Agents of the Brelish Crown IC

[Ionbound]

Alanna nods to Weren, replying, "Don't see why not." She follows Weren along on the rest of his day, eventually meeting Sorlanda. When Sorlanda asks who she is, Alanna shrugs and replies, "Just a paid escort. You can call me Alanna. There was some trouble in town, so...Here I am."

[GuyFawkes]

Alestair Deskane

Spoiler

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"You're welcome," Thot replied with a one-sided smile, before turning serious. "Course, you ain't expectin' me to cover for all your asses by myself now, are you?"

Like I'm heading in there by myself. If a whole squad of Shaarat'khesh is getting overwhelmed, what chance do I have?

"My only shot at this is catching up to the Dhakaani before they get overrun. And there's no telling if they'll be hostile after. I'll need all the help you can give," the dark-skinned young man spoke. Thot was running scenarios in his head. All he needed was to confirm what the Shaarat'khesh were after. He could do that after they're dead, but getting it from them was better.

"Whatever your goal is, you're not achieving anything if you're dead."

He heard a familiar voice in his head, like he was being reprimanded. This was something his master has drilled to him over and over.

That's right. We're spies. Not soldiers.

"What's your protocol for a breach?" Thot asked the foreman as he retrieved his bow and repositioned his quiver.

[Wiz]

Soranda nods, "It's good that you are protecting Provost Weren." The artificer looks at the Provost, "What is this violence that is going on?"

[In4Dimensions]

Iridae saw the foreman and ran up to him, but then she noticed that he was speaking to someone else, an odd-looking. . . something. She thought it looked like a changeling, but she wasn’t sure. Iridae politely waited until the two had finished their conversation.

[Obscuraphile]

Spoiler: Alanna, Soranda, & Clamp

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The provost quickly explains to Soranda what happened as he left Sannid's after having lunch with Lady Thrace. He does so as he goes inside and inquires about his missing bag. When the dwarf from earlier comes to try and remove Soranda again he is forced to retreat quickly under Larus' withering rhetoric. The kindly old man is utterly appalled by the steward's treatment of Soranda. Meanwhile Alanna's visible armament makes several guests nervous. While the odd trio wait in the restaurant the Provost is remarkably loose lipped quickly spilling all the beans about Soranda's work to Alanna as he tells his half-giant pupil everything he knows about his rescuer, which is admittedly a lot less.

After a brief search the restaurant staff insist that they cannot find Larus' bag and that he did not leave it in Sannid's after his meal. Back out on the skyway, Larus begins to panic. "My bag, my bag! It had all of my current research! It had Lady Thrace's heirloom! We must find it!" Without waiting for counsel Larus begins frantically retracing his steps from the afternoon. As he reaches the intersection where he was attacked by Cutter an even larger and more imposing warforged appears from a nearby alley

Spoiler: Iridae & Alestair

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The dwarf snorts in disbelief. "What's my protocol? I don't have a bloody protocol for when a foreign gang of baby-eaters blasts a hole in one of my tunnels and kicks a whole nest of Kython in the teeth!" he sputters. Several of the nearby goblins grumble at his words and more than one tightens their grip on a heavy tool. The foreman takes a breath and seems to collect himself. Turning to one of the human workers nearby he begins to issue orders. "Barricade the tunnel, issue crossbows from the stores. I'll see if we can get funding for a proper band of exterminators. And the rest of you, get back in those tunnels. We won't see slag if this place doesn't keep operational."

Spoiler: Katriel

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The two women huddle together into a low space on one of the shelves. Jerrie is towards the back, huddled over with her fist pressed tightly over her mouth. Katriel can still see the aisle with one eye. The footsteps approach slowly, almost as if the person is matching in half time. Eventually they arrive at the row where the two theives are hiding.

The figure in the dark does indeed turn as if on parade. They begin to slowly proceed down the line. The leather of their clothing creaks almost deafeningly in the silence. No, not just their clothing but their limbs as well. The guard must be positively ancient for their bones and joints to be so stiff. Then Katriel realizes something. They don't have a light. This elderly person is parade marching around in a dark warehouse without so much as a candle.

Both women freeze solid as the guard passes by, his heavy steps reverberating through the floor. Katriel can't help but shift slightly and silently to follow his movement in the blackness. As he passes closer to the grimy windows she begins to make out faint lines. A leather jerkin, full gloves, long pants, solid boots, but the most interesting article has to be his helmet. Polished so that it glints even in the faint light, Kat can see, as the man turns to leave, that it is very distinctive. An open sallet design but with a face guard that only covered the left side. The guard's age is again apparent, as only someone very old could have a face so thin as to not show on the right beneath the shadows of that helm.

[Thundercracker]

Katriel waits until the footsteps fade away before she leaned close to Jerrie.

“Let’s grab the stuff and get the hell out of here,” she said, “something was off about that guard.”

Quietly she moved out of the shelf and made her way back to the crate with the untraceable goods in it.

[GuyFawkes]

Alestair Deskane

Of course not. You can barely keep yourself sober at work.

Thot smiled.

"5 galifars a head. That's your bloody protocol. And I'll take that one," he pointed at one goblin who he saw was talking about the Dhaakani. "You! Take me to where you saw those Dhaakani. Let's go!" he barked before sprinting for the tunnel.

[Ionbound]

Alanna nods at Larus's panic, understanding the feeling of having lost something important and not quite knowing where it is. She stands guard as he searches, retracing his steps, and when the Warforged appears, her glaive is almost immediately in her hands, pointing at him as she asks, "Friend or foe?"

[Obscuraphile]

Spoiler: Katriel

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The exit from the warehouse goes about as smoothly as the break in. Kat and a white faced, wide eyed Jerrie take their small collection of spoils and climb out the window apparently unseen. A little bit later on, and a few streets away, Jerrie doubles over panting from their flight. "Okay, no more. I'm definitely an after the fact girl," she proclaims. "What in the Five Nations even was that back there. The guard just stomped on by and kept going."

Spoiler: Alestair

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The goblin swallows hard but does as Thot commands, leading him cautiously back into the deserted tunnel while his compatriots construct a makeshift barricade at the entrance. The whole place is offputtingly quiet, especially after the noise of the foundry. About a thousand feet down the shaft they discover their first body. A dwarf, who despite his kind's fabled resistance to poisons, lies on his back with multiple oozing puncture wounds in his shirt and a trail of foam leaking from the corner of his mouth.

A little ways further on is another body. Then a third. And then they come to the breach. There is a hole, just large enough for a man to touch both sides all the way around, and it opens onto a dark chamber beyond. Scattered about are the bodies of half a dozen kython broodlings along with three vanquished Dhaakani warriors

[Thundercracker]

Katriel

“Pretty sure, it was a,” Kat said between gulps of air, “skeleton, or zombie, or something.”
She held up a finger as she bent over and caught her breath.

“That was too close, what do you think is going on?” she asked, “there was a lot more than papers in there.”

Spoiler

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edit: knowledge to have an idea what the guard was or could be, 8 or 9(local or dungeoneering is 9, other creature knowledges are 8).

[GuyFawkes]

Alestair Deskane

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Thot stopped at the sight of the dead Kythons, signalling for the goblin to do the same. He wasn't sure those creatures we're indeed Kythons since he's never seen one, but they certainly match the descriptions. If he weren't sure about them, he was pretty damn sure what a goblin looked like, dead or alive.

One. Two. Three.

If the reports were correct, there should be two left of their crew. But to fell this many Kythons, Thot pretty much had an estimate of their fighting prowess now. Their reputations are well warranted, he thought. Whatever they were going after, whoever sent them, this was getting more troublesome for Thot.

"You can go back now. Don't do anythin' crazy. I'm sure you're good with keeping out of sight. Do that," he whispered to his goblin guide.

He waited for the goblin to be out of sight before moving closer towards the breach. Slowly, he withdrew and arrow and nocked it as he managed his way past the bodies on the ground. He listened for any kind of activity, pressing his back against the wall before peeking inside into the tunnel.

Spoiler

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Stealth: +5
Perception: +7

[fallensavior]

"Greetings."

Clamp gives an oddly formal bow from the waist.

"Alanna, I presume."

Then he tilts his head to one side.

"And Soranda?" (with a tone of surprise.)

"A Mister F sent me. He said you would need help. Who is the old man?

Clamp says the letter F like it is the most important letter in the alphabet.

[Wiz]

Soranda looks Clamp up and down, "I see... this is Provost Weren of the university. He was confirring with someone and his bag was stolen." The half-giant looks at the woman with the glaive, nodding as she realizes she must also work for the Dark Lanterns.

[Obscuraphile]

Spoiler: Katriel

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Spoiler: Knowledge

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The people of Karrnath know death like few others on the continent. Theirs were some of the heaviest casualties during the last war. This combined with their heritage and military traditions led to the expansion of a certain sector of Karrnathi society during the war. Necromancy never had its usual stigmas in Karrnath and when the bodies of the slain were all that came home from the battlefields these too were pressed into service. In ages past only the greatest warriors were conducted into the risen legion, but the demands of war lowered entry requirements.

It is likely that the guard in the warehouse was a Karrnathi Skeleton. A body raised with more than a mere animating force but less than a soul. Even more concerning, Katriel recognized the half face mask on the creature's helmet as a device belonging to a group known as the Order of the Emerald Claw. Before, and during, the war they were the fanatical shock troops of Karrnath, but they have since been outlawed and driven underground. These days they operate as an insurgent faction, both within and outside of Karrnath, agitating for a resumption of the war.

"Well, I guess if you're smuggling a little, it's not so hard to smuggle a little more..." Even Jerrie doesn't seem convinced by this argument. "But, our information was solid! Why would anybody want to spin us a story about the warehouse. It's not like they have anything to gain, and it's not like even all that loot could buy off the whole ward!" Pausing to glance around a bit nervously Jerrie continues. "Okay, we shouldn't be standing around like this. Walk and talk. Let's head back to my place."

Spoiler: Alestair

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OoC: I do see your post, but ID4 did declare a conflict so I'm going to let things ride for a bit so that they have a chance to jump back in here. Also, I was kinda hoping that the three dead bodies would make you think call for backup rather than let's check it out alone. If you keep going forward there's a very good chance you will die.

With his knowledge skills Thot knows that Kython come in stages getting progressively more dangerous as they age, that all stages can sense their prey without need for sight, and that the young ones have particularly nasty venom.

Spoiler: Alanna, Clamp, & Soranda

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Provost Weren slowly lowers his hands and looks between Alanna, Clamp, and Soranda several times. "Wait, you three... you all know each other? Soranda, what have you gotten yourself into?"

Overhead the sky has darkened to full night and the rains begin to pick up. A stiff breeze whistles through the towers as the four figures stand in the light of one of Sharn's hundreds of everbright lanterns.

[Thundercracker]

Katriel

“Okay,” Kat replied.

On the way she filled Jerrie in on what she knew, managing to finish just as they arrived.

“We’re lucky we got out of there, they’re fanatics, and deadly,” she said, “okay, let’s see what we’ve got.”

[fallensavior]

"Wait, you three... you all know each other? Soranda, what have you gotten yourself into?"

Clamp walks slowly but steadily forward while he speaks, attempting to act as non-threatening as his imposing stature allows, until the group of four is standing approximately equidistant apart.

"Not as such. I simply deduced their identities from our current location and the descriptions I was given. I was instructed to offer assistance with...whatever it is that you two are working on. There are others as well, I believe that we are supposed to make contact with them too."

With this, Clamp pulls out the journal and checks the locations for Alestair, Iridae, and Katriel.

[Wiz]

Provost Weren slowly lowers his hands and looks between Alanna, Clamp, and Soranda several times. "Wait, you three... you all know each other? Soranda, what have you gotten yourself into?"

Overhead the sky has darkened to full night and the rains begin to pick up. A stiff breeze whistles through the towers as the four figures stand in the light of one of Sharn's hundreds of everbright lanterns.[/SPOILER]

Soranda blinks, "I came to check on you... how it knew I would be here, I've no idea." Soranda looks at the Provost, "Only your secretary knew I was coming here... Sir... did... you get me involved in something?"

[ooc: Bluff is +7]

[In4Dimensions]

Iridae came running up to Alestair and the foreman, out of breath. “What’d I miss? I was just—” She broke off as she saw the bodies. “More Kython trouble? I can help with that” she pants, catching her breath.

[fallensavior]

how it knew I would be here, I've no idea.

Clamp looks over his shoulder for a split second.

"...Ah, yes. The book. I am not sure exactly how it functions either."

Spoiler: Skills (if needed)

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Perception +6
Sense Motive (On Weren) +6 (I should have called for this last post, but I forgot.)

[Ionbound]

Alanna slowly lowers her weapon as Sorlanda and Clamp discuss, getting quickly lost and eventually interjecting, "Can someone please explain to me what in the Host's name is happening? I'm officially lost. What's this about a book?"

[Obscuraphile]

Spoiler: Katriel

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Back in Jerrie's small apartment the two thieves lay their score out on the table, six Sivis notarized blanks and three uncut gemstones. "So, the gems are going to take some time and some coin for us to get the most out of them," Jerrie says peering at them closely. "But, I really think they're the best part of the haul. The papers we can turn into gold a lot quicker and more easily, but they are traceable, in a sense."

Glancing up at Kat's face Jerrie presses on quickly, "Not to us exactly! See this mark," Jerrie holds up the page and taps the embossed symbol, "It's unique, only one House Sivis heir uses this mark. So, we'll have to be a little careful how we unload the papers, if what you told me about these guys is true." Jerrie grimaces. "I really don't want a visit from any skeletons..."

Spoiler: Rewards

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100 XP and 5 gold per page that you want sell, this will be assumed to take place shortly. The gems are going to take longer to move.

Spoiler: Alestair & Iridae

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A chorus of hissing and clattering echoes out of the hole in the wall. The room immediately through the hole is one of wrought stone, broken and shifted by the passing of ages beneath the weight of the city above but still beautiful in places. The chamber is large, fading out of sight, and held up by pillars carved from the natural stone of Sharn's foundations to support a vaulted ceiling. Some sort of altar lies in the center of the room just at the limits of Iridae's night eyes.

As the pair peers into the breach one of the goblins stirs with a gasp, not quite finished yet. "Duyushchiy..." he calls weakly in his native tongue as his eyes stare sightlessly at the ceiling of the tunnel. Iridae does not recognize this one as the female leader or her apparent mate, one of the others of that company then. The goblin repeats his call, his voice growing weaker. His hand searches feebly at his side passing over the stone. A bow lies nearby with one of its limbs split to the point that it would be outright dangerous to the user if it were drawn. A quick look around shows that several of the Kython are peppered with dinosaur-feathered arrows. More arrows are spilled over the ground near the dying goblin and an empty quiver is tied to his belt. "Polozhi menya na pokoy s kostyami nashikh proizvoditeley, Duyushchiy."

The goblin tries and fails to manipulate a toggle on the pouch slung over his shoulder. A kython barb has passed through the strap and pinned it to his ribs. His voice takes on a pleading tone as he struggles with the bag, bringing his questing hand over to help and still failing to open it. "Khronika Ne. Pozvolyayte nashey istorii tak zakonchit'sya."

Spoiler: Alanna, Clamp, & Soranda

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Spoiler: Sense Motive

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Provost Larus Weren seems to be exactly as he appears, an elderly scholar with Morgrave University who is well out of his depth.

"I came to check on you... how it knew I would be here, I've no idea." Soranda looks at the Provost, "Only your secretary knew I was coming here... Sir... did... you get me involved in something?"

"Me?" Provost Weren asks aghast. "Certainly not!... Well except for that thing that I did get you involved in but nothing else for sure!"

At Clamp and Alanna's discussion of a book provost Weren claps a hand to his forehead and seems to forget all about his three companions. "Oh dear, oh my! The book, the book! Lady Thrace's book! How ever will I explain that I've lost it!" The old man begins to cast about even more wildly. "I know I had my bag with me! A cut purse then! But when? And why? And how could they have known!?" The provost grows pale and leans heavily against the skyway railing, tipping his head upward to catch the falling rain on his face. "Oh I'll be a laughing stock. A long and prolific career with such an ignominious end. Foiled by a common criminal!"

Spoiler: Aran's (Mr. F's) Book

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If Clamp shows Alanna and Soranda the book it contains physical description and pencil drawings of each of the six characters as well as a brief passage covering their skills and abilities along with a details about their connections and residences. There is also a line that simply gives a location. Alanna, Clamp, and Soranda's entries all show "Platinum Heights" at the moment while Alestair and Iridae's entries say "The Cogs" and Katriel's entry says "Cogsgate"

The book is obviously magical but nobody present is quite sure how it functions.

[Thundercracker]

Katriel

“Do you have a scroll case? I’d like to keep one,” Katriel said, “you can take it out of my share.”

Spoiler

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im assuming this is something the dark lanterns would want to know about

“Be careful selling those,” Katriel said, putting the case at the bottom of her old school backpack, “I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

Assuming Jerrie has no objections, Katriel will return in a roundabout way to her family’s home and drop off the 25 gold from the five sold pages.

[Wiz]

Spoiler: Alanna, Clamp, & Soranda

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"Me?" Provost Weren asks aghast. "Certainly not!... Well except for that thing that I did get you involved in but nothing else for sure!"

At Clamp and Alanna's discussion of a book provost Weren claps a hand to his forehead and seems to forget all about his three companions. "Oh dear, oh my! The book, the book! Lady Thrace's book! How ever will I explain that I've lost it!" The old man begins to cast about even more wildly. "I know I had my bag with me! A cut purse then! But when? And why? And how could they have known!?" The provost grows pale and leans heavily against the skyway railing, tipping his head upward to catch the falling rain on his face. "Oh I'll be a laughing stock. A long and prolific career with such an ignominious end. Foiled by a common criminal!"

Soranda pats the provost comfortingly on the shoulder, "When was the last time you can remember being certain you had the book on you, and what happened shortly after that?"

[fallensavior]

"I must apologize. It seems I have neglected to introduce myself."

Clamp straightens his shirt, making his Dark Lantern pin stand out long enough for Alanna and Soranda to notice it.

"My name is Clamp. Look, I am in the book as well."

[Obscuraphile]

Spoiler: Katriel

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Jerrie produces a thin tube with a screw cap on one end. Yeah, sure. But you be careful too, Kat. If the guard catches you with that it'll be another strike." Katriel's friend has a curious expression on her face but seems to have decided that she really doesn't want any more to do with the whole situation. The two women say their goodbyes and Katriel heads home, leaving a note for Aran at their prearranged dead drop.

---

The next day at work a particularly grubby customer with clothes that are absolutely filthy makes his way into the shop and asks for Katriel by name. The man's face is covered in dirt and grime and Kat can see several open sores underneath it all. The voice however is Aran's and though they seem to be conversing about how much it will cost him to get a proper cleaning, with an extra surcharge since his clothes won't be able to share a tub with anyone else's, the conversation is really about Katriel's adventure last night and her spoils.

Aran seems very concerned, in that he doesn't crack a single inappropriate joke. "Order of the Emerald Claw, possibly even the Blood of Vol, operating in the city, smuggling clean papers... YOU WANT HOW MANY SOVEREIGNS?! NO NO NO, THAT WON'T DO, LASS... I think this one might be beyond your capabilities. You've done good here, but now I'll take over directly, these people are spies and killers, you're not ready to deal with their likes, yet... HERE, START WITH MY HAT! I WILL BE BACK TO SEE THE RESULTS IN A WEEK!" Aran lays three shiny golden galifars and a few dull green and brown crowns on the counter. As he passes Katriel the filthy hat he slips the scroll case up his sleeve.

The owner comes over and collects the dirty coppers as the strange customer shuffles out the door. Katriel has already palmed the galifars to avoid suspicion. "An odd duck," she says looking at his hat with a wrinkled nose. "It might be better to burn that thing and buy him a new one."

Spoiler: Alanna, Clamp, & Soranda

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"Well, Lady Thrace gave it to me at lunch. She said that she believed it would be necessary to access the foundry if you were successful in locating it. Since my bag wasn't at Sannid's, I'm sure I had it with me when I left the restaurant. I was walking through the crowd and then that horrid warforged-" Larus breaks off and looks quickly up at Clamp with a gulp, "No offense to present company intended, Master Clamp!" His voice is squeaky and his words are rushed. "But, I was attacked, and I was so flustered in the aftermath, but I don't remember having my bag when the guards led us off to their station."

Spoiler: Alanna

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Larus' account reminds you of something else that disappeared right as Cutter made her move. Well more accurately someone else. The small warforged that was her companion. It faded into the crowd just before everything got chaotic.

[Ionbound]

Spoiler: Alanna

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Alanna frowns and replies to the Provost, "I have a suspicion...I think the attack was part of a coordinated effort to take your book. Which, upside, means you're probably safe and in no longer need of protection, but...It also means we have to go to work."

[fallensavior]

Spoiler: Alanna

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Alanna frowns and replies to the Provost, "I have a suspicion...I think the attack was part of a coordinated effort to take your book. Which, upside, means you're probably safe and in no longer need of protection, but...It also means we have to go to work."

"A planned heist? So it would be logical to assume that the perpetrators learned of the time and place the provost would acquire the book in advance."

[Wiz]

Soranda looks thoughtful, "This is troubling... warforged are stealing documents to get into an ancient private workshop of House Cannith? I wonder if there is something there that would be particularly valuable to them... some kind of ancient docent or a schema related to warforged construction? The background information they would need to conduct such a theft and carry out this planned acquisition suggests an organized group."

[In4Dimensions]

Iridae rushed over to the injured goblin. She didn’t attempt to speak to him, as she doubted he understood Common, especially given that he couldn’t speak it. She reached over and opened the bag, allowing the goblin access to whatever he needed so badly.

[Obscuraphile]

Spoiler: Alanna, Clamp, & Soranda

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"Which, upside, means you're probably safe and in no longer need of protection"

Provost Weren pales slightly at Alanna's comment. "P-probably," he echoes with a nod and a thin smile. "All the same, however, might I impose upon you k-kind folk to escort me back to the college grounds? I would feel much safer there. That warforged's sword seemed sharp enough to do the job even if that wasn't its goal..." Larus rubs his throat in a distracted and vaguely horrified fashion.

"I wonder if there is something there that would be particularly valuable to them... some kind of ancient docent or a schema related to warforged construction?"

Soranda's comments seem to bring the old scholar back to the moment. "Lady Thrace was remarkably cage about what exactly the heirloom might be," he acknowledges. "She would only say it was of great sentimental value to the house in general and to Baroness Jorlanna in particular."

Spoiler: Alestair & Iridae

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With Iridae's help the goblin opens the satchel and draws out a rather large leather bound tome. This he feebly presses into Iridae's arms with a soft sigh of, "Duyushchiy..." and then his hand falls limp and his spirit passes, but there is a slight contented smile on his lips.

The book is held shut with a toggle of its own. The leather strap it fits through, as well as the material, possibly bone, that it is made out of are both covered in ornamentation. The leather is embossed with symbols on both the inside and the outside of the loop, and the toggle is carved with swirling, almost surreal designs. Inside the book is filled with pages upon pages of beautiful calligraphy. The script is one Iridae can't read, likely goblin. The paragraphs are broken every so often by a single line with maybe a dozen characters. The same set of characters repeat at the beginning of these breaks for several pages before changing. This is likely the dead goblin's journal, but why it was so important that he pass it on before his death is still a mystery to Iridae.

The sounds emanating from the breach are growing louder. It seems that a second wave of kython is eminent, and even more horrifying is a soft, but growing buzz. Apparently no one told the kython that they do not possess a flying form. Alestair begins to detect movement in the shadows beyond the breach. Lots of movement.