Part 2: The meeting of paths

Kaed rushes into the tunnel at something it appears he has a line of sight on. He rasps out, "More here!" The sound of blades clashing can be heard from his tunnel. Another goblin rounds the corner and launches a gout of fire at Akiran, which mostly disperses across his armor. Katrin's action.

Katrin can just make out Lilliana in the darkness ahead. Taking a running start, she sprints to the edge of the sewer, leaping over the sewer water, landing heavily on the stones next to the mage. With a flick of her wrist, her hammer floats into view from the corridor it had disappeared down moments before.

Akiran bares his teeth in a predatory smile as the goblins blows are easily parried or absorbed by his armor.  A well made kit of armor was worth it's weight in gold, a fact he often had to beat into the Legion's new recruits. Flipping around arrows and gleaming swords may make for a good story but a good armor made sure you were the one to tell it. Springing back with his blade he makes a low brutal slash at the goblin, leaving a small trail of blood on the goblin's leg. The muscle bound mutant falters but is able to keep his footing. Akiran ducks in  slamming his knee into the man's gut at the same time he rams his horns into his head, driving the breath from his lungs leaving him distracted and likely concussed. 

It is not the first time Ascian has been dimly glad he doesn't have to breathe – his altercation with Marius, the boy's crossbow at his hip an ever-present reminder, had personally helped establish that baseline – but that doesn't make it any less true here. Drawing back his next arrow, one eye closed to bring the goblin into better focus, he makes the mistake of inhaling on reflex and regrets it immediately as the scent of sewage floods his senses. Expelling it just as fast, his limbs seem to breathe out in the same motion; an old habit that, unlike Ascian, dies hard. The resulting arrow soars past cloak and comrade, puncturing soundlessly into the very center of the huge warrior's throat – the creature staggers, caught off guard, and Ascian watches wordlessly as the goblin falls back into the very sewage that had forced the shot, gaze sightless and limbs still before he meets the water's embrace.

One goblin rounds a corner and engages with Katrin, who is able to hold her own despite two potentially devastating blows. Around the corner, she can hear Kaed and another goblin fighting furiously. Thezra's action.

Lilli moves a bit deeper into the sewers, closing some of the distance between her and a goblin now fighting with Akiran. She makes the hand motions as the rapidly spin orb is once again pulled into some sort of portal only to appear immediately behind the chemically bolstered goblin. Lilli puts her effort into controlling the gravitational pull of the star, trying to yank the goblin into it, but the strength of the goblin is greater and with a grunt of effort it just barely pulls itself away. She starts finding her chest burning a bit for release and fresh oxygen as this fight continues...

Thezra continues running, the frustration growing on her face as she finds herself continuously unable to participate in much of the fighting.

Kaed shatters the nose of the goblin he's fighting with the edge of his shield. The goblin's busted face snarls in bloody anger.  Terrified of the orc woman rushing up to it, one goblin lets out a blast of fire from its hands, heating Thezra's armor and scalding her skin. Katrin's action.

Taking the blows from the goblin in stride, her hammer floats up beside the creature, and with an ominous thud it crashes down on the goblin, staggering him slightly. From within, a brief shockwave of fiery light radiates from her, searing the goblin in front of her, and disfiguring the body on the ground behind her with radiant burns. The goblin shrieks, and Katrin braces herself for another incoming attack.

Charging the Goblin who unleashed a wave of fire from it's hands Akiran leaps behind the spell caster. Mirroring Thezra's movements the Dragonborn shifts his blade until he finds and opening in the goblin's guard and then cleaves down with his blade. Using the momentum to from the blow to spin into a solid blow with his elbow breaking the man's nose. As the spell caster reels he shoves in and bashes his shield into the man's ribs with a satisfying crunch. 

Hearing the clash of battle coming from behind her now, Lilli spins around and begins to rush over to give aid in anyway she can. She squeezes between the wall and Ash as she spots the moving form of yet another goblin. She quickly mutters some arcane words beneath her breath, but she suddenly finds her lungs burning and screaming for air as she expends a bit too much of the air held in her lungs to call up her spell. Her eyes flash a bright silver just as the goblin fighting against Katrin suddenly finds itself pulled downward much harder than it should have been, but the creature is able to fight off the worst of the effect even as any loose objects are yanked and held down with a terrible force. 

Hearing Kaed some distance away, Ascian bolts past Lilliana, leaping into the sewer and sloshing through the water to pull himself back out on the other side of Katrin and the sorceress' field of magic. The dank, disgusting water clings to him as he moves, prompting a grimace that disappears as he catches side of grey fur in the distance. For a long second he watches the wolf, the animal's head tilting almost inquisitively as it senses his attention; patient and waiting as his own drifts down to the quieted goblin at Ember's feet. Something faint almost curves Ascian's lips, almost , but the goblin behind him growls and he whirls instead, drawing an arrow to release it immediately into strong, hard flesh.

The strong goblins slash at their targets. One draws a single drop of blood from a slash on Kaed's shoulder, to which the tribesman responds with a grin. Thezra's action.

Once again unable to get any opportunity to get involved in the battle, Thezra half-heartedly jabs down at the goblin as she starts off towards the others, her blade clashing more into the stonework than the little creature.

Kaed cuts clean through his opponent's arm with the sharp crack of blade on bone. Its sword and arm drop to the ground, followed by its body as it begins to bleed out.  Fleeing from Akiran, the arcanely-mutated goblin pushes off the dragonborn and runs, getting a mere few yards of distance before keeling over and falling to the cobbles. Katrin's action.

The hammer continues to hover behind the goblin, and Katrin stamps her foot again, the hammer striking him again. As the goblin howls in pain, she throws a mote of fire, but the creature moves out of it's path, and the fire sizzles out in the sewer water. She scowls in annoyance. Damn goblins. Fucking pests.

Lilliana's lungs burned and she found her vision was starting to fade out around the corners as her brain began to shutdown from lack of air. She glances around at the area, whipping her hands through quick, practiced motions as a heavy gust of winds suddenly rips through the tunnels. The winds clear some of the miasma from Lilliana's immediate vicinity and she immediately takes a long gulp of air back into her lungs, still feeling slightly lightheaded, but better. 

Have you scheduled your annual eye exam?

The last goblin swings wildly at Katrin, then spins to slash at Ascian. His wild movement gives Katrin an opening, and the dwarf's gauntleted fist smears the goblin's nose across its face. Ascian barely gets out of the way of its swipe before it falls to the ground, unconscious.

The goblin falls and Ascian staggers back a step, his body feeling heavier than it has in weeks; a lingering shade of the all-encompassing exhaustion that had gripped him when he'd first saved Ember. Glancing around to the others and seeing them uninjured if not running out of air, he briefly parts from them to leap across the labyrinth of canals and reunite with the wolf, dropping to a knee beside the beast and stroking his great silver head. "You did better than I did," he notes, nudging the limp, outstretched hand of Ember's victim out of his way. Pulling a small vial of red liquid from his belt, he drinks it and absently offers it to the wolf to lick it clean, feeling the warm liquid slide through him and wondering dimly if it will even have an effect – and if it does, for how long that might stay true. "Come on. I won't leave you again." Climbing back to his feet, he and his shadow return to the others, and he nods toward the further darkness of the sewers as he casts a searching look into their depths. "We'll go ahead."

Katrin follows Ascian's gaze to a room pouring out noxious green gas. She nods. "You certainly have the greatest chance of survival. Let us know what you find. And be careful. There may be more goblins hiding in there." 

Ascian moves into the room, looking about through the green smoky haze. No goblins lurk in the small room, but it's clear that there are things in here that shouldn't be mixing. The air smells volatile, and Ember whimpers in alarm as Ascian heads inside. The dog comes up to the threshold and sits, pointedly looking after his master into the room.

Ascian does a few languid circles to inspect, the acrid chemicals burning his nostrils without even having to breathe in. Ember's whines pull him back out before long, and he runs a placating hand over the wolf's head as he looks back at the others. "It's coming from in there. The bad air. Smashed boxes and vials everywhere."  He gives a searching look down to the wolf before back up to the group.  "Bad enough Ember won't go near it, so you probably shouldn't either.  Any ideas how to clear out chemicals."

Lilliana points at herself and makes a fanning gesture with her hands towards the room. She points for everyone to move away from the door opening, trying to mime with her hands that the cloud of noxious fumes could still be bad even if they didn't breathe it. 

Katrin places a restraining hand on Lilli's arm. "Let's leave the cleanup to the alchemist. He knows better what's down here then we do." She coughs lightly at the noxious fumes, then turns and proceeds to head back up to the shop.

As the party climbs up the ladder, Fironze wrinkles his nose. "Smells quite pungent down there...did you get them all?"

"So it would seem," Thezra says as she exhales at last, breathing in fresh air finally, "You're free to head in and deal with the fumes."

The gnome furrows his brow as he peers down the hole. "Err....yes. I'll do that." He looks up again and nods to the party. "Your payment is with the guild."

Katrin pulls out the coin, flipping it in the air, deftly catching it. "Well, let's not keep them waiting." She goes to the door, and holds it open. "Shall we?" 

As they rush back up into the "fresh" air, Lilli lets out her held breath with a gasp and sucks in a breath. Her nose wrinkles at the acrid smell coming from her clothing and she twirls her fingers in a circle as her clothing ripples as if caught in a breeze. She breathes deeply now with the smell magically removed from her clothing. "Yes, let's. That was an interesting fight."

The party heads back out into the night air. The streets are largely empty now, though a few people still move through the Amber Market carrying torches and moving swiftly. The fountain is now fully shimmering in Selune's light, the water lit up like a spectacle of shining, rippling light. As Katrin withdraws the Wayfinder's Coin and prepares to drop it into the well, a shaft of warm light spills across the dark cobbles, coming from the shop across the street -- the Arcane Minded. Silhouetted in the light is a tall, but slender humanoid frame. "There's no need for that," a voice says, purring deep and suave. The figure gestures into the shop. "This way, if you please." Moving inside, the beam of warm light appears to be an accurate teaser for the environment inside. It is well lit by several golden lamps hung in the rafters of the building -- not the red-gold flicker of firelight, but the pure golden flicker of what appears to be captured sunlight. The room is decorated, with red and golden banners softening the corners of the place, with a draping bunting hanging near the joint of ceiling and wall on three sides of the room. A counter stretches across most of the wall opposite the door, and the wall to the party's immediate right seems to be lined with racks of dully gleaming weapons and shining, ornate armor. Behind the counter are rows of vials with liquids of every color under the sun.  Standing before the rows of potions, but behind the counter is a tall, thin man of half-orc descent. A set of spectacles adorn his brown eyes and a trim, neat beard frames his kind face. His expression is both appraising and curious, taking in the reactions of the party as they look about the room. He smiles as the last enters and closes the door. "Welcome, new Wayfarers, to the Arcane Minded. My name is Timm. Pleasure to meet your acquaintance."

Katrin turns the coin over in her hand as she takes a long look around the shop. "Quite an impressive display you have here. I take it you're a member of this guild yourself." She turns to look at the thin man, raising an eyebrow, a faint smile on her lips. 

Timm looks to the dwarven woman. "Yes, I am," he says. "Though, my strengths lie more in the logistics and quartermastering part of adventuring, rather than the adventuring itself. You all seem a hearty sort, though."

Katrin gives him a measured, appraising look. "You don't happen to know two Tabaxi? Fliek and Flimm? We met them on the road a couple weeks back." She holds up the coin. "They were the ones who gave us this."

"Yes, Fliek and Flimm," Timm says, glancing at the coin. "They act as recruiters  and procurement specialists. They seek out things that I may need for enchantments -- or things that anyone else in the guild needs. They're very good."

Thezra gives the half-orc a curious look, measuring him up and down briefly. "Well met, malwun . I did not expect to find one of our own in a city like this, so this is a welcome surprise." She looks about the place, examining the gleaming weapons adorning the walls, "Are these all your work? You must be quite the enchanter. I know little of the craft but I've experience forging runes for similar ends."

"I dabble," Timm says, nodding appreciatively at Thezra's recognition. "Rune work is the basis for all my enchantments, but the orcish understanding of runes can only get you so far. The dwarves, the humans...hell, even the elves have enchantment knowledge that complements traditional runes in fantastic ways that produce some genuinely astounding magical effects." He holds up a longsword that gleams in the golden light. "This is a very simple enchantment, but it would normally take weeks to get right. With my understanding, it only takes a matter of days. Still a difficult process, but I am  the best." His smile gleams as bright as the longsword. "But enough about me. Tell me of your adventures!"

"Impressive. Perhaps one day I can learn some of that. As it is, my runes have worked quite well so far." She pulls her own greatsword from her back, extending it out with both hands, the intricate runic engravings glistening as bits of their magic spark off in the light. "As for our own adventures, that is a good part of why we're here actually."  Allowing him to inspect her blade, she reaches into her rucksack and removes the paper the Chief had handed her. "Tell me, aside from myself, have any notable orcs come through the Crossroads? A traitorous bastard by the name of Duar'ken supposedly might have some time ago. Wherever he went while here led him to some manner of deal with the Abyss. Fret not, we already cut the dukhal  down, but he nearly led the whole of Ore'agah astray in the process. Learning who he talked to and what he was dealing with is what matters most to me right now."

Tim raises his eyebrows. "You're actually  from  Ore'agah?" He inspects the runes on Thezra's blade with an approving nod. "I can't say I've heard of a full-blooded orc out this way, sorry. Do you have anything more to go on?"

Thezra looks at him curiously, "I am yes? Though I'm not quite full-blooded... my father was human. Or so I've been told." She frowns and holds the paper up to him, "That's about all I know, though perhaps you can make something more out of it as it's written here."

Timm picks up the piece of paper and inspects the few lines of script. After a few moments, he chuckles and hands the paper back to Thezra. "Well, I can tell you that you're in the right place. 'We meet beneath the X' -- what do you think that means?"

With a laugh she shrugs at the man, "If I had the faintest idea of that I doubt I'd be here now."

"I think you do, you're just not thinking of it properly," Timm says, rotating the paper slightly so the arms of the 'X' in the first line are vertical and horizontal. "It's not an 'X' as in the letter. It's a cross."

Lilliana looks around the shop with wide-eyes and a big grin. She could maybe one day do something like this, she knew she could... Her ears perk up at Thezra's words and she comes over to look at the paper when Timm rotates it, hoping to maybe be of some help to the ground by recognizing something they might not. 

Thezra squints down at the paper, looking from the supposed 'cross' to the words around it. "I'm not sure I..."  What did she know of a cross? She'd just traveled the long road to get to this city, she knew nothing of any... "Oh. Ohhhhh."  She palms her forehead and smiles. "Well that is certainly embarassing,"  she chuckles. "The lines paved into the marketplace. What of this then? 'Quench your thirst and try again'. There are a dozen taverns in this city, surely."

Lilliana suddenly lets out a clear laugh. "The Amber Market, of course! " She looks around at the group with a silly grin, blinking when they do not seem to connect the remainder of the path. "It's the meadhall! The Amber Meadhall? It's sitting right alongside the pathway. We passed by it earlier on our way to the fountain." She points to the lines on the scrap. "See? 'If you forget the way, perhaps quench your thirst and try again.' That is clearly talking about the Meadhall. There must be some sort of access to the sewers or a tunnel system beneath the city!"

Katrin nods thoughtfully. This young woman was more knowledgeable than she appeared. More than just a pretty face, it would seem. And another pretty face slips into her mind. Another young woman. With rusty red hair, and a dimple on her cheek when she smiles. And the most beautiful eyes she'd ever seen. Her heart aches. Oh Rose. How much I miss you.  "Good catch, Lilliana. Perhaps...this is something to pursue in the morning. We've had a very eventful evening."

Timm smiles. "It sounds like you all could use a rest," he says. "Allow me to show you the guild hall."  The party follows Timm back past the counter into a sizable side room beneath a set of stairs that lead up to the upper floors -- presumably Timm's residence. A set of sigils on the wall glows faintly, and Timm touches his fingers to two of them before the floor lurches slightly, and begins to rumble downwards with the sound of large, grinding machinery. After a few moments, the shaft opens up into an immense cavern with what looks to be a small set of shining buildings in Old Tollanian style. Timm's eyes glisten in the golden light from the guild hall below. "Welcome to the Wayfarer's Guild," he says, gesturing expansively at the cavern around -- the walls of which glitter in the light like the night sky.

As the group suddenly begins moving downwards, Lilli looks around in bewilderment at the others to determine her course of action based upon their own reactions, but their apparent ease calms her and allows her to simply enjoy the ride. When the shaft opens up to the scene beyond, her mouth falls agape and she stares in open amazement. "This is beautiful." she mutters in a hushed whisper. "How did you all do this?"