As the wagon rolls towards the Rivergate district, the ruby armed mage wipers instructions. There will be an attack and the wagon will be tipped over – in the chaos and confusion of the fighting, the prisoners will escape and head towards a manor house from which one of the escaped entities emerged. There they are to determine how the key they stole may be put to use. House Vladaam is bound to start wondering what they were doing in the basement – but they may be busy trying to explain why they have a secret prison down there. In any case, there is bound to be a short period of time where the group will be off everyone’s radar. Jedica suggests they take full advantage of it.
The attack comes and the ‘cultists’ tussle with the guards. Flashy magic is used and the sounds of the battle echo through the streets. The group departs with haste and makes their way back to the underground passages. It seems that there have been interested parties in the area, as there are signs of a struggle – fresh blood splatter on the walls and door frame. plus a swath of burnt shrubbery indicates that there were numerous foes fighting it out in the not too distant past. They have to burn a day in the umber hulk tunnels to heal and rest, given their prolonged exertions in the Vladaam manor.
They emerge and return to the locked door. Along the way it becomes clear that the church has come to haul off their fallen paladin – and maybe the lamia and minotaur bodies as well – or maybe those were reclaimed by cultists…in any case, the secret is out.
Making their way to the door, the hand they purloined springs into action and undoes the combination lock, allowing them access to the space beyond. They enter a maze of passages and stairs. Each staircase leads to a landing that is trapped, but passages continue beyond, so there must be a way to bypass the traps. One set of stairs leads to a landing and beyond it a green hag stands and examines the air in front of it – apparently pressing against an invisible wall that divides the room. The party battles the creature and manages to defeat it, despite being savaged by its multiple lightning bolts that it cast from a wand that it carries.
The invisible curtain is cool, but they can just make out a secret door that lies beyond it – so there is probably more access to be had from elsewhere. They scope out a strange room with rotating metal plates that give access to trapped levels in the ceiling, see a workshop full of mechanical scorpions and then trigger an encounter with a massive scorpion automaton. As they battle it, the smaller mechanical scorpions come to join the fight – but the group triumphs. The big scorpion guards a strange metal door that is sealed with metal – reminiscent of the door they used to hand to bypass. Alas – no combination locks are evident and they move on.
They investigate more hallways and find ways to bypass the trapped floors with boots of jumping. They locate and rescue a trapped mechanical man who thanks them profusely and lets slip that it is the maintenance person for the region. Further investigation leads to a short passage that gets them to the opposite side of the translucent curtain, but a giant stone plug blocks their access. Backtracking for the moment while they while away the hours lead to an unfortunate circumstance in which Digin is swept into a deep pit and has several hundred pounds of stone dropped atop him. His excavation nets them some additional loot, but now they are down a fighter…the fighter, in fact.
The following day Bayga repairs the mechanical man’s crushed leg and is rewarded with the secret to pulling the levers correctly. This raises the colossal stone plug and reveals a hallway with additional doors – locked and soldered shut. This is getting annoying. Who knows what great riches lie beyond the doors?
Pressing onward leads them to a room guarded by a will-o-wisp. Their first encounter forces them to retreat and rest for another day…or three. Their lead is slipping away and after defeating the creature, they see another section of halls awaiting their perusal.
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