. Comparing the two, she guessed that the documents contained the same information, just in different languages. Reading through the stack written in Common, the genasi realized these were notes concerning Vials' research and progress. A preface at the top of the first page indicated the notes had been translated for ease, but the originals would be sent along as well. It seemed the gnome was planning on sending his research onto someone, but they remained unidentified.
Sitting on the edge of the table, Brue read with great interest, passing the pages to Greycastle as she finished them. The gnome had been the architect of the disease from the beginning, using the death dog's saliva as the foundation for the plague. Expecting that the disease would be readily transmitted through ingestion or injury, the gnome contracted with a pair of troglodytes to setup shop in the town's subterranean reservoir, in anticipation of large scale tests. For the initial test, Vials killed a travelling merchant and commandeered his vehicle, using his magic and deceptive talents to pretend to be the merchant. Contaminating a few barrels of ale, the disease would originate from the local tavern. Once the first signs of sickness showed up, the gnome contacted the troglodytes to initiate the mass poisoning of the reservoir water. It was then that the Kirgard garrison showed up and unexpectedly quarantined the village. Concerned that his plans would be discovered, he turned to his previous research that indicated Fairy Cap mushrooms could be added to the compound to introduce an inhalation vector to the disease. He attempted to recruit a passing warrior to break the quarantine to fetch the mushrooms, but she refused.
That's right about where the notes end, barring a rather large appendix containing post mortem results of people who had died from the disease. If nothing, the gnome had been very thorough and detailed.
A final scroll tube rested on the central table. Pulling the scroll from the case, Brue read it carefully, her eyes narrowing.
Scrawled at the bottom in what Brue recognizes as Vials' handwriting was a response.
Greycastle nodded, "Coward and sneak, he was. It would have been nice to take him alive to find out if he had accomplices, but it's probably better this way. Sorcerers tend to be sneaky." The paladin nudged the gnome's corpse with a foot, then took his blade and made sure both Vials and the death dog were truly deceased.
"That thing's a nasty piece of work," Greycastle continued, pointing to the dog. "Diseased and insane, the two heads don't make things better. Why the Hells would he be keeping that thing down here? In any event, you're right, let's look for some answers."
Brue collected her torch from the table, it had only just started to burn a few papers, which were easily put out. Walking the perimeter of the room, the genasi lit a few more torches that rested in sconces on the wall, bathing the room in light. Walking to the northwest corner of the room, she examined the hole she had seen earlier. It only took her a few moments to figure out what was going on when the woman spotted several bone scroll cases resting on the shelf closest to the hole. The cases looked exactly like the one she had found with the troglodytes. Vials had probably dropped messages down the hole. Sniffing, she smelled the acrid stench of the burned hay coming from the hole, confirming her suspicions.
The bookshelf itself contained equipment related to the pursuit of alchemy and medicinal compounding. Beyond that, there seemed to be little of value or interest.
On the table, Brue flipped through the papers. Some found two stacks of parchment, one written in a language she didn't understand and the other written in the Common tongue. Comparing the two, she guessed that the documents contained the same information, just in different languages. Reading through the stack written in Common, the genasi realized these were notes concerning Vials' research and progress. A preface at the top of the first page indicated the notes had been translated for ease, but the originals would be sent along as well. It seemed the gnome was planning on sending his research onto someone, but they remained unidentified.
Sitting on the edge of the table, Brue read with great interest, passing the pages to Greycastle as she finished them. The gnome had been the architect of the disease from the beginning, using the death dog's saliva as the foundation for the plague. Expecting that the disease would be readily transmitted through ingestion or injury, the gnome contracted with a pair of troglodytes to setup shop in the town's subterranean reservoir, in anticipation of large scale tests. For the initial test, Vials killed a travelling merchant and commandeered his vehicle, using his magic and deceptive talents to pretend to be the merchant. Contaminating a few barrels of ale, the disease would originate from the local tavern. Once the first signs of sickness showed up, the gnome contacted the troglodytes to initiate the mass poisoning of the reservoir water. It was then that the Kirgard garrison showed up and unexpectedly quarantined the village. Concerned that his plans would be discovered, he turned to his previous research that indicated Fairy Cap mushrooms could be added to the compound to introduce an inhalation vector to the disease. He attempted to recruit a passing warrior to break the quarantine to fetch the mushrooms, but she refused.
That's right about where the notes end, barring a rather large appendix containing post mortem results of people who had died from the disease. If nothing, the gnome had been very thorough and detailed.
A final scroll tube rested on the central table. Pulling the scroll from the case, Brue read it carefully, her eyes narrowing.
Scrawled at the bottom in what Brue recognizes as Vials' handwriting was a response.
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[section]Brue bent down and picked up the ring. She'd seen Vials remove it, and hadn't been sure why. She examined the ring's inner and outer band, looking for an inscription. She grimaced when Greycastle slid his longsword into the corpses, and turned her back. Such things were necessary, but left a distaste in her mouth. She nodded her agreement when Greycastle said Vials was a nasty piece of work; somehow, the gnome's demise made her sad. She'd trusted the apothecary and felt let down. Everyone was redeemable, she felt. But it was too late for the gnome.
Brue checked each of the several bone cases she spotted resting on the shelf closest to the hole. She opened each, hoping for discovery. She ignored the tomes; those were for someone more learned than she. The papers on the table interested her. Is this writing the same script as the troglogyte script I found in the reservoir area? Brue broke out the script from the trogs and held it up against the writing she found on the table, wondering whether the language was the same. "We should take this to Tolliver," she mused aloud. As she flipped through the papers written in Common, she said, "Why would he want to frame the Mossy Nymph? Did he have a vendetta against Janelle?" Brue looked up at Greycastle, her eyes full of question.
"So it started with the ale barrel impregnated with waterkeep at the tavern, then he shifted his plot and dumped saliva-poisoned hay in the town's water supply." She eyed the slaughtered dog. "What's missing is the why of it. Why'd he do that? Plus, it sounds like he killed Reginald or whatever his name is--the Halfling who delivers ale to Janelle." The genasi returned her attention to the manuscript. "If 'Agent V' is Vials, who's 'Q'?" Brue again turned inquisitive eyes to the Lawkeeper.[/section]
Brue bent down and picked up the ring. She'd seen Vials remove it, and hadn't been sure why. She examined the ring's inner and outer band, looking for an inscription. She grimaced when Greycastle slid his longsword into the corpses, and turned her back. Such things were necessary, but left a distaste in her mouth. She nodded her agreement when Greycastle said Vials was a nasty piece of work; somehow, the gnome's demise made her sad. She'd trusted the apothecary and felt let down. Everyone was redeemable, she felt. But it was too late for the gnome. Brue checked each of the several bone cases she spotted resting on the shelf closest to the hole. She opened each, hoping for discovery. She ignored the tomes; those were for someone more learned than she. The papers on the table interested her. Is this writing the same script as the troglogyte script I found in the reservoir area? Brue broke out the script from the trogs and held it up against the writing she found on the table, wondering whether the language was the same. "We should take this to Tolliver," she mused aloud. As she flipped through the papers written in Common, she said, "Why would he want to frame the Mossy Nymph? Did he have a vendetta against Janelle?" Brue looked up at Greycastle, her eyes full of question.
"So it started with the ale barrel impregnated with waterkeep at the tavern, then he shifted his plot and dumped saliva-poisoned hay in the town's water supply." She eyed the slaughtered dog. "What's missing is the why of it. Why'd he do that? Plus, it sounds like he killed Reginald or whatever his name is--the Halfling who delivers ale to Janelle." The genasi returned her attention to the manuscript. "If 'Agent V' is Vials, who's 'Q'?" Brue again turned inquisitive eyes to the Lawkeeper.[/section]
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Forged Fury
First Post
When Brue picked up the ring, she could feel a charge go through her hand, confirming the item was magical in some form.
While reading through the scroll correspondence, the genasi had a flash of a memory: an intricately carved oak staff being handed to her. Shaking her head to clear the strong memory, the woman strongly believed she was somehow connected to a staff of some sort, possibly the one mentioned in the note.
Responding to Brue's question about Janelle, Greycastle replied, "Could have just been happenstance... considering how detailed his notes were, maybe he wanted to start small so he could track it better."
Gathering himself, he said, "Good work, I can't thank you enough for your help. The whole town would have likely been dead if you hadn't uncovered Vials' duplicity. Let's take these documents and see if we can't set up a meeting with Captain Holt. Finding whoever this Q is seems like a job suited for the kingdom."
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While reading through the scroll correspondence, the genasi had a flash of a memory: an intricately carved oak staff being handed to her. Shaking her head to clear the strong memory, the woman strongly believed she was somehow connected to a staff of some sort, possibly the one mentioned in the note.
Responding to Brue's question about Janelle, Greycastle replied, "Could have just been happenstance... considering how detailed his notes were, maybe he wanted to start small so he could track it better."
Gathering himself, he said, "Good work, I can't thank you enough for your help. The whole town would have likely been dead if you hadn't uncovered Vials' duplicity. Let's take these documents and see if we can't set up a meeting with Captain Holt. Finding whoever this Q is seems like a job suited for the kingdom."
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