Squashing Bugs

Erin finished sawing the third and final head off the corpse of the belier devil. Unlike most of the devils they’d fought (at least the ones who weren’t already in Hell), this one’s body had not vanished when it died. Nat had tried to assure her that this simply meant this devil was on this plane of its own free will, and had not been summoned here, but she wasn’t taking any chances.

The rest of the group had busied themselves searching the royal bedroom, and they weren’t happy with what they found. Or rather, didn’t find. “There’s nothing here but clothes,” Nat complained. “Nice clothes, to be sure, and a few toiletries. But there’s nothing magical. No books, no letters, no papers. Nothing at all personal.”

“This isn’t personal?” asked Jax, holding up a satin thong. Nat blushed.

“This isn’t the real Queen’s bedroom,” Shadow said emphatically. “This was just for show, for that blood simulacrum to use. The Queen’s somewhere else.”

But where? The one door out of the bedroom led into a well-appointed foyer. Three silver platters on a table held an assortment of cheeses, fruit, and fresh-baked bread. “Hey! This bread’s still warm,” Jax said, stuffing some in his mouth. “Mmmm … and the cheese is cold!”

“The platters are magical,” Nat pointed out. “Probably enchanted to keep food fresh.”

Beyond the foyer was the royal bath, dominated by a marble tub full of steaming water. “Tub’s magic, too,” Nat pointed out. Wren thought a nice hot bath sounded divine, but this didn’t seem the time, or the place.

The door of the foyer opened into a short hall leading back to the ballroom. It opened easily from the inside, but the outside showed a sturdy-looking lock. “Lock’s magic, too.” Nat was enjoying his new Arcane Sight, but it was starting to wear on everyone else’s nerves. The door also bore a plaque carved with the Arabasti family crest.

The party felt they’d explored everything they knew about on this floor of the castle, but they returned to the throne room to search for any secrets. As they did, Nat noticed that the Crimson Throne itself glowed with a strong magical aura. Overcome with curiosity, he mounted the dais, then eased himself back onto the cushioned throne. Immediately, he felt as if the throne itself was judging him – and found him sorely lacking. He was overcome with weakness, and his head began to spin, and he leaped up out of the royal seat. He shook his head, and the strength began to return to his limbs. “Man! That was a really stupid idea!” he muttered.

“So where to next?” Tomas asked, as they finished their futile search of the throne room. “We could go back to Kroft, report what we’ve found and study the stuff we got off the bloatmage. Or we could go upstairs. Or downstairs.”

No one was in any hurry to leave the castle. Nat took out his wand of scrying. “This seems to have cooled off,” he said. “I can check out any other spots, if you’re interested.”

“How about that Grand Salon, upstairs?” Tomas suggested, pointing back towards the ballroom. “The ceiling in the ballroom is open to the Salon above – if anyone is up there, I can’t believe they didn’t hear all the commotion we made down here.”

Nat nodded, and waved his wand with a flourish. He positioned his magical eye near the ceiling of the Salon, where it would give him a bird’s-eye view of the room. Unfortunately, the Salon was decorated by a forest of hanging silks in rich autumnal colors. They hung in swooping curves near the ceiling before cascading down the walls, and obscured much of Nat’s magical view of the room. He could see the opening in the floor that overlooked the ballroom below, surrounded by a marble balustrade. To the west, he also could see part of an enclosed room-within-a-room, with wood-framed stained-glass doors. He didn’t see any signs of life, or movement, but as he strained to peer between the hanging silks, he noticed something out of place. A hammock hung suspended among the draperies. It likely would have been hidden from view from the floor below, but Nat’s high-level vantage point revealed it. It appeared empty, but it sagged more than it seemed that an empty hammock should. Nat held his breath (even though he knew he couldn’t be seen or heard) and watched for several minutes. Sure enough, the hammock seemed to shift and sway, just a little.

“Something’s up there,” he reported as he ended the spell. “I can’t see anyone – I think they’re invisible – but I’m betting it’s the Red Mantis. Remember how they had their little sleeping cells in rooms near the top of the cave when we cleaned out their headquarters?”

The primary means of movement between floors in Castle Korvosa was the huge spiral staircase in the Epochal Tower. But Jax had found a smaller staircase in the reception room that also led up, and they took it now, hoping to find a less-obvious way into the Salon. It led up into a simply-furnished room, likely a break room for the servants who had once served here. There was a door, which Jax opened carefully. It led out onto an open catwalk, skirting the outer wall of the castle and overlooking the roof of the floor below. It was hedged by a brass railing, and led to a closed door which (he hoped) would lead into the Salon from the outside.

Jax opened the door and slipped inside, stepping to the right to clear the way for those behind. Erin followed, stepping left into the corner of the Salon. Shadow activated his Red Mantis mask (remembering that Nat had said there were invisible folks inside) and followed the fighters, then activated his Boots of Levitation to begin floating up towards the ceiling. He was scanning the room as he rose, and sure enough, he could see a Red Mantis assassin peering over the hanging silk curtains high up near the opening to the ballroom downstairs. But then he caught a glimpse of movement from the corner of his eye. He turned, and saw another assassin, not ten feet away, directly over Erin. She had a bow drawn, and it was pointed straight at him! “Above you!” he screamed, and somehow managed to dodge the pair of arrows that whizzed past his ears.

Tomas was standing in the doorway, bow drawn, and his aim shifted upwards at the twang of the bowstring. The assassin became visible as she fired, and Tomas had a clear target. His own bow answered, and with a scream, she tumbled out of her hanging hammock, narrowly missing Erin as she hit the floor with a sickening thud.

Nat, still on the catwalk, cast Haste on his friends. Jax activated his own Mantis mask, then turned south, following the wall of the inner room inside the ballroom, hoping to flank any attackers. Erin and Wren also activated their masks, but Tomas didn’t take the time to use his; he hoped his targets would reveal themselves. Shadow turned his attention to the assassin he’d spotted halfway across the room, and peppered him with Magic Missiles, but another volley of arrows flew across the room from somewhere behind his target. One struck Shadow in the side, crackling with electricity, which he laughed off. What he didn’t laugh off was the Fireball that suddenly exploded around the party clustered near the doorway. As the smoke cleared, he saw a Red Mantis spellcaster crouched on the far side of the balustrade, still invisible. Tomas returned fire on the Mantis archer (who, as he’d expected, became visible when she fired), and she, too, fell to the floor below with a fading scream.

Shadow could see more invisible Red Mantis dropping lightly to the floor all around the room from hiding spots near the ceiling, and he tried calling out their positions as best he could. Nat, counting on his Mind Blank spell to hide him even from the Red Mantis masks, moved past Tomas into the room. He was trying to pinpoint enemies by the glow if their arcane auras, but he was moving, they were moving, their magical swords were moving – it was like trying to pinpoint fireflies on speed. Hoping to clarify things, he cast Glitterdust on the area in front of him. An assassin sprang into view, outlined in golden motes and clawing frantically at his eyes. “Look out! Dead ahead!” Shadow screamed from above, but it was too late; an invisible assassin (who’d been just outside the range of Nat’s spell) ran headlong into the wizard, almost knocking him over. Unable to see what he’d run into (despite his magical mask), the Mantis swung blindly at the spot where Nat stood, but Nat was able to duck under his blow.

Shadow aimed a Lightning Bolt at the spellcaster, and was gratified to see her stagger back. Jax was almost to the corner of the inner room when he spied an invisible assassin coming around the corner from the opposite direction, apparently with the same plan. Jax hammered him with Magic Missiles, and the Mantis was so surprised that his own attacks missed Jax badly.

A new Mantis appeared in front of Tomas, swinging his sawtooth sabres, but the ranger parried his blow. The glittering assassin managed to clear his vision just in time to see Erin step up and chop off his head with Serithtial. Before his head even began to slide off his neck she reversed her grip and stabbed the the holy blade backwards into the newcomer in front of Tomas, and he, too, fell. Wren could see a dark stain spreading on Nat’s trousers, and knew he needed help, but before she could do anything, there was movement at her back. She spun, and there was yet another Red Mantis on the catwalk behind her, apparently having dropped down from hiding on the roof above. Despite catching her by surprise, she blocked each of his blows. Ignoring this threat, she stepped back into the Salon, determined to protect Nat, and hammered his attacker with blow after blow. Tomas stepped into the spot she had vacated. As he’d expected, there was no shortage of targets in sight. He fired a pair of arrows at the newcomer, sending him cartwheeling off the catwalk, bouncing off the roof below. He pirouetted, and put an arrow through the eye of the assassin threatening Nat. He completed his turn with his bow pointed south, and his last arrow flew past Jax’s ear to split the skull of the Mantis he’d surprised.

Nat dashed into the room, activating his mask as he ran, and narrowly avoided a collision with another charging assassin. As he rounded the inner room, he could see the Mantis spellcaster, who’d moved around the corner after taking Shadow’s Lightning Bolt, hoping to get out of sight while she did some healing. But Shadow had seen what direction she’d gone, and sent a Fireball sailing into that corner of the room. When the smoke cleared, there was just a smoldering pile of clothing on the floor. The final Mantis, having narrowly missed running headlong into the invisible Nat, charged at Erin, but the paladin carelessly blocked his sword thrust with her shield then impaled him with Serithtial.

The battle appeared to be over. Jax continued around the far end of the inner room, circling the perimeter of the Salon, as Wren followed Nat into the center of the room. Shadow slowly descended to the floor, then caught a flicker of movement. He turned, and saw a raven-haired woman in Red Mantis armor charging at Tomas. Her blade struck before Shadow could even open his mouth. She was invisible, and took the ranger totally by surprise, and her sabres crackled with electricity as they slashed his flesh.

Tomas cried out in pain, and fired blindly at the spot where the attack had come from, but he could see no enemy, and his shots went wide. Even if he had been able to see her, Shadow could see that her form was flickering, and there were multiple magical images of her. Nat, hearing Shadow’s shouted warning, spun and also saw her. He formed an Empowered Lesser Orb of Light in his hand, and flung it at the Red Mantis leader. Somehow, miraculously, the ball of light bypassed her Displacement and hit not one of her Mirror Images, but her.

Shadow was standing right next to Tomas, far too close for comfort, and he dashed away, taking a nasty slice from her Shocking sabre as he fled. Once he was out of reach, he turned and fired off a Lightning Bolt, but she nimbly danced out of its way. Jax, hearing there was still fighting, hurried back until he could see this new enemy. Not having seen the result of Shadow’s spell, he fired a Lightning Bolt of his own, and cursed as she also evaded it.

Wren cast Destruction on the Mantis leader, and she grunted in agony but said nothing. Erin stepped up beside Tomas, calling upon Iomedae to Smite Evil, but the assassin’s Displacement made her blows strike nothing but air. The assassin smiled evilly at her futile attacks, then her own blades went into a blindingly fast flurry of attacks. Tomas, unable to see her to take defensive actions, was chopped again and again, taking terrible damage from her precise strikes, and even Erin was unable to parry all of her blows. Tomas fired one last volley of arrows, and those who could see the assassin saw two of her images vanish. But he was near death, and staggered back a step. “Medic!” he cried weakly. “I need help!” But Wren could not reach him, and the assassin would need but a short step forward to finish him off. Her cruel smile widened as she anticipated his death by her blades. But an Intense, Empowered blue bolt of energy slammed into her, followed by another, and still more. The Magic Missiles threw her back against the wall, and her smile faded as the life left her eyes and she slid slowly down to a sitting position. “Stupid bitch,” Nat muttered as he blew the smoke off his finger.

Wren rushed to Tomas’s side, casting Cure Serious Wounds, followed by some more healing for both Tomas and the rest of the party. As she worked, Jax opened the doors into the inner room; it was a bar, furnished with dark wood tables and chairs, its walls lined with shelves filled with bottles, crystal goblets, and decanters (although Jax was disappointed to see that all the good stuff was long gone). A single hammock hung in the rafters; apparently, this had been the Mantis leader’s quarters.

As the others stripped the bodies, Jax turned his attention to the door in the far corner of the Salon. It led out onto the castle’s battlements. Jax found himself looking down onto the square where Blackjack had thwarted Trinia Sabor’s execution so many months ago. His hand went to the hilt of Vencarlo’s rapier, and he made a silent vow to make the old man proud. Turning away, he looked down the rest of the battlement, running the length of the southwest side of the castle. Beside him, the Seawatch Tower rose, and at the far end of the parapet it was mirrored by the Gray Tower. In the center of the parapet was a smaller, square tower: Domina’s Tower. “Hey guys,” he called back to the others, “I think we should try Domina’s Tower next.”

They gathered outside the iron door to the square tower as Jax worked on the lock. “It’s secured with Arcane Lock,” Nat said unhelpfully as Jax threw down his picks in disgust after failing to open it. Tomas had no better luck, but finally the two of them, working together, managed to defeat the mechanism. For all their efforts, the room inside was a disappointment: four walls and an empty floor.

Nat scanned the interior, but saw no magic. Then he happened to glance up. “Whoa! The whole ceiling’s magic!”

Tomas snapped his fingers. “Duh! Neolandus told us – the only way to get to Domina’s Study is through a magical gate in the ceiling. You have to touch it with the Arabasti Crest to activate the gate.”

“Do we have one of those?” Nat asked. Everyone began searching through their loot, but didn’t recall anything matching that description.

“Hang on,” Erin interrupted. “Wasn’t there a family crest on the door leading into the royal apartment?” That prompted a hurried trip back downstairs, returning with the plaque that had hung on the door into the royal quarters. Wren activated her Winged Boots and flew with the crest up to the ceiling. She pressed the plaque to the ceiling, and vanished. A minute later she reappeard. “You guys need to see this!”

It took some creative thinking, but everyone was able to fly up to the ceiling, and join hands as they activated the Phase Door. They found themselves in a cramped (at least for six people), cluttered study. A large bookshelf dominated one wall, filled with dozens of books and scrolls. A large desk sat in the center of the room, and on it was a large, black book with a seven-sided metal star on its cover. The walls of the room had been decorated (or defaced?) with dozens of spiky runes.

“LOTS of magic,” Nat whispered as his eyes went around the room. “But what’s this?” He’d noticed a teak and ivory potion rack, holding three bottles, with room for several more, but surprisingly, the bottles didn’t show up as magical. A folded piece of paper was tucked behind the bottles, and Nat removed it and began to read. “Huh. This is from the Red Mantis, addressed to Ileosa. It says this stuff is called ‘Fool’s Leprosy’ and has instructions on how to administer it. I’ll bet this is what she used to poison the King!” He continued reading, then dropped the paper, and began to rub his fingers frantically on his robe.

Once he was sure he hadn’t accidentally poisoned himself, he began collecting magical scrolls off the shelves as the others sorted through the other papers. “Here’s another letter from the Red Mantis Crimson Citadel,” Tomas said excitedly. “It documents their contract to supply Ileosa with a contingent of assassins to support her in ridding Korvosa of ‘undesirables’. And just like we thought – Dr. Davalus was one of them!”

“Hey!” Nat interrupted. “There’s something on top of the bookshelf, back against the wall. It’s magic, and invisible.” Sure enough, hidden away almost out of reach was an elaborate gold and ruby scroll tube; it was protected with Permanent Invisibility, but thanks to their Red Mantis masks they could see it clearly. To be safe, Nat used a Mage Hand to bring it down, and Jax examined it carefully to ensure it had no traps. They opened it, and unrolled a long document. Much of it was written in Infernal, but there was a summary in the Common tongue:

“Pharasma protect us!” Wren whispered in horror. “Queen Ileosa sold the entire city of Korvosa to Hell!”

“And if I read this right,” Nat added, “Not only did they send a bunch of devils to help her, it sounds like they actually fused an Erinyes devil into Ileosa, to strengthen her. Who does that?”

“‘Sermignatto’” Shadow said thoughtfully. “I’m sure I saw that name scribbled on some of Togomor’s notes. I think that was the belier devil we killed downstairs.”

“So if he’s dead, then the contract is null and void, right?” Jax said hopefully, but Nat shook his head. “No such luck.” He read from a line near the end of the contract: “‘…the one whose name is struck from this contract yet known by the undersigned to be one whose hand guides these words’ … Sermignatto was just doing the bidding of someone even more powerful.” They all shuddered – they didn’t even want to imagine who or what that might be.

Jax brightened. “But between this, and the contract with the Red Mantis, we should have the proof Kroft was looking for that the Queen was conspiring with outside forces against the people of the city. The powers that be will have to turn the rule over to Neolandus.”

The others continued searching the room as Nat turned his attention to the book on the table. “This is also written in Infernal,” he said as he opened the cover to the title page. “It’s called ‘Truths of the Sihedron’.” He began to thumb through the tome. “Man – this is dense. It’s going to take a while to translate this. But it looks like it has a chapter on each of the runelords.”

“What’s a runelord?” Wren asked.

Nat went into lecture mode. “Ten thousand years ago, before Earthfall, the Empire of Thassilon ruled this part of Golarion. Thassilon was founded by the Emperor Xin, a mighty wizard who’d invented a totally new form of runic magic. He appointed seven wizards to serve as governors of different realms of the empire, but eventually they assassinated him, and took power themselves. Each was aligned with one of the great sins of the soul – wrath, greed, gluttony, that sort of thing – which they felt enhanced their powers. The Sihedron – this seven-pointed star – was their symbol. They were all wiped out by Earthfall, though.” He paused. “Or at least, we think they were. Some say at least some of them went into hiding, and protected themselves in some way.”

His lecture suddenly stopped. “Look at this! This chapter is full of notes!” Indeed, the margins of the Infernal text were heavily annotated in a precise, feminine hand. “The notes are all in Chelish – I’m sure these were written by the Queen!”

“What was she so interested in?” Wren asked.

“This is the chapter on the Runelord Sorshen,” Nat replied. Seeing Wren’s uncomprehending look, he explained. “Sorshen was the Runelord of Lust, and she ruled this part of Varisia. Well, it wasn’t Varisia then – it was called Eurythnia, and most of it sank into the sea during Earthfall. But all the Thassilonian ruins around here – the Gatefoot, Pillar Wall, even the mastaba this Castle is built on – they’re all that’s left of Shorshen’s capital.” He looked up at the walls. “And those runes on the wall – they’re Thassalonian.”

“What do they say?”

Nat frowned. “Well, they don’t really say anything. But they’re all runes that deal with various aspects of immortality.”

“What do you make of this?” Erin interrupted. She dropped a heavy box on the desk. Inside were dozens and dozens of sheets of loose paper. Each simply contained a list of names, each name followed by a number. Each page was dated at the top, along with a set of initials. They began passing the pages around, trying to puzzle them out.

“These dates,” Jax said in a worried tone, “they’re all from a few months ago. Right around the time of the plague.”

“These pages all have the initials ‘R.D.’,” Tomas said, holding up half a dozen sheets. “‘Reiner Davalus’?”

“I think these are lists of all the people they collected blood from,” Jax said, his concern growing. “And the numbers – I think they’re ages. Look – here’s a family: man and woman, aged 33 and 26, and four kids, 10, 8, 5, and 2. We found notes saying they were delivering the blood samples to the Queen – these must be the records that went with them.”

“But there are thousands of names here,” Erin said, riffling through the stack of pages in the box. “What did she want them for?”

Jax looked up. “And where’s all that blood?”

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The PCs earned 27,200 XP, putting them at 520,035 XP, with 600,000 required for Level 16.