Episode 3: Sneaking about gets risky

When last we left this group we had been forced by circumstance to split the party. Luna, Quinn, and Dancing Wind proceeded onward to the auction while Luthis and Morlech stay in the tavern. The auction three are trying to gather information, which is our mission, while the tavern duo go a different route. Let's pick up there.

Luthis had started a bit of a bar brawl while Morlech attempted to set the bar on fire. Just as the bar tender shouted at Morlech, the bar tender got clobbered by a bar stool and fell down unconscious. While the fight is ongoing Morlech and Luthis headed indirectly towards the guarded door and noting how the fight is handled. Unfortunately, the door guards did not budge.

Fortunately, however, another door opens and a pair of trolls come stomping in with lines of "ay yous stop that" and clobbering/tossing combatants as necessary till the fight stopped. Luthis and Morlech quickly ducked through the door the trolls came out of without being noticed, we hope.

They find themselves in a service hallway. Adventuring down a little ways they find what appears to be a break room for the staff. So they duck in there and Luthis steals a guard uniform.

Continuing down the hall they realize someone was coming, so Luthis opens another door and they both duck in there. This room turns out to be a cleaning supply/storage closet.

Fortunately for them, they're safe for the moment. Unfortunately for them, they have only one guard uniform. And Morlech isn't known for his mimicking skills anyways. So they concoct the plan for Luthis to become a guard with the uniform and his ability to mimic. And Morlech actually used his druidic wildshape for once - to become a fly. Seriously.

Continuing down the hall like they belong there they spiral down a level and find a door. So like any good fly does, Morlech flies under the door to scout a little. This is when they realize the communication link the party had going had dropped and Morlech can't talk in this form. So they concoct a buzz once for yes twice for no scenario. Morlech buzzed once, so Luthis unlocks the door and goes through. They find a hallway and explore it a bit but return to the original hallway and continue down the spiral.

There they found another door, and Morlech returned to Luthis bzzing like mad. Luckily for them both, Luthis realized that this meant alarm, so he hid quickly. And let's face it, flies aren't given much thought in most environments.

After the cause for alarm had passed Luthis and his fly friend proceed to enter the area they had come from. In here they found the warehouse. Rows of boxes and crates, and off in the distance cages with exotic creatures. Looking about a bit more - flies really are good for unnoticed scouts - they find a guard shack with an old timer guard sound asleep, feet up on desk. Plus keys galore.

So Morlech returns to Luthis and Bzzz once, and somehow as Luthis was formulating a plan he managed to knock over something, catching the attention of the other guards playing cards. One terse exchange later where Luthis made it sound like he was just a clumsy new guard sent to mop the other guards wandered off making jokes.

After they were back engrossed in wasting time Luthis snuck in to the guard shack, assessed the situation, and discovered that while there were keys for everything strewn about the master keys were on sleeping guard's belt. So he added a sleep spell on top of the guard's natural sleep and proceeds to slit the belt leather and procure the keys.

While the dynamic duo was doing all that, the other three were exploring the public facing area. These three had realized that the real wheeling and dealing was done in the upper floor box seats and from mingling, not the auctioneer down on the stadium floor.

Quinn has made quite the friend in Horace and has spent quite a bit of time egging him on to get as much info out of him as he can, but a drunk down on his luck fellow can only get you so far.

After a hushed conversation between the three they formulated a plan. So Luna pulled herself to her full 5'9 height and pulled out the coldest rudest tone of voice she can ... and shoved Dancing Wind "Go find me what I require". This caught the attention of some folk, as expected.

So Dancing Wind went off to butter up the guards at the stairs to the 2nd floor, to find out how he can procure the invite upstairs for "his employer". Now, one thing you have to understand is he's a blue siamese humanoid. Sometimes it's kinda hard to take him seriously. But he can be quite charming, and managed to bribe the guard into providing some useful information. There's a token one can use, or a special type of invite.

While Dancing Wind was talking up the guards and Quinn was talking up Horace, Luna used the time to concentrate on observing the 2nd floor guests. After a few minutes she found something she had expected to see and tucked that away as Dancing Wind returned to the observation deck Luna had been hanging out in explaining all he had discovered while rummaging in his pockets for something. After explaining to Luna that he was looking for a coin about this size/weight but doesn't seem to have one, she slips one out of her pocket and hands it to him. He then puts a minor illusion on the coin making it look like the token. Which might work.

So Luna decides to get the attention of the 2nd floor box seat she had noticed, by setting off some dark purple dancing lights. This did garner some attention but it had the intended effect of catching the attention of the targeted box seat. Once Luna caught the guard's eye she dismissed the dancing lights and used military hand signals for "friend" and "pass", hoping they would understand.

She then told Dancing Wind that we should get Quinn back with us as there were people coming to talk to us. So that was done and Dancing Wind recast the message spell that allows us to talk in our minds. Good timing too because one of the venue's lackeys came up to Luna's elbow at that point "ahem yes miss some of our guests on the 2nd floor wish to speak with you".

Luna, still keeping in the haughty patron persona, responds with "Yes, of course, my staff goes with me" and stares the lackey down. "yes yes, of course" and he proceeds to lead us past the guards and up to the 2nd floor.

While following the lackey up the stairs and around to the targeted box seat Luna sends out some helpful tips through the mind link. "We are about to go negotiate with some Drow. Please do follow my lead."

Once the lackey delivered us to the door to the box seat, he scampered off. The female drow warrior standing there indicates that Luna should follow her ,but the two male guards block Quinn and Dancing Wind from entering. Through the mind link "It's OK, this is to be expected. Oh, and watch out for poisons".

So Quinn in all his humanoid hippo bulk proceeds to get into a staring contest with one of the guards, who are pulling a Royal guard I see everything while pretending to see nothing. Dancing Wind stands there being the creepy version of himself (when he has a spell going his whiskers and face turn into an illithid tentacle sort of bizarreness).

Inside the box Luna clocks two female guards standing along the edge of the box area, one scanning outward, one watching her. She also notes that there's some sort of sound dampening going on, so it is safe to converse in here.

The matriarch, of course, doesn't leave her seat. Barely acknowledges Luna's presence, and just starts with the questions. Luna does clock that they are wearing the symbol of House Auvryndar, a wealthy merchant house that is not on the ruling council - much to their frustration.

"Who are you that dared to get our attention?"

"I am Luna, and I noted your guard, hence the request for passage. What I am looking for is not on the main floor so I hoping it was up here."

"And why do you wear a disguise?"

"It seems unwise to show one's face in this facility."

"Do you think I worry about such things, show yourself."

After a moment of thinking, Luna then shifts from her plain human look to full drow. At this point the matriarch gets out of her chair and faces Luna to continue the conversation.

"Of which house are you?"

"I am currently houseless and working independently."

"And which house were you? My help has a cost."

"Yes, of course it does, and I'll be glad to perform tasks here on the surface. My former house is irrelevant to this discussion as it is of no use."

... and regrettably that's where the session ended.

More soon!