The Library

The orbs, floating above the wall, are about 1 foot diameter and bob lazily in the breeze. Each is teathered to the wall by a thin cord. From the north gate you look inside and see an open area around a single large building that is in even better condition than the wall that surround it. The surrounding courtyard is of paved stones set tight without mortar. The building is made of stone with windows on the top of the first floor and filling much of the second floor. On a large plaque over the main doors directly across from you you read Library of Paphos in large bold lettering. The door is of Bronze and like the walls is decorated with mural like etchings and carvings. The area is quiet, clean, and empty.

As you begin crossing the library plaza that surrounds it you see a chicken sized bird flutter down from a ledge over the door. It squawks and guards at you. That sounded odd. As your get near you notice it's neck is extended and it has a long tail. The feathers do not cover everywhere and rough scaly skin can be seen beneath. (Think feathered dinosaur chicken to turkey size)

you can make a test roll to see if your character recognizes it, or state a guess, roll with advantage, and I will tell you if your are correct or close.

As it stalks closer Shmautz recals legends of a Cockatrice. Magical creatures whose touch can petrify.

The Cockatrice gives a squak and rushes forwards

Roll 2d6 initiative

The spirit cast leaps at the cocatrice roaring

The cocatrice gets severely mauled by the cougar. With a squak it bites and scratches at the big cat.

The claws scratch the cats for drawing blood. But then quickly stops flowing and the cat meows pitifully as it crutches back, slowly turning grey and settling into stone.
cocatrice is severely wounded and the totem is petrified
Baruman and Elph can go.

The arrow thuds into the cocatrice which stagers but it's still barely alive.

The dagger takes the creatures life. As the monster falls the statue of the cougar totem crib's into dust. Shmautz feels his totem must rest a day before being summoning it again to allow it to recover.

Monsters like this are rare and much of their bodies can be used in magic rituals and are valuable to the right market.

Looking around you see a few other mounts of rubble and dust indicating that the cocatrice has defeated others before you.

Shmautz, who is more familiar with processing a kill, assists the city boy with the carcass which you simply gut and clean as you are unsure what will be most valuable. As you do this Baruman looks around and eyes the other piles of rubble but noting stands out. Remembering the cockatrice nest, up on the building ledge, he thinks there might be something good in there.

Baruman tries to scamble up but the polished stone proves a hard climb. Shmautz comes up and easlily lifts then shoves the litle figure of Baruman well above his head wher He is able to rach some of the decorative work. A few close calls and slow going but he eventually makes it up to the nest. Looking inside Baruman sees a mess of feathers, torn scraps of clothing some bones and 3 egg Digging around he finds a few small gems and discovers that many of the bones are connected into a long whip or flail (bone whip) that has a sinister feel and obviously caries a dark enchantment.

Baruman hands down the contents of the nest before climbing down himself.

All told you find
30 gems 10 gpv (gold piece value)
11 gems 25 gpv
6 gems 50 gpv
3 cocatrice eggs
And the whip. As you examine it you gain a sense of how it works

With a click and slight whoosh of air the doors open revealing a brightly lit interior. Inside the doors is a large marble floored entry with collums surround the high ceiling. Light enters from raised windows showing the bare room to be free of dust or any damage. At the far end of the 30 foot room is another doorway with small rooms or large alcoves set to either side.

As you enter the entrance chamber your steps are loud on the hard surface but the sound oddly fades away quickly. Peering around the spotless room you find noting standing out or threatening. The entire rooms is spotlessly clean and tidy making this the only undamaged Remnant of the old city you have seen.

Crossing the room to the far side you are at a 4 way intersection of long wide hallway. You stand at the norther side of the intersection looking south. Strait ahead the hallway dead ends on another doorway with the doors closed. Two open arches, one to either side, are the only other feature of this hall. To the left and right are much longer halls with arches set periodically into the southern walls.

The ghost turns to "face" Shmautz. I am sorry but all but the public section of library require a permit which can be obtained at the civil service office here or from the city records center in district 1.

You all feel waves of dizzying cold pulse off the apparition and notice a vague cloud of ghostly energies extending about 15 feet from the figure.

Everyone needs to roll a save (2d6) test. If you fail you suffer 1 psychic damage from exposure to the ghost. This must be repeated each round it stays near you.

Twisting in Elph's hands Citizens Token. Recognize please.

The spectral figure looks at the servitor and somehow you get the impression of a frown, without any facial features beyond the bare bones, and reaching into a pocket retrieves an crystal rod the it waves towards the servitor Yes, your citizens is authorized for full access. You may proceed. Be warned many of our facilities appear to be lacking proper maintenance or locked down due to war time restriction. If you have trouble with any of our facilities simply call for an attendant and I or another will assist you with filling out the forms to submit for a civil technician to repair the faulty system as soon as they begin regular services again.

If you have no more questions at this time it will fade. Otherwise you will need to continue rolling save test.

Heading West you pass several neat study alcoves open along the south wall. The north has a single archway to a large room with full bookshelves lining all walls. The last door on the south opens to another room with shelves full of books and scrolls. To the north around the corner are more empty alcoves. Servitor points into the book filled room to the SW.

Having finished searching the math, logic, and magical theeory section to the far west and found noting notworthy in any of the shelves save scrolls and book a shool or researcher might use you are ready to move on.

As you move down the hall and look into the room (2) you spot an odd box like creature with 4 arms, each holding a cleaining tool of some kind, and 4 legs sprouting from each of the cubes corners. As it sees it it jitters CLEAN LIBRARY OF TRASH, CLEAN, CLEAN TRASH, TRASHH . . .. .
The thing charges at you waving its tools

Elph pulls out his bow and fires on the box creature as Baruman edges cautiously next to Shmautz ready to follow his lead

The plan seems brilliant and bound to succeed, until Schmautz fails to scratch of any of the clay from the tablet. It gouges and stretches but refuces to seporate. Baruman tosses our a scraps form his pouch, including a few copper coins that go rolling away. The construct imediately focuses on the nearest "trash" and begins to efficiently clean the waste from the area laeving the Library floor clean and clear.
It wont take the automoton long to clean the scattered items.
What will you do in the meantime?

Shmautz charges the automoton and jumps over its reaching implentents of death and destructions order and cleanliness while jabbing it with his dagger.
Elph lashes out twice with his whip but is blockd by the dustpan and broom handle.
Baruman loads his sling and hurls a stone at the cleaning contraption and scores a solid hit

The cleaner whirls and smacks a boom at shmauts while its other implements move to protect itself
1 damage to Shmautz

Elph moves to the side for a better shot and fires twice while Shmautz strikes at the cleaning golems who twirls the dustbin to block the attacks.

You prove too much and with a shudder the construct collapses to the floor with a compartment full of dirts and odd items pops open spilling the contents to the floor.

Amid so the trash you find a few obviously magical items. 2 potions, a scroll, and a cloak. The room proves to be the Rhetoric and Law section. You search a while but find no books of interest in this section and Servitor does not react to anything.

After the ghost leaves you examine Baruman and after a few moments he recovers enough to speak. You quickly leave to library then make the trek back to the base.

Baruman is takin in by the priests to recover and they indicate no lasting damage was done but he will need to rest at least a week. Elph informs you that he will stay with Baruman but goes with you to talk with Falpip, the wizard, who identifies the magic you gathered. The two potions were of Haling and Giant Strength, and the scroll is for Restoration, and can sure most afflictions. The cloak you took is a Cloak of Displacement. Elph and Baruman only ask for 1 item each and say you can take one other item as you will continue adventuring.

Setting Back Out from the West Gate
Schmauts stands at the gate waiting for his new comrades to finish getting their gear together before setting out.

The Library is some ways to the SW of the swamp, so well over an hours travel from the base. After everyone has gathered up you set outSeren came in with the wagon train and so are familiar with the main road through the swamp, which you use to go back out. Shmautz explains the road is a recent addition and was only completed in its current well packed state a couple of weeks ago. Previously is was a simple crude mud track through the swamp and often required trudging through low water ways between the islands. The road and bridges let you cross the swamp in relative comfort. As you do you spot a variety of snakes, frogs, lizards, insects, mice, birds and a few crocodiles. Once past the swamp however you start seeing larger creatures known as dinosaurs. Some of these are the size of other beast but a few herds you spot are of beast the size of a cottage or larger. Shmautz recounts the danger of these beast he had last time where a predator the size of a tower (trex) started a stampede that almost got him and his companions killed in the ensuing chaos.Crossing the grassy grazing lands of the dinosaurs with it occasional hills and woods you reach the Library outer wall well before noon. The walls are well over 30 feet high and several hundred feet long. The tops of the wall have odd floating spheres attacked by thin wires floating and bobbing in the breeze. Each wall has a double door set into the middle. Around the Remnant, and along the way, you see occasional ruble form destroyed structures Only the Remnant appear to have weathered the ravages of the Breaking and time since then.

The orbs, floating above the wall, are about 1 foot diameter and bob lazily in the breeze. Each is tethered to the wall by a thin cord. From the north gate you look inside and see an open area around a single large building that is in even better condition than the wall that surround it. The surrounding courtyard is of paved stones set tight without mortar. The building is made of stone with windows on the top of the first floor and filling much of the second floor. On a large plaque over the main doors directly across from you you read Library of Paphos in large bold lettering. The door is of Bronze and like the walls is decorated with mural like etchings and carvings. The area is quiet, clean, and empty.

Oh! Hello Seren looks up into the face of the apparition. Seemingly unphased by the terrifying Visage.
Where might one find information on the crossing over of planar boundaries. Especially anything regarding the nature of the flow of time and fate in these zones. Nothing to academic though. Its been a long time since I've read anything so mundane as a book.

The ghost fades with a faint Do find one of the library attendants if you require assistance with anythingas you move on.

In the history section Seren is able to identify their filing systems and after a few minutes finds a couple of items regarding the planes during the Dawn Age. Apparently early during that time most travel was though naturally forming planar conduits that were only stabilized by magic. However with the creation and growth of the Infinite Tower this became increasingly uncommon. By the time of the Dawn war all naturally occurring extraplanar travel was done by way of the Tower. Unfortunately the only items he can find regarding temporal irregularities deals with the outer planes. Many of the planes experience the passage of time with some being slower, others faster, or changng randomly from slow to fast.

Several animals, creatures, and plants are recognizable but there are a few you fail to identify. Each you recognize looks to be placed in the appropriate climate and environment.

You find noting amiss or dangerous. It is a fancy door in a magical land of enchantment and wonder. Push to open.

The doors swing open easily to reveal another coridow running east west but to the south east around a corner you see . . .
(10 - Study Hall) a hall which is filled with rows of writing tables and high
stools. Mounds of parchment are set on multiple tables around the room. In the far SE corner is a doorway on the east wall. As you look around you see a figure hunched over at one of the tables.

The figure is hidden behind the intervening tables and chairs. Moving quietly to gt a better look you guess it to be a medium sized humanoid of some kind. However it is hunched over and crouched low, preventing a clear view without moving well into the room. What you can see are old tattered cloths that are the only dirty thing you have seen in the Library. You hear faint mummerings coming from the figure.

The figure does not react as Seren 'drifts' towards them but at the sound of their voice the figure jumps and twirls to face you The big one, the evil one in the castle of flowers -- he is coming! It is
coming! The old man screams while waiving a small cracked crystal. Still stooped and showing extreme age the man appears to be a filthy, malnourished, and frantic human.

As he sees the Librarian he mutters I didn't disturb the books. See see? they are all neat and clean, neat and clean and falls to incoherent mumbling as he sinks lower and lower once again until he sits on the floor playing with his crystal.

Having moved further into the room you get a look into some of the other rooms. Several (7) are chambers filled with tables and benches. Servitor points towards the door beyond the muttering crazed elderly man.

The man continues to gibber and mutter nonsense 'He is wrapped in fire and so cruel!'
Amid the scraps of paper are some scribblings with occasional blocks off letters totally foreign to you

As you moved over too the man you glance into the adjoining rooms

(7 - Study) You see a chamber filled with simple furniture, including tables and benches.

(9 - Lounge) You see a well lit room with comfortable furniture including couches, plush chairs, side tables, and desks with chairs. (11 - Study) Looking into the room beyond you can tell this room was once a study. The room is furnished wish small tables for individual or small groups and there are an assortment of books and papers neatly organized throughout the room (12) At the back of the area is a heavy metal door.

Doors block you from looking into rooms to the north-east and north-west

The heavy metal door lacks a handle but does have a key hole as well as an odd bar across its width that can be pressed inwards towards the door. (door push bar) The walls around it are of heavy stone, like those you passed through upon entering the building. This is likely a rear exit.

When you check on the man his stained lips and the abseence of the berries indicates he is at least somewhat aware of his surrounding though he does not seem to relate well you anything you say. As Seren profers the soothing herbs he idly plucks them up and pops them into his cheek. The herbs do seem to cam him as he alternately chews and sucks on them as he looks over his scrawlings and mutters 'He is not human I tell you. Not at all. He want to come back but we must not allow that.

(11 - Study) Looking into the room you can tell this room was once a study. The room is furnished wish small tables for individual or small groups and there are an assortment of books and papers neatly organized throughout the room.

Entering you note that though evverything has been tidies there are a few items that do not look to belong to the library. A faded cloak, a nice leather satchel, a tattered hat, and a few glass beads in a little tray

The dark one weathed in flame and chaos. The seeker of undeath. His servant are already here. Beware them for they are not what they seem. and he cringes slightly clutching at a small pendant on his neck inset with a large crystal orb. I've seen it. Sen too much. He looked back at me Can't hide. He is comming and the man begins crying and muttering in a language that sounds familiar like a cross between common and arcane words.

The man is a bit ajitated at the touch but does not shrug it off and after a few moment calms down a bit.

Though the man still rambles, not making sense as far as you can tell, he does seem th understand you and response to prompts and and but no useful informative is gained. He seems insistent that there is a threat growing nearby, hidden or disguised, and that it will have a great impact on the world at large.

Moving to the north east corner you inspect the door before opening it carefully. Inside is a dark and cluttered room. Shelves line all of the the walls and an assortment of containers and machanisms are scattered around the room on tables and the shelves. Near the center of the room a thick column that glows at it top near the vaulted ceiling provides the only light.

Looking around Shmautz sees a few cleaning supplies, brooms, mops, dusters, along with a multitude of scraps. Though the floor is not the neat polished surfaces found elsewhere in the library it is still mostly dust and dirt free. A large bin filled with most of the trash and junk sits against the far wall in a corner. It looks like someone started using other surfaces and containers after the loading the hopper became impossible. He also recognizes a couple of automatons that do not appear to be working similar to the cleaner he had to fight previously.

The items strewn about are on top of the piles and surfaces scattered around the room. The pack has is covered in a light fur with images of gryphons on the back and flap as well as a few feathers. The metal plate has the image of a feather quill and scrolls with clasps that allow it to be clamped onto books, its current books having fallen to tatters. The skull is about as big as a hand and has a pair of horn and sharp fangs though it look vaguely simian. The opaque orb has a vague discoloration in the middle.

Servitor raises an arm again pointing at the column Alternate access point identified. and begins to glow. The columns emits a beam of light the baths servitor for a moment before changing color and flashing over the monkey.
The monkey freezes for a moment before jerking as the light covering it fades The library facilities have been closed due to prolonged absence of civic services. A list of needed services and repairs is being compiled. Please provide certification of services you are licensed to perform. And the monkey begins listing items, apparently in chronological order, that have fallen below the libraries required service levels. This continues for several minutes. As this goes on the central column's hum increases in pitch and volume as the light atop the column pulses, similarly gaining brightness with each pulse.

Closing the door without problem, the clockwork creatures simply watching you, even though Seren still has that skull. You try to talk to the maniac about the storage or workshop room but all you get from him is some rambling nonsense about hum hum pop goes the monkey followed by some crazy giggles and laughter while he smiles then flinches and snarls Nasty monkey bites. Not fair.

The man in easily distracted allowing Seren to search the mans "collection" but other than the odd inkwell, quill scraps of paper, a small knife, and an assortment of strings, bits of wood and metal, noting of values, worth, importance, or use can be found.

Servitor did indicate to either fight or fix the pillar and monkeys in the service room 8. Monkeys appear about 1 in 30 seconds
You have one other room to the West you have not opened, b6 the yellow eye token

As you head back to the main Library intersection you note a door to the west you have not explored yet. (at the yellow eye) Perhaps there is an access point beyond it to resolve this situation witout further conflict.

After the initial rush of water several linches deep as the door was opened the flow has dwindles to a slow trickle. The fountain and aparently no longer woring drainage are the cause of the garden turning into a swamp. The room has a few objects covered in vegitation including a couple benches and small tables as well as a few other items so shrouded by the growth that if it was not for their regular shape and an ocasional spot of stone or metal beneath the leaves you might think it just another bush.

As you begin looking through the thick overgrown foliage Seren notes a small tendril pull back as a leaf is moved. Quickly tracing the motion more leaves are moves to expose a small slime that squirts a potent acid when exposed.
1 damage to Seren
Though the slime is small and not able to squirt far Seren suspects these are what have been damaging the plants. The slime likely keeps other pest away from the plants but if there are too many slime, as she suspects, then their acidic trails would scar the plant, matching what she noted earlier. As long as you search carefully you should be able to avoid further incidents with the slime, which try to get out of your way but are not fast nor smart enough to do so. Likely if you waded through the plant without caution you would soon be covered in acid burns.

Now that Seren is aware of the slime she is confident she can avoid them with caution and moves to look around the garden.

As you move beneath the ancient oak tree, leaves flutter and rustle. The sound of the leaves sounds like a faint scratchy whisper. Seek the book where pages rustle and branches speak. What knowledge does nature yearn to share? After you hear the phrase the whisper disappears no matter how you listen. Searching around the tree all you can find are the initials AL carved on a small knurl of wood at the base.

Continuing your search you find a pedestal. On it is a plaque identifying the creation of the library garden as a gift from Artenia Lien. On the back you find another smaller plack plaque that says
When the celestial dance is in harmony, you'll decipher their messages.

You get the impression this had nothing to do with the undead. They are a recent anomaly.
The celestial dance refers to the movement of bodies in the heavens, starts, planets, moons. Druids are typically closer to the nature of this world so this likely refers to something about the three moons of this world. It is common lore that the moons are associated with the three primal forces. Order(perfection vs entropy), Existence (creation vs oblivion), Change (static vs dynamic)

Seren is slightly surprised to feel how alert the he is. It 'greets' her and upon learning of her desire to know about the druid it shares several images of the druid sitting and leaning against the tree reading. But the tree isn't aware of anything more that might be used to open our activate the pedestal. It suggest talking with the druid or librarian. Both are known to still be about though they don't visit often anymore.

Dean is all to willing to discuss anything with your. Among the topics discussed is access to the library. To activate the portals you will need an citizens badge assigned to you or a servants pass. Dean does not have one he can share at this time but is sure the expedition will likely find some and Dean can help atune them to the city transport matrix. This will allow you or other member of the expedition to travel quicker between the various civic transport nodes once you find each of them.

Seren looks over the book and Dean offers what lore he has if asked.

He notes the crazed man and offers to take him out of the library saying that he knew the man years ago. A research scholar that found the city before Danoll and the others lead the expedition here. He had arrived with a team of adventurers and consulted Dean then vanished. Dean is a bit surprised to see the man alive but offers that he may be the best for getting information from him, and it might be nice to have a living person in the house again. But you are welcome to take the man back to the base if you wish.

After talking and looking around the library, leaving the maintenance room alone for now, you return with Dean to his house after the apparition informs you that the library closes at sunset and floats staring at you till you leave. The traxport from the library to Deans house saves you some trouble and you make it back to the base without any trouble in the swamp. Resting the night on a soft bed and having a couple of good meals you feel much refreshed.

Continuing from Westward Expansion

Visiting the great library of Paophos
The walls are well over 30 feet high and several hundred feet long. The tops of the wall have odd floating spheres attacked by thin wires floating and bobbing in the breeze. Each wall has a two sets of double doors spaced to divide the wall in thirds. Around the Remnant, you see occasional ruble form destroyed structures Only the Remnant appear to have weathered the ravages of the Breaking and time since then.

From the north west gate you look inside and see an open area around a single large building that is in even better condition than the wall that surround it. The surrounding courtyard is of paved stones set tight without mortar. The building is made of stone with windows on the top of the first floor and filling much of the second floor. On a large plaque over the main doors directly across from you you read Library of Paphos in large bold lettering. The door is of Bronze and like the walls is decorated with mural like etchings and carvings. The area is quiet, clean, and empty.

Crossing to the courtyard to the doors which respond at the lightest touch. With a click and slight whoosh of air the doors open revealing a brightly lit interior. Inside the doors is a large marble floored entry with collums surround the high ceiling. Light enters from raised windows showing the bare room to be free of dust or any damage. At the far end of the 30 foot room is another doorway with small rooms or large alcoves set to either side.

Looking in you hear faint sounds of distant movement and soft voices echoing through the building interior

After entering Blornvid moves past the librarian and to Skeeve and soon stops dancing

As you step through the doorway you feel something like passing a Barrier but much less stressful and the compulsion to dance and sing fades. However you now feel a chill terminated from the librarian like eating snow to fast.
You need needs to roll two save (2d6) tests.
The first is to resist the dancing curse from the fey. This is repeated until you succeed or leave the library.
The second is to resist 1 psychic damage from exposure to the ghost. This must be repeated this each round you are within close range, 25 feet, of it.

The ghost explaining the city has a couple public matrix nodes but inside the city there's was a private network for use by citizens. The library is tied into this network but due the the calamity most of the city nodes are inoperable. To use it you wild need to be granted access to it by a civil or martial authority.