THREE HUNDRED TWENTY ONE
(I/C)
“Following you, Du Lac,” Wyn said. “Lay on.”
“Lock as many doors as you can with your elf magic,” Brendon suggested, already heading out, “and let’s get a move on.”
Abraxas shook his head, "We should not use all Señor Wuyan's vestido majik antes sabemos como mucho hay es. We should find out how it works first.”
Lannis felt around, sitting down on the closest bed. "I'll wait right here with my box, this crystal and my potion. If you find anything good I call dibs."
“That sounds petty,” Kovid commented as he went past, following the Scout.
“Grow up,” Lyra scowled. “What are you, seven?”
“Can you count that high?” the Magic user retorted.
Positioning himself in the hallway with a view of both room and the door to the west, Abraxas said, “I will wait for our scout to check the room, I will watch the doors from here." He waved the dwarf and Cleric ahead of him. "Go on ahead, I will join once everyone goes in."
Standing near the Magic User, Wyn glanced at the main door to the Adepts room and sighed. “Offop, you gonna wait here while we search? Probably best to lock dis door, den. Lest de nipple munchers come a bitin.”
“You’d like that, wouldn’t you.”
The elf was staring at the door across the room, willing it to lock, and then walked over to it to check it out. No key hole and turn of the knob showed it was open. Glancing back at the mage he bent down, picked up the nearest chair, and jammed it under the knob. "Sure hope de Duchess doesn't float in here en fly up Offop's orifices,” he quipped walking back across the room to the south door. “Dat would be quite unpleasant... fer de Duchess."
“Ha ha ha,” Lannis grumbled. “As if.” He was blindly putting various items in his possession over and inside the top of the crate, feeling the sides, head tilted as he did so.
Wyn joined the other three already in the chamber, clapping the Fighter on the shoulder as he passed him. Brendon had crossed the room and was checking out the door on the south end of the long chamber, the portal already ajar from the Salamanders earlier. Kovid was giving the fireplace area a solid once over and Lyra was inspecting the picture on the wall, as well and poking inside the knitting basket she had picked up and had tucked under one arm.
Bristling his beard, Kovid asked, “Maybe we should dowse this flame and see if there is a way down through the fireplace. According to the map…”
“Map!” Lannis chirped from the other chamber.
“Ugh,” The dwarf rubbed his chin and continued. “We’re over the locusts. It’s always nice to have an extra way out if we need it.”
The Cleric chuckled, still looking through the basket. “I don’t think escaping to a room full of locusts is actually an escape. It’s running from one angry thing to another.”
“Still want to look at the locusts, mi amigos,” Abraxas reminded the group.
“Yeah, that sounds like a great idea,” Lyra agreed, adding, “Not.”
Glancing back at Lyra, Kovid looked up at the picture and asked, “Does this painting seem significant to anyone? She’s the lady that spoke to us from the statue, right?”
"Oui, Princess Argenta,” Wyn bowed his head briefly, “May Theystra guide ye spirit." He pointed at the picture, “Hm... Priestess, do any of de goddesses we been hearing about have any apple symbology?”
“That apple looks delicious,” Kovid agreed.
“Typically no,” Lyra was frowning, peeing closer at the picture. “Moon, sex, crabs, wheat, cold, ice, spiders, monsters, pregnancy, support, magic, night.” She reached out and touched the apple with her finger tip. “Apple is just…an apple I think.” She scratched at the edge of the apple, feeling it was upraised a bit under her fingertips. A bit of red putty flaked away. “Ah,” she sighed.
“Wot you got, Priestesse?”
Lyra continued to flake away at the added putty on the edges of the apple until it all flaked off and showed that Princess Argenta was not holding an apple, but a Ruby. Perfectly cut and red. “Will you look at that,” she said with a whistle.
Brendon glanced back and echoed her whistle. “Ok, if that is real, we can get 5,000 crowns from only some special and specific high class buyers back in Specularum.”
“It could also just be a picture,” Wyn commented.
Kovid shook his head. “No, that’s a royal jewel. And the Princess, the Ispan’s daughter, is depicted holding it here in a room adjoining an upperclass bedroom. Damn, that is a nice looking stone.”
The group moved the picture from the wall but there was nothing behind it, and there seemed to be no other markings of the gem and its origin. But Kovid was frowning and then snapped his fingers. “The room she’s in, see it? It looks like a ballroom, a big chamber. I saw a picture of it with Brendon earlier this week. Remember?” he asked the Scout.
“Yeah, in that book.” Brendon agreed.
“What book?” Lyra asked.
“The Caaa…vern book,” Kovid quickly changed what he was going to say, looking north pointedly at Lannis. “Yeah, book about caverns. Real exciting stuff.”
“Ugh, dwarves and their caves,” Lannis remarked from the other chamber. “Sounds boring. Move on already.”
Pitching his voice lower, Kovid said, “Cat book. Brendon and I took a look at Big Brain’s book of cats that he picked up. This room is in the book, same room she’s in. There’s a vault of something in there, and if I was the Ispan, that’s where I’d keep the crown jewel.”
“Let me guess,” Wyn sighed deeply. “I would imagine de dragon would be in de room dat is really big wit some treasure in it. Treasure dat is not only riches and wot not, but also ‘is mother’s heart, oui?”
“Hole in one,” the dwarf agreed.
Wyn shrugged. “Dat is a discovery for de future Wyn to worry ‘bout. For now, I gonna check out de tea.”
The party finished checking out the chamber, Abraxas finally making his way in. “What kind of tea?”
Wafting it towards his nose and sniffing deeply, the elf replied, “Oolong I tink. And mebbe black tea as well. Smells real good.” He took a sip and smiled. “Been seeping a bit too. Good and strong. De Salamanders, dey had good taste in tea.” Besides the tea set of 6 cups and saucers, there was the tea pot and a serving tray with a cup holding two dozen sugar cubes and a strainer. From the markings it was the set of the original inhabitants of Halgafar’s Castle and the Adepts had been using it as their own.
The basket of knitting had almost a dozen pieces in various stages of completion from trees and flowers, to meadows and fanciful designs. There was also a ball of yarn and two large knitting needles.
As for the fireplace, there was no under catch of flue running down, only up to the roof of the Castle. There was enough wood to make two more same size fires for a few hours, leading the dwarf to imagine someone must bring wood up to replenish the bin at some point.
Lastly Brendon was sure the south door was not an issue, as it was already ajar. There was a hall here and in the hall were beds made up of dropped blankets on the floor for 10 or so Salamanders. A door was at the end of the hall, closed. And there was another door on the north wall of the hall, also partially open and the sound of running water was stronger sounder from where they were .
Time now is Day 8, 8:30 AM
(OOC)
82 minutes on Lannis’ blind light spell, Detect Invisible and Shield have expired. Ok, Sitting Room has been checked out, there is a hall south of there and that leads to two doors, back to the hall and some room to the north. Running water is heard. You guys go.
No comments:
Post a Comment