Torkis Ravenhart, the jail guard, wanted to race in there immediately and attend to whoever had knocked out the other guards and was accosting the person in cell 12. We had to convince him that we were better placed to take care of whoever it was and eventually relented. He unlocked the door to the hall leading to the cells, and then he and Gryg went to the smaller cell area where the two guards were knocked out, and tried to pull one of them closer to get the keys off of them to unlock that area.
Connal led the party down the hall, everyone walking slow and carefully. Thon, Dizzy, Odie, and Asher. Whoever it was was beating up someone diligently, methodically striking them again and again. Connal suspected it was facial and upper body shots and Dizzy wondered how the hell the monastic could tell what body part was being pummeled just by sound. Luck was with us as we crept closer and closer, no one heard our approach. We took the odd spear or dagger off the fallen guards to help us out (Gryg took the crossbow from the one at the head of the hall). The smell of burnt cinnamon and sand had the party frowning and it was a quick look in cell 12 by Connal that revealed a half dozen kobolds, and a cold face gnome, holding a human woman prisoner up by her shirt, and striking her repeatedly without comment. The kobolds seemed to have come up through the waste grate in the middle of the room, and two of them were still standing there, watching the action.
He backed away and let the group know what was going on, getting a nod from the party. Odie and Asher, a bit further back, noted that there seemed to be a lot of loose gravel and rocks on the ground here but that was about it. Thon motioned to Connal that the two of them would go in first, the half-orc thief taking his short handled fighting pick out and raising it up.
Before it scraped against the wall with a rasping ringing sound. “Ah…fuck,” he whispered as the gnome within commanded them to “take care of that.” And the kobolds ran out of the room.
The party fired off a bless spell and then a moment later the bard whipped her recorder out and singing about dwarven balls and other inspiring things, filled the party with courage, dancing a brief jig as her recorder flute blasted out its shrill notes. The kobolds raced out, hitting Thon and Connal, a number of them piling on the half-orc. One of them used an ornate glove and sent a magic blast down the hall, ricocheting the loose stones everywhere and pummeling Asher, Odie, and Dizzy. And still more kobolds came out of the waste pipe. The gnome punched the girl one last time, told the kobolds to kill them all, and then went into the pipe himself.
Gryg and Turkis had come close to hooking one of the guards closer but the grapple slipped off. “Here!” The dwarf said, handing the guard the rope. He loaded up the borrowed crossbow and added, “I’m going to help. Get that door open.” He ran down the hall as more kobolds hit the group. Crossbow bolts fired, slapping into scaled flesh. Thon remained standing, even as one of them ran up and hit the half-orc hard in the head. The battle closed and the kobolds made to run as their number were picked free. A few made it to the waste pipe and Connal dove in to grab at the last one but only got a handful of foul muck for his efforts. He did manage to get a holy symbol to Sif that had been snagged on the side of the waste pipe, ripped from the gnome’s neck as he made his escape. They also found a key. One side had a number “6” on it, and the other had the stamp of a swan on a stick. Dizzy suspected it was an inn or tavern room key.
By this time Torkis had gotten the door open and Olo was begging the party to let him out. He pled with each of them, going so far as to just ask Odie to flat out give him a dagger and then he’d get himself out. The girl prisoner, Brigga, was pretty hurt and we gave her a small heal to stabilize her. As Torkis was checking everything out, we had gotten the name of Olo’s crèche from Odie’s brother, and it was Dogger, he had been killed, and was in cell 16. So with the locker room door open, we looked in there and just rummaged around bin “16” until we discovered the locker key to the McGovern Warehouse that had the items the crèche had been stealing for Moon.
Eventually Warden Freddrir came down; we talked at length of what happened. They were going to move the prisoners up to the 2nd level and double them up for now. A maintenance and hunter team was going to examine every foot of the waste system and see where these kobolds came in from and then brick it closed. We left feeling good (after Connal got a prison bath with hoses and some replacement prison clothes) and went back home to get changed and discuss what the next step was.
The key was most likely from a local place called the Swan and Scythe in a poor section of town. If this gnome, Virdrid, was staying there (room 6), we wanted to scope it out and look around. Cleaned again, it was a bit after 6 PM when we went off and looked around the south end of town until we did find the Swan and Scythe – and the standard outside matched pretty well with the key.
We entered the small place and the overworked bartender and heavy set yet buxom wench invited us in to sit. She cajoled a few people to move around and we claimed a table. To ingratiate us, we ordered a round of ale for the place and also partook in some ham sandwiches as well as the lesser quality, but still tasty, roasted pig sandwiches. Dizzy had maneuvered himself to the back end of the place and looking unobtrusive, went down the hall to the 1st floor rooms and made his way to “6” once he was sure the hall was clear. There was a sliver of wood in the frame that he plucked free to replace later and opened the door with the key and entered.
The room was set up for a smaller person (gnome, Halfling, dwarf) and he gave the place solid once over. Normal stuff to be found in the drawers and what not, but under the bed wedged up in the slats was a wooden box with a set of Sifian fighting robes within, as well a scrap of a map with an “X” on one building and a bounty which read:
To Whomever is holding this has been approved for the open bounty in the amount of 250 nobles for the acquisition of McGovern Warehouse Key, Locker Key 4. Bring said key to Adeptus Hraetrek, Southeastern Sifian Outreach Temple, Outer ring Erylond for payment.
Additional payment of 60 nobles for any retribution against the Wharf Gate Thieves, Specifically Dogger’s Blades and Tips.
Ripping a page from his own book, he placed the papers in the robes and folded it back up and hid it again under the bed, leaving the room with the bounty and map again, placing the sliver back in the door after he locked it up. He returned to the room with the party, had them figure out to finish eating quick, and we left the Swan and Scythe.
Once outside, he shared what he had learned (and Odie reported that she made a few coins singing!) and we discussed at length what all this meant. The church of Sif involved? Why? And Moon, was he actually after the crèche or not? Seemed to be, and the guild might be as well. The Adeptus was not known to Gryg, Connal, or Dizzy and the party was thinking at some point of going to visit it and maybe talk with the Adeptus.
This Moon might be Granmund, his MO was about the same. Three of the party members had run into him and some other thieves a month or so earlier as the facilitator/wizard was looking for any magic items that he wanted to use against the forced of Grymeria. Right now though, we wanted to get into the locker and learn how to contact this Moon, and to do that we needed to head to McGovern Warehouses and the Drip now.
It was 7:30 when we arrived and eventually Hatring let us in. He then led the party further in to the warehouse to the back end where it would eventually let out behind dock 2. There were 25 lockers beyond here and if we left the locker open and empty, just the key within – then he knew we were done with it. If not, then make sure it was locked – was still paid up till the end of the month. He then locked the door behind us and turned back to the main room – not wanting to see or be a part of whatever went on in here.
We checked out the room – no one was here. The way out was also clear. With a deep breath, we approached the bank of lockers and looked it over. The lockers were each about 6’ tall, 4 feet wide, and maybe 5’ deep. We stuck the key in and turned the lock, opening it up and looked within.
There was an ornate end table, on which sat an open face gear clock, a grey rock with weird striations running across its surface, maybe a foot or so oval, a porcelain looking fancy doll, and a single quill feather. And there was a dwarf in here. He was in poor shape, beaten up, scarred, burns, and missing his left hand. He looked around, asking for Dogger. We were wondering who he was and what the hell he was doing in the locker? Part of the crèche? No, he said his name was Dogsbody Mcguin and Dogger and his crèche were going to help sneak him out of Erylond since he was being sought after by a lynch mob.
Dogsbody? The same one involved in the bar fight? The trial? Streams of Mithril? Paxian and Canaslan? The Scrivener family?
“Ah…fuck.”
Asher looked him over while the 5 items were indeed magical – the table and the doll according to Dizzy, the greater two of the 5 items. In addition, there was a note folded up which we assumed was instructions on how to contact Moon. But Dogsbody? Asher spoke to him for a bit and we were discussing what our next step was – where to go, what to take or leave – and how to get the dwarf with us and safely away without him being seen anywhere in the city – if we were going to take him at all.
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