The session begins at the gates of Cauldron; it is still the 15th of Ready'reat. Like much of the city, the walls and gates are made of black malachite. We are asked by guards at the gate for a silver piece, paid by anyone who is not a citizen of the town, while at the same time clearly trying to distance themselves from Adrian. Adrian, who is a citizen donates a silver piece to the guard's widow and children's fund.
Intentionally straggling behind, Kyrin inquires as to why the guards gave Adrian a dirty look. He is told that he has been a bit of an annoying crackpot since his son Deven went missing. He also learns that Adrian is studying under Sarcem at the Church of the Righteous Cudgel. Adrian begins to lead us toward the guard house to speak with Skellerang (Cauldron citizens may demand a meeting weekly with the guard). He rants about how the guard leader (Skellerang) is a corrupt subhuman man. He does not take the hint that Rassi and I seek a beer and discussion about the situation. He gets a little excited; I grab him, Tarik casts a spell (which Kyrin informs us was a charm person spell).
Under Tarik's spell, Adrian is a very informative individual. People started going missing two months ago (he admitted under charm person that he was lieing). He tells us now that 25 people are missing. Deven, 18, disappeared a week to 10 days ago and was training to be a priest of Cuthbert, under the mentor Jenya Urikas. Deven's mother left him many years ago as she and Adrian did not get along.
Aidan points out to a still excited Adrian that it will be Tarik who should speak with the captain of the guard and that this conversation should likely take place while Adrian is still feeling cooperative. We arrive at City Hall and I find that I once again have to hold Adrian back. The front room is clearly a reception and initial processing area. The clerk addresses Adrian and asks if he is making his request for his legally allowed weekly meeting with a city official. With excitement from Adrian, the clerk leaves the room, only to be replaced by a tall and imposing man who is clearly the guard captain. Skellerang steps up to Adrian, clearly trying to intimidate him, and makes it clear he is only meeting with Adrian as he is required to allow a meeting a week by citizens. It is at this point that the captain acknowledges the rest of us. Tarik sees the opportunity and steps forward to ask permission to look into the disappearances.
Surprisingly, Skellerang is impressed that a man he considers broken in the head has been resourceful enough to gather an a group of would be adventurers. He tells us that we will need to get an adventurer charter; something about 5sp a person, a name for the group, an address for residency, and some paperwork, but we will need to handle that tomorrow as all the clerk's are gone for the day. He does hand us Adventurer's Badges (very similar to a Citizen's Badge) and pulls out the city logbook.
Skellerang flips through the city information ledger and shares bits and pieces with us.
People have been disappearing for the last two and half months.
People are missing from every district of the city with seemingly no pattern.
People reasonably representative of area races have been taken.
Most victims were lower class; no nobles.
All kidnappings happened at night, usually on overcast nights or nights with new moons.
21 people missing total.
Deven was taken on the 5th.
Jasper Drundlesput was the last person taken. That was two nights ago (13th of Ready'reat).
The guards didn't realize there was a problem until a month after the kidnappings started. The first people taken were indigent and the like.
Gryffon Malek (barkeep) was the first person reported missing, about 45 days ago. He was 33 and was reported as he was supposed to get married to Imelie, a bar wench. They both worked at the Tip Tankard.
Some people taken from homes.
Last Laugh and Alleybashers (two local gangs) were looked into seriously.
It is believed that locks were picked to gain entry to some places, but it is odd that the doors were always locked afterwards.
Small valuables were frequently taken.
Footprints indicate 2-6 people seem to be involved. Some of them are smaller (perhaps gnomes or halflings).
Skellerang indicates his wife and hot stew are waiting for him and requests we come back tomorrow to finish the paperwork. Before leaving, Aidan inquires if they have looked into Aidan's father's evacuation plan, he is brushed off and informed that the Lord Mayor is of course looking at it.
We head for the Drunken Morkoth where Adrian has arranged rooms for us. It is clear as we descend into the city the quality of life sinks as well. The Drunken Morkoth looks quite nice compared to it's neighbors. Adrian, my sister and myself retrieve beer from the bar and join everyone else at a table. Estatic that we were able to get such a wealth of information from the guard, Adrian drops the bag of gold on the table. Verana counts it out and passes out 25gp each. Adrian indicates that we can leave if we wish as he has the information he sought. Kyrin objects to the statement and informs him that of course we will search for the missing people. Drunkenly, Adrian leaves us to discuss what our team name should be.
Speaking with the barkeep, Verana and I retrieve keys to our rooms. We have two rooms with two bunk beds in each bed. The window provides little light into the room, it is likely a new moon tonight. We chat briefly and head back downstairs. Introductions are made all around. Having decided upon the name Tarik's Company, Aidan returns to his home, the rest of us head to the rooms upstairs.
16th of Ready'reat
The 16th of Ready'reat begins with us all at breakfast. A young man charges in to the room clutching a piece of paper shouting. He tells the bar that several children were taken last night. I purchase a copy of the Cauldron City Broadsheet from the boy and sit back down. Four children were taken from the Lantern Street Orphanage (Three humans and a dwarf, two are boys and two are girls). Finishing breakfast we head to City Hall, where Tarik speaks with the clerk and gets us registered, keeping a copy of the adventurer's charter. Kyrin requests, and recieves a copy of the adventurer bylaws. We head on to the orphanage, which we find is locked. Tarik knocks and after a brief conversation with an old lady through a small slot in door, the door opens. The old lady leads us to her office. Indicating displeasure that we are yet another group of "looky loos" asking about the missing children. It seems that the guard (who she is peeved at for making such a mess of the place and for taking all the paper records for the missing children), the Stormblades (another adventuring party), and Fellian and Fario (two elves from the Lord Mayor's office have already been at the orphanage this morning. The four children missing were Terram (age 9), Lucinda (age 8), Evelyn (age 9), Deakon (dwarf, age 20). All four were in beds near windows. There are 7 other girls and 11 boys at the orphanage. Verana doesn't believe the locks on the windows to have been, she also believes it would be quite difficult for her to pick the lock. Gretchen boosts that the locks were made by Keygan Ghelve, a local locks and purchased at great expense when the orphanage was built two years ago. Hearing a thump from the girls room, we find an orc named Patch looking under a bed. Indicating he is the janitor/handman, he finally retrieves a hammer from under the bed. He had been fixing a squeaky floorboard. Finding it odd that we hadn't heard him hammering earlier, he explains that he had been staring at the window watching the children play.
Verana goes and speaks with some of the kids. She speaks first with Andrew, who slept next to Terram. She is later pointed to George and Henry, two who slept across from Deakon and Terram. The children all tell the same story. Each child slept hard the night before and had not heard anything. She also finds out that the janitor often tells them stories at night, last night the story was about someone who joined a thieves gold to make money. Verana and I return to the group upstairs.
We start for Adrian's house to look into the locks on his doors and windows. Oddly, as we we were walking down the street, God spoke out and told us to clear the table. A cry is heard from an alley before us. Chargeing around the corner, I find two guys in leather with painted faces (half white, half black) beating a prone individual, who turns out to be an unconcious Adrian. A stab to the front from me, followed by a stab to the back from Verana (wow, she moved quickly) drops the first attacker. Aidan smashes the chest of the second and drops him in one hit. Hearing amused laughter from above, Kyrin fires a magic missile to the second story. I hit her with an arrow (it seems to oddly bounce off of her eye). She runs off screaming about getting us and our little dog. Each player gets 150XP.
Guards show up, having been called by Tarik. The guards identify the two bandits as wearing Last Laugh make-up, yet oddly recognize them as city guards as well. The two Last Laugh members are taken by the newly arrived guards. We are instructed to take Adrian to the Church of the Righteous Cudgel. Verana sneakily follows the guards back to the guard house and sees that the two bandits were apparently checked in as criminals. The rest of us bring Adrian to the Church of the Righteous Cudgel. Met by an accolyte as we enter, we are told Jenya will be brough to a sideroom to see to Adrian. She is about 30 with grey streaked brown hair, is wearing a brown robe with gold trim and a gold symbol of Cuthbert is around her neck. Leading Adrian to another room, she indicates towels and tea will be brought to us.
Verana meets up with us at the temple, several minutes later Jenya returns. After thanking us, she tells us she has a tale to share. Explaining that Adrian has been a little distressed and aimless since his wife left him about two years ago, she tells of how the church took him in. The disapperance of his son caused him to snap however. She further explains that the money we were paid was taken from the church coffers and expresses a desire to get it back. She does further explain that the church must look into the disapperances as the guard clearly is not doing it. She indicates that the church would be willing to pay us (2500gp for the group) if we were to investigate the matter further (she also says healing would be made available). Assuming that we would accept, she indicates she spoke with the Star of Justice (a holy mace passed down in the church) to ask for assistance this morning. It told her "The locks are key to finding them, look beyond the curtain, below the cauldron. Beware the doors with Teeth. Descend into the malachite hold, where precious life is bought with gold. Half a dwarf binds them, but not for long." An accolyte provides each of us with a cure moderate potion.
Checking the locks at Adrian's house shows they were made by Keygan Ghelve as well. We head for Ghelve's Locks on the second lowest level of the city in the southwestern portion of the city. The two story building has a turret, bars over the windows, a small discreet sign, and an impressive array of locks in the lower display window. We step into a small room that smells of good pipe tobacco. The far wall has a counter, behind which there is a large curtain. One wall is full of hundreds of different types of uncut keys. Displays of various locks are around the room. Behind the counter is the tallest gnome any of us had ever seen. Coming around the counter, we see that Keygan Ghelve is on stilts. Tarik, expressing interest in locks attempts to occupy his attention as Verana moves for the curtain which clearly hides his work area. Keygan asks Verana to stay in front of the counter and goes back to his discussion with Tarik. The only interesting thing that I note, is that while Keygan installs plenty of his own locks in the city, the best locks he sells are from Festus in Sasserine. Later My sister points out that he uses his own locks on his front door. Keygan fliches obviously when Tarik claims all of the locks on the houses were kidnappings occured were his locks. Rassi bluntly asks if he keeps records of what the imprints are used for what customers. He indicates that such things are kept in his office. Telling Keygan to stay there, Kyrin indicates he will go look around the office, pausing only when Keygan clearly gestures with his head that he is under duress and there are people upstairs. As Verana heads for the door out initiative is rolled. A chameolean looking dark cloaked guy leeps from the floor above. Rassi kills the thing in one blow. Each character gains 50xp. Looking closer, Tarik informs us that the creature is a skulk.
Keygan goes into box text mode... Starbrow, his rat familar, was taken several month's ago to someplace about a mile away that is dark. He is being held by a group of people who inhabit an abandoned gnomish city under Cauldron. The one you just killed was a tall one, there are also short ones which are more gnome like (pale skin, large noses, and hooves, Dark Creepers according to Tarik, both types are "Dark Ones". These people burst out of a secret passage that ended below Keygan's stairwell. Holding Starbrow captive, they forced him to make a master key for all of his locks in the city and have had a skulk watching him ever sense, not allowing him to leave the shop. A tall one wears the silver master key around his neck. He tells us the Dark Ones speak in a gutter language, but some can speak common. Keygan provides a bit more background on the ancient city Jzadirune and that the gnomes left the city because of a magical disease known as The Vanishing. He also provides us an old map that his father gave him.
Providing Keygan with a note for Skellerang, we tell him to get the first guard he can find to escort him back to Guard HQ and give the note to Skellerang. We inform him we are heading down the stairs into the ancient city immediately. A staircase carved out of greystone takes us down to a series of straight staircases. We hear chirping birds, leaves rustling, and giggling ahead around a corner. At the bottom of the stairs we find a room with two prominant circular doors with glyphs on them (recognized by someone as gnomish letters). One of the doors, with gears that look like teeth, is wedged open with a piece of metal. Four feet above the floor are a series of 12 copper masks spaced around room. While searching the room, Verana triggers a welcome message from one of the masks...
Welcome to Jzadirune - behold the wonder! But beware, ye who seek to plunder. Traps abound and guardians peer. Beyond every portal, behind every gear.
Further exploration out an archway leads us to several more doors, each with a gnomish letter on it. Verana unfortunately discovers a pit trap the hard way. She also finds that every door we see is magically trapped, only the open circular door appears to be inactive. 100xp each for the trap.