Quentin was more or less convinced that the secret entrance was the only entrance, since he has not found the other (even more secret?) entrance anywhere nearby. Just to be on the safe side, he tries to get the dogs to sniff around, but the site of the battle seems the only thing that they find interesting and they grow increasingly frustrated by Quentin's directions to look for some other stuff, so after some effoert Quentin lets the dogs be.

"Nah. Just too agitated, the big rat and what not. Would wish we could study or carry it..." Quentin sighs, looking at the dead specimen. "Let's go. I say, directly to kingsguards."

21:26, Today: Secret Roll: Quentin Fox rolled 1,3 using 1d6-1,1d6-1, rerolling max.  Persuade the dogs.
21:26, Today: Secret Roll: Quentin Fox rolled 3,2 using 1d6,1d6, rerolling max.  Persuade the dogs.

Seeing the hounds were too nervous to follow the track, Lirian tried to do it by herself

19:35, Today: Secret Roll: Lirian rolled 1,4 using d4,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 1,4.  Survival (tracking) to find the entrance of the cultists base. Success, unless there are negative DMs. For now, assuming a success, and I will change the post afterwards if not

While the track of those that have fought was too confused, the one for the two magicians, not having been involved in combat (and so no oterh steps messing with them) was a little more clear. Lirian followed it, seeing were they lead her…

"There is more to this accursed mess?"  Aeress was disappointed.  She thought they could get more out of them by separating them and pitting the one against the other, but clearly no one had the patience for that.  Although that might not work either, so who could say if it were actually a good idea or not.

But if there were more to this to confront, there wasn't much for it but to confront it.  One of them seemed to know where the point of egress was.  Aeress wasn't exactly covering herself in glory here, but for the honor of House Veles she must try her best to assist.  She reminded herself the best leaders knew when to let others act.

Piper's bush cat eventually fell apart and out of existence leaving her standing in the grass.

She listened intently, ears moving back and forth as information was put forth.  She had no idea there was some sort of treacherous plot afoot in the town.  Though the answers so far did not seem to tell them exactly why this cult of whatever it was had kidnapped the lot of them.

Still, Piper wished to know more so she was content to let the others press the cultists for information.

It wasn't as if she'd be able to persuade them to give up what they knew.

Lirian was not sure about the tracks she found. So she decided to turn to the cultist that has spoken. She had to profit before he recovered from her taunt.

“Ignore him. He’s not your friend” she told the man. She raised him and, after checking his tied wrists, moved with him following the tracks. “Show us the lab where you produced whatever you did. This false divinity and those false friends have chated you, now is time to attune for it, and maybe the guards are benevolent.” she ordered him. She made him lead the way. Just in case there were traps…

One of the cultist takes the hit from Quentin and lands face flat on the ground. Blood pours from the fellows nose. The dogs seem to not effect the cultist as the one still standing looks at you with fear.

"I can't tell you any more. He will kill me. The enterence won't do you any good, it will only lead you to the sewers."

The man on the ground looks at the man with a glare. "Might as well tell them everything idiot we are good as dead now."

Looking around, you can see that the hole itself in the ground probably leads to what he is mentioning. You can hear the trickle of water far far down below. Picking up one of the cultist you grab him and direct him to show you the location.

The cultist points at the blockage, "That would've been the only way in. Unless you go through the cage area that you were trapped in."

You pick him up and the man takes you around the tree to the other side very far from the entrance. There is a clear hole in the ground but this time you can see down below at the area around where the cages are.

Listening at all this confused Lirian a little, though she tried not to show it. “Then your lab is here or at some other place accessible through the sewers?” she asked the man.

Then she turned to the others: “In any case, I guess we should take a look at the facilities here, take whatever can be useful and destroy the rest, before taking the prisoners to the Guards” she said.

OOC: Again, my suggestion is to leave the prisoners under the watch of those leaving, and leave all participating players participate in the search, if it’s done. Goal would be a swift raid, as said taking whatever can be useful or give information and destroying the base, and then return to the city. If there’s nothing useful (only a way to the sewers), then return to the city with the prisoners and hand them to the Guards.

Hunter peered down into the hole. "Right. There was that other door down there,  that probably leads somewhere. But how do we get down, and more importantly, how do we get back up?"

He called out loudly "DOES ANYONE HAVE A ROPE? OR AN AXE?"

"I HAVE A ROPE!"  Piper loudly replied, pulling off her pack and producing a hempen coil of what could pass for very sturdy sewing thread that looked about long enough to tie it off on a person's nose and repel down onto their shoes.

She held it up in offering towards Hunter in all seriousness for several long moments.




Before she couldn't help but start laughing and began putting it away.



"We can always cut up these guys' clothes and improvise."  Piper then suggested, actually trying to be helpful, as she thought to Hunter's earlier exploits down in the cage room.

"With all respect, I am not trusting a rope made of the shredded robes of dark acolytes with my life or yours.  I have a modest coil as well if that is helpful."  It was one of the few times Aeress would speak in a way that made sense, but this situation didn't lend itself well to her eccentricities either.

Hunter regarded the talking mouse seriously. "That is most helpful, I do thank you" he said seriously, and winked. "I am glad that my goblin didn't try to eat you, though it seems he would have gotten more of a mouthful than he was expecting. My apologies for his behaviour, nonetheless."

He turned to the beautiful woman. "Forgive me... is it Erin? Eiryss? Hunter Gallagher at your service" he introduced himself, bowing. "Your offer of a rope is most useful, though cutting cloth strips also has merit. Good lady, we need to tie the rope to a tree and climb down, if you can do that? I would like to push a cage beneath the hole and tie sticks across the bars so as to make a ladder in case we need to make a speedy exit."

OOC If Aeress ties the rope, Hunter will break off several easy to reach branches of an appropriate size and throw them down.

This message was last edited by the player at 10:40, Fri 27 Oct 2023.

Once again, Lirian felt stupid when Hunter asked for a rope. She had one… with her bow and other belongings, in the inn. After all, she only went to the Temple, didn’t she? Why to carry all her equipment?

She smiled friendly to Piper’s offer, and then felt relieved when Aeress told she also had one (a serious one, this time). She looked at the hole. She thought she could go down by hanging on the border, but the rope would be needed to return. She decided to wait for Aeress to tie it to a tree before going down, though.

"I'll be right here with the dogs until you shout at me that there is more than just sewers. I don't think we do sewers anytime soon."

Quentin expects this uncertainty to be quickly resolved. Either there is an access to some sort of storage or a lab, or there isn't.

"Then we'll decide if it's worth the trouble to haul the dogs down and then up."

"Aeress of the line of Veles, and I can try Master Gallagher.  Hopefully it is enough rope, it's only a modest coil meant for improvising shelters, but it is rope all the same."  Aeress agreed to the plan, and tied a stout double knot.  Simple but effective.  She tested it with her weight, which was... well more than the mouseling but not as much as some others.

“I’m just Lirian” Lirian introduced herself, seeing Aress did it. “Good you took a tope, Lady. Want to go first, or I do?” she asked politely.

“I can carry you, if you want” she said Piper. “At least to get up latter, mostly if we’re in a hurry”

Then she turned to Quentin “OK, we’ll call you if there’s something interesting, as you’re probably the most knowledgeable about any lab material we could find there. Not sure if we should take the dogs, though. As you say, it would be a mess to take them out if trouble arises…”

"I probably should go down first, I'm light enough to be pulled out in a hurry and still..."  She searched for the word.  "... sizable enough to put up a resistance."

"When you get down, tie a loop in the end of the rope" Hunter suggested. "If need be we can pull you up."

"An excellent idea, I believe I shall do just that."  The truth was Aeress had considered doing that already, but it was good to let other people think it was their idea alone, it made them feel better and encouraged contribution when she was genuinely at a loss herself.

With a plan in place, Piper excitedly positioned herself to hitch a ride on Aeress for the descent, anxious to see what mysteries they might find.

"Down we go then!"  She exclaimed.

“I’m going just behind you, Lady” Lirian said to Aeress. Then she took one of the couple of short swords she had taken from the cultists and offered it to Hunter. “I’ve seen you’re mostly a shooter, but your weapons, while powerful, are slow to reload, and you don’t carry a melee weapon. Want this one?”

Then she slung her staff on her shoulder and readied to descend just behind Aeress and Piper, not knowing what to expect once down…

The cultist seems to broken to say anything more. Daremo and S'Sikaar pull the man back to where the group was originally watching over them like a hawk.

The rope is tied and you make your way down below lower yourself into the room with the cages. Parts of the wall are burned from the flame substance that they threw down. As you make your way around the room you can see the entry way to the hall is still very much open to the world. You go through you supplies and find a make shift torch you can use to illuminate the darkness.

Through the door you can see small bits of light at the very end of the hall where the collapse happen. Nothing there but rubble.

But through the second door that was closest to the cages you can finally see with the door broken and shattered on the floor another hallway. You take a few steps listening for noise but here none. You are pretty far from the hole at this point.

What do you do?

"I want to attempt to scout it a little, but we should tell the others first."  Aeress told the others.  She'd taken point with her spear and had a surprisingly light step.

Aeress has a d8 in Stealth

“They seemed to have heard us, so they could not be too far” Lirian whispered to Aeress and Piper. “And don’t forget there must be some kind of corridor or chamber above the one with the cages, from where they threw the fire pots… I suggest advancing about 100.150 meters to this corridor and see if there’s any door, hidden or not.”

She tried to advance silently also, but hitting the walls with her staff every few feet so see if any of them sounded hollow and could hide a secret/hidden door

19:01, Today: Secret Roll: Lirian rolled 6,2 using d4,d6, rerolling max with rolls of (4+2)6,2.  Stealth roll.

The echoes bounce off the walls of the hallway that was previous locked. You listen for any sounds but hear nothing that catches your attention. As you make your way to the very end the light itself is swallowed but darkness and soon only the light from the torch exists giving you a few feet of vision.

As you reach the end of the hall, you can see that there is a glint of something at the far end of the hall. Something metallic, you slow your foot steps but there is still no noise from the hall or the metallic object which gets closer as you approach. You finally making it to the end of the hall into a circular room.

Inside of the room, weapons racks cover the walls with some short swords, clubs and maces. More than you can possibly carry. In the middle of the room is a huge steal table with straps that look broken. Then you hear it, somewhere in the room there is a sound of something dripping.

You follow it and find a few different cultist bodies piled up and in pieces. Blood covers the floor where they lay. At the feet of one of the cultist is a syringe that is empty with the exceptions of a small drop of a substance.

Lirian took the syringe, removing the needle if it has it, and wrapped it in any cloth she could find, careful not to lose the drop of whatever it could be. “Quentin will look at this… ” she whispered to the others.

Then she searched the room (even the dead) for any paper or book that could be there, or for any lab equipment or hidden doors/compartments  before returning to where Quentin and the rest were waiting (unless Aeress or Piper suggested anything else)