Chapter 2: The First Seal

20th Day of Toil, 997 V.R.


After discovering the importance and potential value of the Seal of Astaroth, the adventurers sought out a more direct route to the Gateway. They knew there must be some way to access it through the city, as they saw a vertical shaft in the ceiling above the Gateway itself. Armed with Tilma's knowledge of the sewer systems and keen sense of direction, they group set early on a clear morning out to find whatever building in the Harborside district hid the entrance to that vertical shaft.

Harborside is a tangle of piers, floating docks, and anchorages. Seagulls wheel in the sky above, while stevedores' cries fill the salt-tanged air. Warehouses of every size and shape proliferate, as sailors, merchants, and peddlers crowd the bustling streets.

Harborside's most immediately striking feature is its machinery, with dozens of enormous cranes, countless powered scoops and cargo carts that dramatically accelerate the loading and unloading process. They are run by the Harborhands, one of the most powerful crews in the city thanks to the dockworkers' ability to shut off the city's economic lifeblood with a strike.

But it is deeper in the district, close to the city walls, where Tilma locates the spot that she thinks corresponds to the gate. There sits a ramshackle, two-story warehouse, sandwiched between tenement buildings.

From the front entrance on the bustling Castle Street, the second level is at street level. There is a door and several windows. Scouting out the back of the building, the first level is at street level, accessed by a less-crowded alley way. there is a small fenced-off yard, and large barn doors are the only access point. The tenements both overlook the top of the warehouse, so its roof is probably accessible from the inside of the tenements and maybe a bit of climbing.

Laurent was completely out of his element in the harborside district: it was too noisy, too agitated, the smells and sights a bit too overwhelming. But somehow, he felt more excitement in following Tilma and Berry around than discomfort at the neighbourhood. Seeking out a more direct passage to the Seal was a necessary first step. As their investigations led to the rather unassuming building, the young scholar began wondering what next.

"So, should we just knock?", he asked, in what must have felt to the others an impossibly naive tone.

"Good idea Laurent. Go knock. I'll go from the side." she points at the alleyway "Berry, wanna try going from above?"

Berry stretches as he considers the approach. Nodding he tries to find a way into one of the tenements and make his way towards the roof.

"Wait, wait, what should I ask? , he whispered loudly and urgently as he noticed his new companions striking out in different directions. He was woefully unprepared to handle the eventual social interaction on his own, and wondered what to do if no one answered to his knocking. With the seed of an idea in mind, he rummaged through his large belt satchel and brought up a sheet of parchment. Cursing silently, he began to sketch something rather quickly on the sheet. He looked up to the neighboring buildings and mentally measured the nearby edifices.After a few moments, he jotted down some script on the top of his parchment, a sly grin cracking his face at last. "I've got this..." he whispered, trying to encourage himself.

Tilma quickly heads into the alley and heads towards the door. She stays hidden near enough Laurent to hear him knocking at which moment she would dash for the door and head inside.

BERRY: You make your way to the entrance of one of the adjacent tenements. No doorman watches the door, which doesn't even close properly as a result of the weathering of the doorframe. Above, a sign reads "Harborside Orphanage." The poorly lit interior is filled with the sounds of young children - mostly crying, some taunting, others playing.

You make your way up a thin, creaky stairway, where a pair of children rip past you, howling with laughter. At the top of the winding stairs, on the third floor wind blows from a wide-open window. Looking out the window, you see the warehouse roof below, including 2 skylights.Berry slides down a drainpipe and lands as quietly as a mouse on the warehouse's roof.

LAURENT: Laurent pounds on the door. His observant eye notices the door gives way more than it should with each thudding impact, and a quick glance reveals the door has been forced open quite recently.

There is a long delay, but eventually you hear something rummaging around. There is a long pause, but finally the metal door on the eyelet slot clanks open and you see the eye of a human peering out. "We ain't open. Come back tomorrow."

TILMA: Tilma dashes up to the big barn doors at the back of the warehouse. You grab hold of the handle, crack open the big barn door, and slip into a dimly lit bay full of crates and barrels.Hiding behind a tall stack of crates, you look in and see what you can. Sitting among the crates is an tall, bearded half-elf male dressed in dashing clothes - a big hat, short cape wrapped around his shoulders, and tall boots. His feet are propped up on a barrel, and he is idly inspecting the contents of a nearby crate, and a rapier hangs from his hip.

Tilma stays behind the crates and quietly observes the man for a moment. Trying to figure out what is it that he's doing here. She also makes a quick glance around to see if she spots the opening to the shaft that leads underground.

"Ah! Good morning Good Sir! My name is Anton, Anton Haratovic of the EYE-BAB-WaR, the I.B.A.B.Wa.R!" he says with a wide smile full of forced enthusiasm. "As you certainly know, the Bureau is currently assessing its priorities for the Harborside district, and I am here, as its humble agent, for the scheduled inspection of your V.G.E.C.", he adds showing the piece of parchment he had been working on, in a rather shaky manner so as to avoid the man focusing on any detail.

"Wouldn't want any of those slimes coming up uninvited! Poor Rowan, just yesterday he had to clean-up a house up Ballast lane, whole family consumed... awful business, truly...", he added, shaking his head sadly, eyes cast to the floor. " May I come in?", he punctuated the question with yet another big forced smile. "I have here your compensatory indemnity, of course!", he added, tapping his belt pouch suggestively.

Berry crouches at the foot of the drain pipe, scanning first signs of an entry point from the roof, moving around, keeping to the shadows where possible.

Berry sees that the sky lights have latched windows built into them. As you approach, you see that there is two men dressed in dark cloaks at the door. One is speaking with Laurent, the other stands behind him. Both have curved daggers drawn. Further down the corridor you see a body of a man lying in pool of blood. The skylights lead directly into that corridor, one above the men, the other above the dead body.

Despite your excellent acting, the man behind the door seems in a hurry to be done with you, although he does eye that purse for more than just a moment. "Hey piss off already! I don't care about ..."

Then you hear another voice, and he disappears to confer with someone behind him, and then returns to the hole in the door. "Oh yeah, slimes you said right? Absolutely a nightmare. Fucks up all the plumbing. You'd better come in right this minute."

You see a smile of black teeth flash behind the door before he slams the hole shut. Then, the door unlocks and swings open a little with a rickety creak. You definitely get the sense if you walk in that door the owner of that black smile intends to put a knife in your back.

Tilma stays low, taking a moment to take stock of the situation. She notices there are two more figures further in the warehouse, a man and a woman dressed in black cloaks. They seem to be searching for something, turning over crates and generally making a mess of the place.

You take stock of the half-elf. At first glance he seems bored, twirling an arrow in his fingers in a dazzling display of manual dexterity to pass the time. But, you notice his eyes seem fixed on the top floor, where a balcony overlooks the warehouse floor.

You hear some men inviting someone inside from the top floor, which you assume is Laurent. The half-elf gracefully leaps to his feet and pulls out his bow, quietly making his way toward the stairs. The two cloaked figures look up at the half-elf but he waves them away.

"Keep searching. I'll handle this." he replies.

Pulling his bow and placing it at his side, Berry attempts to get the window open above the men.

Tilma dashes outside of the building the same way she came in trying to be stealthy as possible while running which is not very much. But hopefully she will be out before anyone notices where the noise came from.
She dashes through the door, up and around the corner. She slows her step just a bit when arriving at where Laurance is. Catching her breath she puts her hands on his shoulders, "You idiot. This is the wrong house!" she says as she tries to push him away "I'm sorry for my Idiot brother. He often mistakes our house." she gives the man in the door her most innocent smile.

Tilma dashes out the door, and it bangs shut behind her - not on purpose, but speed was her priority. It can't be helped now, so she rounds the corner and finds Laurent. She delivers her line to the ajar door, but there is no visible or audible reaction from behind.

Meanwhile, Berry hears Tilma's ruse, and can see the two black-clad men looking at each other with confusion. While they are trying to figure out what to do, Berry goes ahead and opens the window, only to encounter a simple locking mechanism. Standard issue, nothing he hasn't tackled before.Berry pops the window open easily and silently.

Then they hear from within the warehouse the echoes of the voice of the half-elf: "Hey! Knives out! Trouble's afoot!"

The front door slams shut and you hear them wrestling with a sticky deadbolt.