A/N: Yes, the world of Exile (Avernum) is still the property of Jeff Vogel and Spiderweb Software, not me. I therefore promise to return to the game, unharmed, the following persons: Kelner, Captain Brehon, Bill, Mairwen, Caitlin, O'Rourke, the Scimitar Caitlin, Aydin, Josie, Vikner, and Aimee; and places: Tower of Magi, the Cult Cavern, Elderan's tower, Fort Dranlon, northern islands, and the Empire Archives after this bit of fun.
The trip back to Avernum via portal had been even more painful than the last one, or maybe they'd just forgotten how much it hurt. As they emerged into the Tower again, they happened to meet Kelner in the hallway.
"Oh, it's good that you're back," he said. "Is there anything I can do to help you out? Thanks to your deal with the vahnatai, you've really become rather important."
"So, what does a secretary do here?" said Jenneke.
"Right now, I'm writing a message to send to Solberg, telling him of your exploits among the vahnatai. As secretary, I'm the liaison between the Tower and the Avernum government," said Kelner. "I write letters, pacify bureaucrats, and pass on orders. Solberg's a member of the Triad, of course, but he's trapped in his tower far to the north. And he's a good friend of mine. I hope this letter can get to him. I'm not allowed to tell you more, I'm afraid, though."
"What kind of orders?" said Jenneke.
"Occasionally, the bureaucrats have something they need done which either takes a lot of magic or is near here. Then they tell me about it and stick me with finding someone to do the dirty work. Or wet work," said Kelner. "So if you're ever in need of a mission, just ask."
"You got anything now?" said Jenneke.
"As a matter of fact, there is something you can do," replied Kelner. "There is a serpent cult situated to the northeast. If you can slay its high priest, report back to me, and I will put in a word to get you a higher clearance. It's the best I can do. Alas we know little about the cult."
"What has the cult been up to?" asked Michael.
"Some months ago, a patrol traveling the tunnels to the northeast disappeared. Then another, then another. Spies and magical scrying revealed a band of renegade sliths," said Kelner with an apologetic look at Thissa, "led by a powerful high priest running some sort of perverse snake temple up there. They're dangerous, and we need them removed. Period."
"So, have you always been secretary here?" said Nigel.
"No. Once, I was a lowly student. Then the archmage Linda summoned a powerful demon here. We could hold it, but we couldn't control it. We were all in great danger," said Kelner. "I found adventurers and helped them dispatch the creature. As a reward, I was promoted to this post."
"What happened to Linda?" said Adrianna.
Kelner shuddered, and said, "I prefer not to talk of her. She has been taken far away. She is trying to worm her way back into the Tower of Magi, but I"m doing everything I can to prevent it. Giving her a chance to do such harm again would be madness."
"It certainly would," said Adrianna.
"Well, we'll see what we can do on that serpent cult," said Jenneke. "Thanks for talking with us."
Leaving the Tower of Magi, they passed some pleasant small talk with the guards, and continued north. Here, inscribed on the cave floor was a massive pentagram. It hadn't been used for a long time, with mold and lichen now overgrowing the inscription. Despite the years of disuse, there remained a faint smell of sulfur in the air.
"Probably where they did the summoning," said Feodoric, with a shudder. "That was a nasty time."
"I can imagine," said Adrianna. "Summoning demons ... I know they say it's a shortcut to the greatest power, but ... I think it costs too much."
"OK, let's try this path," said Jenneke, and he led the way down a narrow, isolated tunnel.
After some time, he stopped short, hearing a clear hissing, growing louder quickly.
"Let's back up to a place where we can observe," said Jenneke.
Before they could do that, however, a band of slithzerikai came into sight, surrounded by huge snakes. All seemed to be moving impossibly fast, as though hasted, and they charged after the platoon.
"That must be some of the cult members we're after," said Jenneke. "Stay very alert."
They moved on, and finally found a small cavern, and just inside the mouth, there were lines of slith statues.
"Thissss isss it," said Thissa. "Shame, that they follow ssssuch wayssss."
"I don't think we'll be able to change their minds, Thissa," said Jenneke.
"No, it will be killingssss," said Thissa, readying his spear. "Let'sss continue."
The caves were filled with the echoing, constant sound of chanting and hissing. The statues of sliths was more than adequate evidence as to who lived in these caverns—and it seemed most unlikely that the sliths here would be friendly to humans.
As they explored, in one corner of a brighter chamber within the tunnels, they saw a huge pit from which they heard comingled moans and hisses.
"I'd rather not go down there," said Jenneke, "unless we must. Unlikely we can get up from there."
"There must be a way up," said Adrianna.
"We'll find it," said Jenneke. "Damn it—how are we going to get ..."
"Never mind," said Nigel, stringing his bow. "We'll have to fight from here." The onslaught of javelins underscored his words.
They fought, despite the disadvantage of their position, and the slithzerikai chieftain fell before the power of their assault.
"Well, that might be the minimum mission," said Jenneke, "but these guys are probably still a threat. We better clean the whole nest."
"Agreed," said Thissa.
Continuing through, they started down one of the pits, finding it impossible to control the descent, and at the bottom, they were rubbing sore backs and legs.
"Well, we definitely are stuck down here," said Jenneke, "until we find another way out."
"I bet it leads into that building the sliths were attacking us from," said Feodoric.
"Hissing's a lot louder," observed Adrianna. "Must be where they keep their snakes."
"Thanks for the cheerful thought," said Jenneke, and he paused to give her a kiss. "OK, let's go."
Moving out, they saw a foul, reeking cavern, filled with huge, agitated serpents and the bones of their previous meals. Dominating the cavern, flanked on either side by giant bonfires, was a large natural bowl. In the center, at the bottom of the depression was a giant black altar, surrounded by snakes of various sizes. The cavern was filled with the constant, sibilant sound of the serpents' hissing, but the altar itself seemed to be humming, filling the air with nerve-jarring vibrations and driving the serpents into a frenzy.
"OK," said Jenneke, "rest of us will try to beat them back, Michael, you and Feodoric see if you can't do something with that altar."
They managed to get down to the altar—five feet high, twice as wide, covered with carvings of snakes. There were many stone knobs, as though to provide a way for living snakes to climb and writhe around it. The humming was agonizing at this level of proximity, and Michael and Feodoric began their counter-chants. Finally, the incantation undeniably succeeded. The energy of the altar had been powerful but fragile, the humming died down and faded away, and the remaining snakes became less agitated.
Searching the area, and killing snakes as they went, they found a block of cells, only one of which held a living prisoner.
Although half-starved, and showing definite signs of having been beaten, the man's face lit up when he saw the group, and he made it to his feet.
"Well met!" he said. "I am Captain Brehon of the army of Avernum."
"I'm Jenneke, my wife Adrianna, this is Nigel, Thissa, Feodoric, and Brother Michael," said Jenneke. "Also Avernum Army. How'd you get captured?"
"I was stationed at Mertis. We were investigating a disturbance to the south. My patrol was ambushed by the sliths. We were all caught. I was waiting here to die, up til now anyway. The sliths have a bizarre cult here, as I'm sure you've seen. They feed us to the snakes and then try to talk to them. I was scheduled to be eaten soon, but I'm still planning to escape." He pulled a sword from beneath his pallet, and said, "This is my secret."
"How were you planning to escape?" said Jenneke.
"I'll follow you out. I have a sword. Sword first or feet first, I'm getting out of this place," replied Captain Brehon.
"We're amazed to find someone still alive," said Adrianna.
"I'm amazed to be alive," said Captain Brehon. "These sliths are mindless brutes. No offense." He added with a nod to Thissa. "Vicious and always hungry."
"What happened to the rest of your patrol?" said Jenneke. "You're the only human we found."
"Eight good, strong lads and lasses, and I'm the only one left, damn them. All of them died before that altar," said Captain Brehon. "That altar just outside. You can't imagine what it's like to sleep near that evil thing! It hisses all the time. You can't escape it. And it affects the snakes."
"How sssso?" asked Thissa.
"They go wild when they're near it. Makes 'em fast and vicious. They'll tear you apart!" said Captain Brehon, shivering as he seemed to think of what had happened to his comrades.
"How'd you manage to get the sword?" said Jenneke.
"I found it here. We weren't the last troopers to be caught by those damned lizards. Somehow one of them snuck a blade in here," he said, showing the pitted, slightly bent short sword. "With you clearing the way, I should be able to escape."
"So you're coming with, then?" said Jenneke. "We killed the chief. Now how can we get out of here?"
"I know that much. I saw one of them leave when they made me watch one of my comrades get ate," said Captain Brehon. "They got a secret passage at the northwest corner. Leads upstairs, I think."
Following Captain Brehon's directions, they found the concealed passage, and made their way up into a grim temple—smaller cousin to the reptile-filled shrine below. The air was heavy with the smell of incense and lizard, the altar large, black and covered with horrifying carvings—and surrounded by slith priests who immediately attacked. Fighting their way through, they finally made sure that the cult had been thoroughly and completely defeated, making life a little more safe in that corner of Avernum.
At the mouth of the cavern, Captain Brehon bowed to them, and said, "If we meet again, I owe you a lot. I will tell all I find of what you have done for me. Fight on for Avernum. Good luck to you."
"Thanks," said Jenneke, "and good luck to you."
Once the captain had gone, Jenneke said, "We'll go tell Kelner. Who knows how long it'll be until we're this way again."
Returning to the Tower of Magi, they went to report to Kelner.
Jenneke said, "As requested, we have destroyed the serpent cult. Their evil high priest won't bother anyone any more."
"Nor any of their lower priests," said Nigel.
Kelner nodded happily and began writing a letter. "I am now going to write the Castle to tell them of your bold deed. You should go there soon and see if you are now qualified for higher clearance. Thank you for your assistance," said Kelner. "Oh, I almost forgot—there's a room with three books down on this south end. They could be quite useful for research. One of them is mine, feel free to read it."
"Thank you," said Adrianna.
Finding the room in question, they studied for a time, and then when all were ready, they went back to the quarters the Tower was providing, rested and cleaned up, and then left the Tower again.
"We'll go to the boat, and hunt this tower down," said Jenneke. "Maybe we'll get a lead on the last Soul."
"That'd sure be nice," said Nigel.
"Not likely," said Jenneke, "but since at least two people have said we should go up there, I hope we find something good."
After rowing north, they found a secure place to stash their boat, and made their way through a very large swamp in the middle of which, like a giant looming toadstool was the tower that was the current objective.
As they moved through, they found a jail, and after killing the two guards, opened up a cell.
"Hi," said Jenneke.
"Hello," said the man, tracing a symbol on his forehead, "I'm Bill."
"What's that symbol on your head?" said Adrianna.
"It's my curse. Elderan put it on me when he captured me. It's a new technique he's developing for keeping people docile," said Bill. "Experimental."
"What's the curse?" said Feodoric.
"Elderan puts it on all his prisoners. If we step out of the tower, we die. I'll live the rest of my life in here. So will Bill," said Bill. "But until then, I can try to be useful."
"Useful to whom?" said Adrianna. "Surely not Elderan!"
"Useful to Avernum. I try to pick up information when I can," said Bill. "For example, did you know that this tower was used to stare records?"
"What sort of records?" said Jenneke.
"Elderan was the chief record keeper. All sorts of information passed through here, all about the Empire's forces down here," said Bill. "But not long ago, I heard that the records were moved!"
"Moved where?" said Jenneke.
"To one of the northern islands, a bunch of scattered islands to the northwest. Hard to get into," said Bill. "In Empire territory. Still it's interesting knowledge. Imagine what harm someone getting in there could do!"
"Yeah, I can see that," said Jenneke.
Elderan had had great plans when he entered the portal to Avernum. He had wanted to use his considerable skills to break the rebellion. He had pictured this war as his great chance to excel and attain great power. He had not expected it to end this way, and as the final blow fell, and he fell to the floor, the expression on his face was one of bewilderment.
Finding Elderan's inner sanctum, they were disappointed to find that most of the shelves had been emptied. However, further searching revealed that the removal of documents had not yet hit the desk. While sensitive information had probably been removed, there remained papers which were accounts of troop movement, which might be valuable to the regular army.
"Check this," said Adrianna, unfolding a letter, "Elderan, it is no longer safe keeping so many records there. Your tower is too exposed, and it would be a disaster if the map to the portal was lost especially as it nears completion. The portal must remain secret. It will end this war. The documents will be stored in our archives, on the northern island, far from prying Avernum eyes."
"Hah!" said Jenneke.
"There's more," said Adrianna. "I have enclosed your key to access. Guard it well. Few of them exist. Signed Garzahd. And there's a map. The archives are on a map somewhere slightly north and east of Fort Pyrog."
"Oh, so this is the key?" said Jenneke, picking up an ivory key. "I'll take that and guard it well."
Continued examination revealed a grimoire detailing how to open a magical portal with a note tucked in the pages reading, "Zan, an archive key is misplaced. I think it's still at the base of the shaft. Find it, and make sure the rest of the portal records end up in the archive. Elderan."
"What a buffoon," said Nigel.
"OK, let's go tell Bill Elderan's dead," said Jenneke. "That should take care of the curse."
They made their way through the tower, the eerie silence still present—but now they knew it was because they were alone except for the prisoners in the jail.
"We killed Elderan," said Jenneke, opening the door, "so I guess you can escape now."
"That's good. I am glad to hear that you have avenged me," said Bill. "However, until I unlock the secret of this curse, I can't go anywhere."
"Won't you starve to death?" said Adrianna.
"No. Elderan was a cunning mage, and he liked to save himself work. Food appears for us here, every day. Repulsive, but it sustains life. Hopefully, we can be freed from this prison someday, just not today," said Bill. "Still, thank you for thinking of me."
"Well, you could have free reign of the tower?" said Adrianna. "Use the lab and stuff for Avernum?"
"That is a thought," said Bill. "Yes, thank you."
"Well, we gotta get going," said Jenneke. "We'll unlock you both and then maybe you'll have better luck solving the problem of the curse."
They made their way out of the tower, and to the boat.
"We'll stop at Dranlon," said Jenneke. "Gotta pass there anyhow."
They made their way in, and entered Mairwen's office.
Jenneke said, "We thought you'd like to know, Elderan is dead."
Mairwen nodded. "Well done! You have done far better than expected!" She handed Jenneke a pouch heavy with gold. "I have also sent word of your deeds to the Castle. You should go there soon. You may have earned a higher clearance."
"There were a couple prisoners in the tower, they can't leave because of some mystic tattoo curse," said Feodoric. "I don't know if you have troops who could hold the tower?"
"An excellent idea," said Mairwen. "I'll have to see what we can manage. Thank you for your work."
As they moved about the fort, they met the priestess, Caitlin, and she and Michael turned to talking about potions, and locations for ingredients.
"I'm not supposed to say where you can find graymold," said Caitlin looking angry. "The knowledge is too secret to tell to people who need it. Of course, I am allowed to mention that if you took a boat down river to the west, and rowed a way north, the view is excellent. It's especially nice at the head waters of a certain river, as I mentioned, to the west a ways and then north. You never know what you might find." She underscored her words with a significant wink, and Michael nodded his understanding.
Nigel, meanwhile found himself in a small cramped office tucked into the back of the barracks.
"I'm O'Rourke," said the ferret-faced man as Jenneke and Adrianna stepped in behind Nigel.
"What's your assignment out here?" said Nigel.
"I'm an Avernum agent out here on the front," said O'Rourke. "I'm supposed to be doing covert work and such, but stepping outside this fort is a sure way to invite quick death. Unfortunate. There is a serious matter that needs taking up with the giants."
"Perhaps we can help with the giants?" said Jenneke.
"Empire's no more fond of the giants than us, and has driven them into the caverns to the north," said O'Rourke. I have a quest regarding them, with rich reward if you can complete it."
"We're intrigued," said Jenneke. "Continue."
"Giants we've questioned have said that they have three icons, very ancient, made of a strange gray stone. They're owned by giants living to the north. We'd like to get them, to examine them and break giant morale. Bring them to me, and be rewarded," said O'Rourke.
They left the fort, and Jenneke suggested they look for the crystal cavern before making this trip, and as they walked, found the ruins of a mine, buildings probably abandoned when the Empire invaded. Suddenly, humans walked out of camouflaged crevices, surrounding the platoon. Jenneke drew his sword, and one stepped forward, unarmed.
"Wait," she said. "We're Avernites!"
"Watch for it to be a trick," Jenneke muttered, but he indicated that he would talk with the woman.
The woman said, "We're in hiding, but we know you. We've heard of you. Come to camp with us. We have things to tell you."
Cautiously, they followed to the well-hidden camp. There were ten Avernites here, but not refugees—fighters, well-armed and skilled in stealth.
"I am Caitlin of the Scimitar," said the woman who'd greeted them. "We've heard of you, visitors to the vahnatai, and we know that you travel. We are looking for several Empire supply caches in this area, hidden and trapped. And we have been given rewards to give to those who help us destroy them."
"Destroy?" said Jenneke. "Can't they be used?"
"Afraid not, the traps make it so all we can do is destroy them," she said. "If you find and destroy any caches, return and let us know. And join us in a meal, so we may hear of your adventures," said Caitlin.
They had a long friendly meal and talk, and finally parted ways.
"Now, this is the Crystal Tunnel," said Jenneke. "One of the more amazing places in all Avernum."
The walls were indeed covered with glittering crystals, but then they rounded a corner and walked right into a band of Empire troops.
"Oh, fuck," said Jenneke. "Why'd you have to spoil the view?"
"There's probably more of them," said Nigel, when that battle was over.
"Well, we better go take care of that," said Jenneke. "This tunnel ... this cave, it's Avernum's."
The platoon continued, the beauty increasing until more enemy troops came, evidently having heard the battle that just ended. These forces, however, were no more successful in stopping the platoon's progress, and so they continued, sneaking up to the central huge chamber. The glowing fungus revealed huge, shimmering clusters of crystals, filling the air with rainbow. What's more, the crystals were vibrating, emitting a continuous, soothing hum which calmed the nerves and alleviated their exhaustion.
Straight ahead, however, they saw a large contingent of Empire troops who had set up camp inside the cavern.
"Time to take it back for Avernum," said Jenneke, and with a gesture, he ordered the attack to start.
They defeated the dervish and his accompanying soldiers with astonishing ease, and took a moment to bask in the thrilling sensation of the crystal cavern. As they left, heading back to the boat, Adrianna expressed her astonishment at such a place.
Moving to the boat, they continued their progress, passing through the red pass checkpoint and back to the boat they had hidden until they found a remote fortress, and upon finding a way in, were struck with a wave of cold. It was easy to see why—ice was below them, keeping the water unnaturally cold by some powerful Empire magic. It shimmered eerily, and undulated gently, suggesting a boat could be piloted through it.
"Why is it so cold here?" said Jenneke, drawing his cloak closer around himself.
"Archives," said Adrianna. "It's better for the books."
Finding a boat, they navigated their way through the chill ice, and came to a door.
"Archive of the Empire, Subterranean Branch number one," read Jenneke. "Great, we found the place."
They stepped inside the inner section, and it seemed they passed through an invisible barrier, while it was still cold, it wasn't nearly as bone-chilling as on the other side.
"Access restricted," read Jenneke. "Official permission and ivory key required. Got ivory key, check. Official permission," he patted his sword hilt, "check."
Woven into the carpet was a symbol which glowed fiery red when they attempted to walk past.
"Look," said Adrianna. "It looks like a keyhole."
"Sure enough," said Jenneke, and he put the key in, turned it, and the rune quieted and let them pass.
"I'm sure that's not all the guards on the place," said Adrianna. "I've never been in an archive before, just heard about them."
"I know," said Feodoric, "and the statues creep me out."
Suddenly the statues moved, and one said, "Speak the pass-phrase, intruders! Prove your authorization to be here!"
"Fuck you!" said Jenneke. As the statues continued to move toward them, he said, "I guess that wasn't it."
As they explored, they found a group of cells marked "Prison Block B", with two very dead corpses within.
"They're holding prisoners in here?" said Jenneke.
"It's secure," said Adrianna. "There must be at least one more ... but maybe the prisoners won't be dead there."
"We can always hope," said Jenneke.
Opening another door, they found themselves at the edge of a platform without a railing, below, a floor thirty feet down, apparently of solid stone, with no obvious way down, but the words inscribed at the edge of the ledge "Leap of Faith".
"There's the stairs and other rooms we haven't investigated yet," said Jenneke, moving back from the edge. "We'll leave that for now."
"Card catalogs—that's useful," said Feodoric, "unfortunately, I'm not finding anything."
Nigel said, "Here's something ... Type: Ritual. Contents: Teleportation Augmenter Access Ritual Location: L two, twenty-six, forty-two in parenthesis, shelf one, scroll thirty-five."
"Got that," said Michael. "Now all we have to find is that location. Probably downstairs."
"Sure," said Jenneke, "but let's make sure we've been everywhere up here before going down to level 2. No point in having to keep going back and forth unless we really have to."
They continued searching through card catalogs, and finally found one other interesting entry.
Adrianna said, "Here we go—Type: Map, Contents: Teleportation Augmenter and Path Thereto, Location – L one, parenthetically twenty-seven, twelve, shelf three, scroll eighteen."
"Got that, too," said Michael.
They continued searching and suddenly found a small, wizened man, terrified huddled in the corner, wearing long, silk robes with the crown symbol of the Empire on the chest.
Stuttering in terror, he said, "I ... I ... I... I'm Vik ... Vik ... Vikner. P-P-Please don't hurt me!"
"I'll think about it," said Jenneke. "Tell us who you are at once!"
"I ... I'm the archivalist ... archivist ..." said Vikner. "I keep the records."
"Your job sounds important," said Feodoric.
"I ... I ... I'm just a librarian. I didn't want to come to Avernum! Please, don't hurt me," begged Vikner.
"No one wants to come to Avernum," said Jenneke.
"I'd never even heard of it until I was br ... br ... brought down here! I'll help you!" said Vikner. "D-d—don't hurt me!"
"Help us, and we may spare you," said Jenneke.
He started to shiver uncontrollably, and then calmed himself. "I can help, Yes! There's lots of stuff here! And I'll tell you where the index is," said Vikner. "And lots of g-g-g-guar-guards! Guards! But I can't stop them."
"I think we already found the index," said Adrianna. "So, you're telling us this is just a giant library?"
"Mostly yes. That's what's here! Archives!" said Vikner. "All sort of records, most of them b-b-boring!"
"How boring are they?" said Jenneke.
"Lots of accounting ledgers and forms. We have to s-save them!" said Vikner. "But there are prisoners, too."
"So, it was your idea to store prisoners here, too?" said Nigel.
"Nooo, oh no. I d-d-didn't want prisoners here. I'm just a librarian," said Vikner. "But they wouldn't listen. There are two mages downstairs."
"Who are they?" said Jenneke.
"They're Avernites. That's all I know," said Vikner. "Please don't hurt me."
"All depends on how well you co-operate," said Jenneke, trying to determine how much risk there would be in letting this man go free. "What sort of records are stored here?"
"Everything. Countless things. All sorts of things," said Vikner. "It's amazing how much is here."
"For example?" said Jenneke, a menacing tone in his voice.
"Ummm... OK, I'll tell you. Please," begged Vikner, "don't hurt me."
"Well, out with it," said Jenneke. "We're waiting."
"The Empire ... we're ... they're building a big portal. They'll bring people down to Avernum. Soldiers ... lots of them," said Vikner. "You can find out about the portal ... here ... in the records."
"Where in the records?" said Adrianna. "There's a lot to sort through."
He pointed east, and said, "Look in the indexes. There! They say where everything is! Look there though, you won't have a chance otherwise. There's just too many records. Please don't hurt me."
"Fine," said Jenneke, "we'll spare you. You can go."
"Leave my post? I'd be killed! The punishment for abandoning a post is death!" cried Vikner.
"Fine, have it your way," said Jenneke, irritated, "we're tired of your whining."
After killing Vikner, who fought back valiantly despite his fears, Jenneke said, "I hate whining like that."
They followed the stairs down, finding the room defended by a demon and a bunch of shades, but dispatched this obstacle, and afterwards started searching until they found the shelf described in the index upstairs.
"Magically Oriented Procedure (MOP) number one two four three A: Circumventing Augmented Wall on Augmented Teleporter Augmented Path," read Adrianna.
"They're sure fond of the word augmented," said Jenneke.
"Find Empire Symbol in cavern NXB one four three S. Press sword then crown three times, then sword two, then crown four. Then to pass the guardians ..." continued Adrianna. "Damn, there's some black goo here, I don't know what it's supposed to be next."
"If nothing else, we'll hack them to bits," said Jenneke. "Let's take that. Know where that cave is?"
"No," said Adrianna.
"That's ok," said Michael. "There should be a map at the other location."
After some fighting against unseen creatures, they managed to find their way to a small archive.
"Aha!" crowed Michael, as he spread the map out on the table. "Access path to teleportation augmenter: caves NXB one four three S, NXB one four four S, and MXB one four four T."
"OK, I think I know where that is," said Jenneke. "Huh—obstruction: augmented wall. See hall of rituals in lower level for passing instructions."
"We've got that already," said Feodoric.
"OK, take the map," said Jenneke. "All this shit, they'll never miss it in time. Now, if we could just figure out where to find an onyx scepter."
They continued exploring, finally finding cell block a, with two live prisoners inside.
In one cell, was an unkempt, unshaven man dressed in traveling clothes with a dagger at his belt. He looked very glad to see Avernites.
"Greetings, friends!" he said. "Well met, indeed. I am Aydin."
"Well met, sir," said Jenneke. "Why are you locked up like this?"
"I and my lady were captured and brought here by the Empire," replied Aydin.
"Your lady would be?" said Jenneke.
"Josie. My partner and fellow mage. We were both brought here. She was placed in the next cell, but I have no idea if she's all right. I am very worried. I can't leave until I'm sure she's all right."
"I think that's her in the next cell," said Jenneke. "How did the Empire get their filthy hands on you?"
"We were captured through our carelessness," replied Aydin. "We were hiding on one of the northern islands, but we didn't flee soon enough when the invasion came. They caught us while we were leaving."
"Why are you imprisoned in the archives?" asked Adrianna.
"I suspect the Empire brought us here to get vengeance on us," said Aydin.
"What in the world did you do?" said Adrianna.
"We are traitors to the Empire. We gave the Avernum government information which helped them assassinate Hawthorne," said Aydin. "For that, they had planned a vicious punishment indeed. They were going to leave us here for the rest of our lives, slowly driven mad by the loneliness. But it didn't work yet. I've only been here for a year."
"What holds you in this cell?" said Feodoric.
"Magic. No surprise. I am charmed. I can't walk out of it," said Aydin. "Fortunately, now that you have opened the door and broken the seal, I can teleport out. Would you please see if that is Josie?"
"Of course," said Jenneke, and he stepped out and to the other cell.
In the next cell, there was a woman with long, unkempt hair, a torn dress, and a wild look. Her lonely imprisonment had clearly damaged her. She ran up to Jenneke, embracing him, as she said, "Welcome, welcome! I am Josie! Welcome, rescuers!"
"Are you all right?" asked Jenneke, extracting himself from the embrace.
"Here a year. Lonely. Oh, so lonely, worried about Aydin, worried, magic seal outside forcing me to stay in here, charmed, can't leave cell," said Josie. "Oh, I wish I could leave."
"What are you doing here?" asked Nigel.
"I and my husband were imprisoned here, until now," said Josie.
"How'd you wind up locked up like this?" said Michael.
"We lived on one of the northern islands, in a well-guarded tower. We were a great help to Avernum. Great help. But when the invasion came, when we fled the tower, they caught us," said Josie. "But it doesn't matter! We can escape now."
"No tower in Avernum is safe from the tendrils of the Empire," said Michael.
"Yes, it is sad. Sad. Very sad. You spend days conjuring a beautiful work of architecture to call home, and no doubt it's rubble now. All destroyed," said Josie.
"So, my lady, how did you help Avernum?" asked Feodoric.
"We told them how to get assassins to the surface to slay Emperor Hawthorne. It worked. So I guess the invasion is, in part, our fault," she said and sighed. "Now that you've helped us, I wish I could assist you."
"Maybe partly," said Jenneke, "but it probably would've happened eventually. What kind of assistance can you give?"
"It's a foul and brutal act by the Empire," said Josie. "But now that we can escape, perhaps we can help turn the tide. Alas, we will need all our power to get to safety, and we know nothing about this fortress. I am sorry."
"Well, we met a man named Aydin in the next cell," said Jenneke. "He seemed to be in good shape."
"Now, now I can leave. Thank you. Tell Aydin I am fine. I must use magic to leave. Only safe way. Good bye," she said, and cast a spell and faded from sight.
"Aydin, sir?" said Jenneke. "We met Josie in the next cell, and we told her we'd found you and she teleported away."
Aydin's face lit up and he said, "Thank you!" With that, he bowed to the group and muttered a spell and faded from view.
Leaving the archives, they followed a tunnel looking for a safe place to rest, and reached a dead end where a glowing figure began to materialize.
Instinctively, Jenneke drew his sword, but the figure made no hostile move. It grew more distinct—a small woman with short curly hair in robes and a peaceful expression.
"Greetings, Avernites. I am Aimee. I have left this land, fearing for my life, but I wish to leave behind some aid. Stay and listen, so I may speak into your mind."
Cautiously, Jenneke re-sheathed his sword, and waited.
The shade moved toward them, and said, "I am Aimee of Avernum. I lived in the islands before the Empire came, traveling the worlds with my mind. Now I have left, and will not return until it is safe again. Until I return, I leave a gift for you poor souls, fighting and dying for your land. This spell is my gift to you. Good luck."
Bewildered, Jenneke looked to Adrianna, Feodoric, and Michael, and Adrianna and Feodoric nodded that they had, indeed gained some knowledge.