Episode 46 – The Chamber
| The Assassins |
Azareth - Wizard 3rd Level LE (PC) Creighton - Fighter 3rd Level LE (PC) Craven - Fighter / Rogue 2nd/2nd LE (CE emerging) (PC) Keldirk - Rogue 4th level NE (PC) |
| Locale | In a secret corridor at the rear of the subterranean lair of Ixtha, 'The Butcher Of Del Docks" |
| Date | 18th Planting, 582 CY (Common Year) |
| Time | Late Afternoon. |
Keldirk sat with his back against the wall and recovered from his less than successful attempt to jump the pit. In the meantime Craven had climbed down, walked across the bottom of the cavity and clambered up the other side. His thieving abilities served him well and he was able to find plenty of purchase in the stonework to facilitate his climb. Once the young duelist had pulled himself up he examined the plank but, after a brief inspection, shook his head in disappointment.
| Craven | (calls across to his three companions) The plank is rotted through. You're going to have to climb down to get across. |
| Azareth | You stay there, we'll be across as soon as Keldirk's nose stops bleeding. (suppresses a smirk) |
| Keldirk | (clamping his nostrils shut with his fingers, flashes Azareth a filthy glare) |
Before long the four assassins were on the other side of the pit. Keldirk's swollen nose had finally stopped bleeding and the angry young assassin felt more sheepish than hurt - much to the amusement of the others. The four assassins left the pit behind and continued on down the corridor. After several hundred yards the corridor ended at a pair of large brass doors, badly tarnished but structurally sound. Set at about head-height in the centre of each door was a brass plaque; the left door depicted the face of an angel and the right a creature of demonic disposition. Bolted to the wall on either side of the doors were two iron sconces and each one contained an unlit torch.
| Craven | Torches! |
| Azareth | Just in time, my light spell won't last too much longer. |
| Craven | Creighton, get them down. |
| Creighton | (retrieves the torches) |
| Craven | (slaps his thigh) Damn! |
| Azareth | What is it? |
| Craven | How are we going to light the damn things without flint, steel and a tinderbox? |
| Azareth | (shrugs) |
| Creighton | I'll light them. |
| Azareth | You will? How? |
| Creighton | I'll use my magic. (leans a torch against the wall, fans out his fingers and releases his magical fire) |
| Craven | I'd forgotten that little trick of yours. Well done. (picks up the burning brand and shines the light upon the brass doors) |
| Azareth | (slides the unlit torch into his belt) |
| Creighton | Shall I try the handles? |
| Craven | Let me listen first. (places an ear against the door for a minute before standing back) I can't hear anything. Keldirk come here and check for traps. |
| Keldirk | (in a bad mood) Why don't you check for traps? |
| Craven | I've never been very good at that. So, do as I say, check for traps. |
| Keldirk | Is that an order? |
| Craven | If it has to be. |
| Keldirk | (grumbles and steps forward to examine the doors) |
| Azareth | (pondering the situation) These doors seem out of place. The corridor is run-down, unkempt and rustic yet here are a pair of massive bronze doors. Why? My theory is that we'll find something completely different on the other side. Maybe these doors... |
| Keldirk | (checking the doors for traps) Shut your mouth mage, I'm trying to concentrate. |
| Azareth | Very well. |
| Keldirk | (after a few minutes, turns to face his companions) If there are any traps here they are well disguised. |
| Craven | (nods) Thank you. |
| Keldirk | (steps aside) |
| Craven | Creighton, open the door. (looks at the faces upon the plaques then adds) Try the left door first, the demon on the right looks none too friendly. |
As soon as the young warrior turned the handle the two faces came to life. The bronze eyes flicked open and both mouths opened into wide smiles. Creighton leapt back and tore his sword from its scabbard even as Azareth stepped closer and peered into the demon's mouth.
| Azareth | There's a key inside! |
| Craven | (steps forward) He's right. |
Behind a row of nasty teeth, upon a forked brass tongue, lay an ornate brass key. Suddenly the angelic face spoke - its lips moving with an unnatural, magical fluidity.
| angelic face | It occurs once in every minute, twice in every moment, and never in one hundred thousand years. What is it? |
| Keldirk | (moves back ten feet and crouches low, wary) |
| Craven | A puzzle? |
| Azareth | How odd. |
| Creighton | What's the answer, Az? |
| Azareth | I'm not sure just yet. |
| Craven | Once in every minute? |
| Azareth | And twice in every moment, but never in a hundred thousand years. Hmm. |
| Creighton | A minute happens every minute. (scratches his head) But there aren't two minutes in every moment. Geez, how long is a moment? |
| Craven | I'm not sure. It's not as long as a minute, that's for sure. |
| Azareth | (bends down and begins scribbling in the dust) |
| Craven | Maybe it has something to do with the face being an angel. What do angels do? |
| Creighton | Fly around in the clouds. Stuff like that. |
| Craven | Amongst other things I'm sure. (rubs his chin thoughtfully) Nevertheless, I fail to see a connection. |
| Creighton | (indicates the doors) Look, the faces have gone back to normal. Should I try the handles again? |
| Craven | Not just yet. Azareth, what are you up to? |
| Azareth | Quiet, let me think. (studies his scribbles in the dust for a few moments before rising to his feet) I've got it. |
| Creighton | So what is it? What's the answer? |
| Azareth | The letter 'm'. |
| Creighton | Huh? |
| Azareth | (points to the floor where he wrote the angel's question) There is one 'm' in a minute, two in moment and none in 'one hundred thousand years'. It's quite simple really. (smiles proudly) |
| Craven | Well done. Creighton, try the doors again and when it asks the question answer with: the letter 'm'. Got it? |
| Creighton | Yup. |
| Craven | Azareth, I suggest we stand back just in case. Where's Keldirk? |
| Keldirk | (calls from the shadows some thirty feet back down the corridor) Here. |
| Craven | Okay Creighton, it's all yours. |
Creighton once again tried the handles and again the faces flared to life.
| angelic face | I know a word of letters three, add two and fewer there will be. |
| Creighton | (boldly) The letter 'm'. |
| Craven | No! |
Suddenly a cone of magical frost shot from the angel's mouth hitting Creighton squarely on the chest. The warrior fell back, slipped over and crashed heavily to the stone floor in a shivering heap. Both brass plaques immediately returned to their normal, inanimate state.
| Craven | (rushes to Creighton's aid and begins wiping the frost from the warrior's body) Creighton, are you alright? Speak to me. |
| Creighton | (his teeth clattering) C..c..ccold. Bloody cold. |
| Craven | (hugs Creighton, lending warmth from his own body) |
| Azareth | (steps forward and holds the torch near Creighton) Here, warm yourself. |
| Creighton | (holds his hands out near the torch and tries to regain a sense of feeling in his extremities) |
| Keldirk | (watches on with uncaring eyes) |
Before long Creighton's core temperature returned to normal and the three assassins again regarded the door and the plaques thereon.
| Creighton | I suppose the letter 'm' wasn't the right answer after all. (chuckles despite himself) |
| Azareth | To that question, no. |
| Craven | What was the answer? |
| Creighton | What was the question? I've forgotten. |
| Azareth | I know a word of letters three, add two and fewer there will be. |
| Creighton | That's rubbish! You can't add something to something and make it less than it was before you added it. Can you? (strains to think) |
| Craven | Don't think too hard big fella, you might hurt yourself. (rubs his chin thoughtfully) Add two and fewer there will be. Hmm. |
| Azareth | (again studying the puzzle that he'd written in the dirt) |
| Craven | (snaps his fingers) I get it! The answer is 'few', isn't it? |
| Azareth | (nods) That is the answer I came up with as well. |
| Creighton | (runs the riddle through his mind for a minute) Oh, I understand. (smiles) Shall I try the door? |
| Craven | No, you don't look too well. Step back, I'll try the handles. Azareth, are you ready? It seems we only have a few moments to answer the riddle before the door resets. And if the door asks a new riddle we'll need to think fast. |
| Azareth | I'm ready. Go ahead. |
Craven turned the handles and, once again, the plaques flared to life.
| angelic face | Twice four and twenty blackbirds, sitting in the rain. A fireball killed a quarter of them, how many do remain? |
| Craven | (quickly does the sums in his head) Twenty-one! Twenty-one birds remain. |
Suddenly jets of flame burst from the demon's eyes encasing Craven in a cloak of fire. Craven leapt back screaming and rolled around on the floor to extinguish the searing flames. As Azareth approached he could see at a glance that the young duelist was badly scorched.
| Craven | (rolling around in pain) I was right, damn it. |
| Azareth | (shakes his head, sadly) |
| Keldirk | (moves up to the others) |
| Craven | I gave the correct answer and the stupid plaque still torched me. |
| Keldirk | Obviously you weren't correct enough. |
| Craven | But I was. There were twenty-eight blackbirds in total, a quarter are killed which leaves twenty-one blackbirds. Right? |
| Azareth | I think the answer is seven. |
| Craven | How do you figure that? |
| Keldirk | (laughs) I get it. |
| Craven | (caustically) You think this is funny? |
| Keldirk | I think the answer is funny, yes. Seven blackbirds remain because the other twenty-one flew away. |
| Azareth | (nods) |
| Craven | (thinks about it) That's a trick question. (glares at the inanimate plaques) This is starting to really piss me off. |
| Keldirk | Life is unfair, oh leader. Get over it. (moves back along the corridor some fifteen feet away) |
| Azareth | Stand back. Let me give it a try. (steps forward and turns the handle) |
| angelic face | I am everywhere when you are not near. You think you know me, but am I truly here? You will never have the true me, for if you name me, you break me. What am I? |
| Azareth | (struggles with the riddle for a few seconds before puffing his chest out and declaring the answer) Silence! |
| demonic face | (opens its mouth and rolls out its tongue, presenting the key to Azareth) |
| Azareth | (takes the key) |
| Creighton | (slaps Azareth on the shoulder) Well done, little buddy. |
Azareth inserted the key into the lock and turned it once. The locking mechanism clicked and the doors swung silently open. Immediately the key disappeared from the lock, presumably returning to the demon's maw. Azareth stepped back and allowed Creighton and Craven to enter.
Beyond the doors the assassins discovered a rectangular chamber, roughly thirty feet by fifteen feet. The wall on their left was lined with shelves full with books. A partly rotted velvet curtain hung from a series of hooks and obscured the wall to the right. At the base of the curtain were a pile of wooden crates, sealed shut and marked with an unfamiliar brand. A small wooden table was positioned in the centre of the room, beneath which was a large cloth covering a box of some kind. The long wall across from the doors was made of brick, unremarkable save a partially concealed door set in its centre.
| Creighton | Wow. Look at this place. Look at all these books. |
| Azareth | I wonder... (pushes past the two warriors and begins to examine the bookshelves) |
| Creighton | (lifts up the cloth under the table and exposes a padlocked, iron-bound chest) Well, well, well. What do we have here? (drags the chest out from under the table) |
| Craven | (steps inside and looks around the room then whispers harshly) Hey guys, keep the noise down. (points to the concealed door in the corner of the room) |
| Keldirk | (follows Craven into the room, but keeps watch at the entrance) Craven, check out that door, we don't want any surprises. |
Even as Azareth poured over the multitude of tomes in the shelves and Creighton examined the chest, Craven crept quietly over to the door. After a cursory inspection Craven surmised that he was looking at the reverse side of a secret door. Both the opening mechanism and hinges were exposed on this side and, presumably, hidden on the other. Looking closer Craven discovered a peephole set about waist height in the door. He placed his ear to the door's surface and listened. Hearing nothing he slid the peephole cover aside and looked through.
Agarat Esiassen unfurled the ancient document on the dining table and slid the wrought iron candelabra a little closer. The red candles cast a soft glow; barely illuminating the table and he cursed the poor light along with his failing eyesight. Muttering a few arcane words Agarat brought into existence a magical globe of light, bathing the large subterranean chamber in a gentle radiance. Pushing mundane thoughts aside, the Priest of Incabulos began to study the complex Scripture. Only a few moments had passed when a knock at the door heralded a premature end to his study.
| Agarat | What is it? |
The heavy double doors swung inward and Draghast Lhom, Agarat's manservant, took a tentative step into the room.
| Draghast | (clears his throat) Excuse me, my lord, but you have company. |
| Agarat | I told you I wasn't to be disturbed for an hour! (glances at a massive hourglass sitting upon a nearby sideboard) |
| Draghast | (coughs nervously) Yes. Sorry sir but the gentleman said it was a matter of some urgency. |
| Agarat | The gentleman? Who? |
| Draghast | (coughs and wipes his brow) The man in black, sir. He didn't furnish his name. |
| Agarat | Ahh, excellent. Send him in. |
| Draghast | As you wish. (bows low and slides out of the room) |
Agarat rolled up the parchment, carefully placed it into a bone scrollcase then stood up to greet his guest. A few moments later a figure dressed in resplendent black stepped lightly into the room and closed the doors behind him. He wore a long, black cloak, black doeskin boots and ornate leather armour that seemed to suck the light from the room. As he approached the table the figure swept off his cloak and casually tossed it onto the table in one fluid motion. A rapier and a sabre sheathed in black leather hung comfortably at his side. Everything about the man spoke of confidence, class and catlike grace. His goatee beard was immaculately groomed and his jet-black hair was tied back into a small ponytail. As he reached the table he slid a black, velvet bag across its shiny surface.
| Agarat | Welcome back, Blade. I trust your mission went well. |
| Blade | (indicates the bag) Very well. (chuckles quietly) Very well, indeed. |
| Agarat | (opens the bag and peers inside) It is beautiful. Magnificent. (reaches into the bag and withdraws a full-sized, crystal skull) I had no idea it would be so perfect. Every detail, just as they described it. (tears his eyes from the skull and look at Blade) You have done well. |
| Blade | It was nothing. The fools I hired did all the work. (cleans some dirt from under a fingernail) They're all dead, now. |
| Agarat | (smiles) You have no idea how I have longed for this. |
| Blade | What does it do? |
| Agarat | (laughs, an evil raspy laugh) You will see, in time. |
| Blade | (takes a seat) When is the meeting due to commence? |
| Agarat | (glances at the hourglass) Soon. (replaces the skull in the velvet bag and locks it in the cabinet beneath the sideboard) Why? |
| Blade | I saw the others waiting outside. And I figure that if you were ready we could start now. There are a few things I'd like to do in town. |
| Agarat | (eyes narrow in warning) |
| Blade | (looks on impassively) |
| Agarat | Very well. Summon them. Let the meeting begin. |
| Craven | (moves away from the peephole and gathers the others in close) There is a large room on the other side and two guys just met. The one called Blade gave the other guy a black sack that contained a crystal skull. |
| Azareth | A what? |
| Craven | A crystal skull. |
| Azareth | How big? |
| Craven | Human head size, or thereabouts. Anyway, there's about to be a meeting or something. The Blade guy just left the room to summon the others. |
| Creighton | Who are the others? |
| Craven | I don't know, yet. |
| Azareth | So what do we do? |
| Craven | (shrugs) We keep listening, I suppose. |
| Azareth | (nods) It'll give me a chance to keep searching through these books. |
| Craven | (to Creighton) What is in the chest? |
| Creighton | We don't know, yet. Keldirk and me are still tryin' to open it. |
| Craven | Okay. Just keep the noise down. |
| Keldirk | (shakes his head) No. You open the chest; I can't get the damn lock open. I'll watch and listen. |
| Craven | (a little disappointed) Fair enough. |
| Keldirk | (moves across to the peephole and peers through) |
| Agarat | (waits for those assembled to take their seats) Gentlemen. (glances at his hobgoblin companion) And lady. |
| Kaak'erek | (smiles) |
| Maximillian | (nudges Blade) She aint like no lady I seen. (guffaws with laughter, his flabby jowls wobbling crazily) |
| Blade | (softly) Don't ever touch me again, fat man. |
| Maximillian | (pulls his hand back hastily) |
| Kaak'erek | (glares at Maximillian with undisguised hate) I'm more woman than you are man, you impotent fat pig. |
| Maximillian | Watch your tongue, humanoid bitch, or I will have it removed. |
| Kaak'erek | (snarls, exposing her canines) Why not try to remove it yourself, hmm? |
| Agarat | Enough! Must we have hostility everytime we meet? I didn't call you here to bicker. |
| Reiken | Is this going to take long? I have to be somewhere. |
| Agarat | You are here now and that's where you'll stay, Sarios. Patience is a virtue. |
| Reiken | Bah! |
| Agarat | (clears his throat) Thank you all for attending at such short notice. Our esteemed colleague, Selczek, has requested your presence. I will turn the floor over to him. Mister Gobayuik... |
| Selczek | Greetings. I trust you all fare well? |
| Reiken | You may dispense with the pleasantries, Undertaker. |
| Selczek | (growls) Our experimental zombie was killed just over a month ago. |
| Reiken | Damn! |
| Selczek | (raises a hand and dismisses Reiken's concern) It's death is no consequence; we were able to reclaim its body and together Agarat and I have restored it to a state of unlife. |
| Reiken | But what of its powers? Is it still as smart and strong as it used to be? |
| Selczek | (nods) That is what pleases us. The zombie is as strong and cunning as it ever was, save that we had to replace its fingers with knife blades. |
| Reiken | Replace it's fingers? Why? |
| Selczek | Whoever killed it removed its fingers. |
| Reiken | How odd. |
| Maximillian | Big deal. So a zombie died and now it's alive again. Is that why you dragged me here? Please, tell me you have something important to say. |
| Selczek | (growls) Yes, there is more. We are a little closer to figuring out how to manufacture other zombies of similar power. My latest breakthrough is the identification of another vital ingredient in the process that enables us to create servants with some of the desirable attributes. |
| Maximillian | So, what is the special ingredient half-breed? |
| Selczek | Gromulak. |
| Maximillian | Never heard of it. |
| Selczek | I'm not surprised. When we use gromulak in the animation process the resultant zombies are incredibly strong. |
| Maximillian | What about smart? Does this gromulak stuff make the zombies smart as well? |
| Selczek | No. |
| Maximillian | So you're only half way there, then. (to Agarat) I told you I can get hundreds of orders for smart, strong zombies. Strong zombies just won't do. (pushes back his seat and begins to rise) I'm wasting my time. |
| Agarat | Relax, Mister Hush, rest assured we have made some progress. We have finally located the people who knew Argos when he was alive. |
| Maximillian | (retakes his seat) Who's Argos? |
| Reiken | The name our exceptional zombie had in life. |
| Agarat | Selczek here believes that they will be able to fill in the gaps and provide the required insight to complete the formula. |
| Reiken | So where are these people? Who are these people? |
| Selczek | They are adventurers, mercenaries perhaps. They live in a hostel in the river quarter. I plan to pay them a little visit any time soon. |
| Maximillian | Will you need any help? I can provide the muscle if you require it. |
| Selczek | (shakes his head) I have it all under control. Kaak'erek has kindly offered to lend her assistance. |
| Maximillian | So when can I expect the first batch of these, these extraordinary zombies? |
| Selczek | I hope to have the procedure nailed down by the close of Flocktime. |
| Maximillian | Well see that you do. My contacts are very keen to begin the transactions. |
| Agarat | (stands) Thank you for the update, Mr Gobayuik. Now, people, please follow Kaak'erek to the drawing room, there are other matters I would like to discuss. |
Keldirk watched as the group filed out of the chamber. He watched as the man called Agarat withdrew a key from a chain about his neck, unlocked a cabinet and removed a black velvet bag. Keldirk presumed it was the same sack that Craven described - the sack containing the crystal skull. He watched as Agarat gathered his belongings and left the room, shutting the double doors behind with a thud.
| Keldirk | (stands up and faces his companions) They've gone. |
| Craven | (looks up briefly from his work with the padlock) Did you learn anything interesting? |
| Keldirk | You could say that. |
| Craven | (stops working) So? |
| Keldirk | Those are the guys that dug up Argos and turned him into a giant zombie. |
| Craven | What? Are you sure? |
| Keldirk | (nods) Very sure. They called Argos by name. But that's not the best bit. (pauses) |
| Craven | (waits a few moments) Cut the dramatics, Keldirk. Spit it out! |
| Keldirk | (chuckles) They're coming for us. |
| Craven | (stands up) Us? |
| Creighton | (reflexively places his hand on his pommel) Well they'll be in for a rude shock when they find us. |
| Keldirk | They've already found us. They know we're staying at a hostel in the River Quarter so we can expect a visit anytime. |
| Craven | Why us? What the hell do they want with us? |
| Keldirk | I'm not exactly sure. From what I made of the conversation, they think that we have some information that will allow them to manufacture other zombies, zombies just as powerful as the Argos- Zombie. I think they've got a zombie trade going on and they are trying to duplicate their success with Argos' corpse. |
| Azareth | (looks up from a book) I have to ask, do you have any information? |
| Keldirk | Not that I can think of, I never really got along with Argos. (looks at Craven) But you did. Do you know what they're after? |
| Craven | No idea. (shakes his head) The only thing I can think of that was strange about Argos was that he was a Trill. |
| Azareth | That could be it. Trills aren't exactly common and maybe the magics involved in being a Trill's host effected the zombie animation process in some way. |
| Creighton | So what do we do? Do we tell them what we know to get them off our backs? |
| Keldirk | Screw that! We get them before they get us. |
| Creighton | Suits me. Who are they, then? |
| Keldirk | I recognized two of them. |
| Craven | Who are they? |
| Keldirk | One of them was the Undertaker, I forget his name. |
| Craven | Slek Gobayik. No, no, that's not it. (clicks his fingers as he recalls the name) Selczek Gobayuik. And, if my memory serves me correct, he is the Guildmaster of the Embalmers and Gravediggers Guild. |
| Keldirk | (nods) Yep, that's him. (explains to Creighton and Azareth) Selczek was the half-orc mortician who examined Argos when he died. |
| Craven | You said you recognised two people, who was the other one? |
| Keldirk | The mage would recognise her, too. |
| Azareth | (baffled) I would? |
| Keldirk | Remember that hobgoblin spell caster that attacked us in the graveyard? |
| Azareth | Yes. |
| Keldirk | Well, she was there too. I recognised the name: Kaak'erek. |
| Azareth | It seems we've unwittingly got involved with a group of zombie-runners. |
| Craven | How do you know that? |
| Azareth | (indicates the books) Those books are cargo ledgers, full of shipment details, dates, times so on and so forth. What they don't say is what the cargo is, but it's my guess that the cargo is zombies. Whoever wrote down the transactions took great care to keep the details anonymous. I didn't see one name or address, all the suppliers and customers are numbers. And the key to it all, I suppose, would be a master ledger that cross-references the numbers with names and addresses. |
| Craven | I take it you didn't find the master-ledger? |
| Azareth | No. |
| Creighton | Perhaps it's in the chest. |
| Craven | We'll check that in a minute. (looks to Keldirk) Anything else? |
| Keldirk | No, that's all really. But, for what it's worth, I agree with the mage. They were definitely talking about zombie shipments. |
| Azareth | So what have we learned? We know that there's a group who wants to question us. We also know that that they dig up corpses, animate them and sell them around the Flanaess. So it's a safe bet that they're not morally constrained. Chances are when they come for us they won't be overly polite. And if the hobgoblin recognizes Keldirk or me then violence will undoubtedly ensue. The question is; what do we do about them? |
| Craven | Nothing right now we can discuss our course of action back in town. This place is starting to give me the creeps. The longer we are here the more chance we have of getting discovered. Right now they don't know we're onto them and I think we should keep it that way. So, let's get out of here. |
| Creighton | Good thinking. |
| Keldirk | I'll hang back here a moment and make sure we don't get followed. Mage, give me the unlit torch. (takes the unlit torch and lights it) |
| Craven | Okay, we'll wait for you back in the Lizard-man's cave. (turns his back to walk out but stops and approaches Keldirk) Don't do anything stupid. We'll take care of this matter later. |
| Keldirk | Yeah, yeah. Settle. |
As soon as the others' footsteps had faded, Keldirk bundled the ledgers into a large pile and set them alight. He figured that burning the ledgers would piss Agarat off without letting him know that they were onto him. As Keldirk walked down the tunnel to the lizard-man lair he smiled as he imagined the look on Agarat's face when he found nothing but a pile of ash. It wasn't until he met up with the others that he remembered that they hadn't opened the chest.
| Normal Text | Character's words or descriptive text if part of a paragraph |
| Italic Text | Character's thoughts or actions if surrounded by parenthesis |
| Bold Text | Character is shouting. |