Sunday, July 10, 1066 SE
Following their late return from the Grand Royal Opera after another sold-out performance of Masha and the Bear, Mon, Marigold and Branna reunite in the South Gate Hotel's dining room early in the morning, and they discuss whether they should go through the secret doors they discovered yesterday. Marigold complains they should sleep first, but Mon points out that unlike her, both he and Branna only need to sleep a few hours a night, and now is as good an opportunity to explore what lies underneath the South Gate Hotel.
Instead, Mon proposes they split up in two groups. One person activates the stairs in Marigold and Branna's room and descends, while the other two do the same to the secret door in the dining room. Mon would hide a small object at the bottom of one set of stairs before climbing back up, and rejoining Marigold and Branna by the other staircase. He would then cast locate object, allowing him to determine how close each entrance is to each other. Marigold vehemently disagrees with this plan, and she settles the argument by warning Mon they either go down a staircase now, or she goes to bed. Mon agrees, and after another short conversation, they elect to go down the dining room staircase.
Branna casts light on a spoon, and she boldly enters the secret door before descending the stairs. Marigold goes second, followed by Mon. Descending what feels like several flights of stairs, they reach the bottom. There, they find a door to the left, while the passage continues to the left. Looking at their environment, they notice that the stone floor has been swept recently, and the absence of cobwebs suggest someone has been here recently. After a quick discussion on their next move, Marigold creeps to the door, and she checks for traps. Finding none, she uses her thief's tools to unlock the door, and she realizes that it ahs been oiled recently. As she cracks it open, she doesn't hear the hinges either, suggesting they too have been oiled. The room beyond is dark.
Taking a peek, she sees the room beyond is an armory, filled with weapons, armor, and other war equipment. They enter carefully and see that the large room also has a door to the north and another door to the west. That second door is barred with two metal rods on their side. Looking at one of the weapons, Mon notices that the steel used in these weapons and pieces of armor are made of Kat steel, the prized slightly bluish-tinted steel made in Katarina. He looks for a crest, a coat of arms, or any other mark that would indicate who owns these weapons, but does not find any. The equipment is not marked. Looking at the gear, Branna estimates there's enough equipment in the room to outfit roughly a hundred people, and the room is large enough that 12 to 15 people could don gear on at the same time.
Fairly certain no one will notice some of the weapons are missing, Marigold and Branna each take daggers, while Mon grabs a short sword. Marigold speculates these crates of weapons might have come from the dwarven forge Captain Lafoy's pirates were running on Katarina, as the crates and the weapons look eerily similar.
Deciding not to unbar the west door, Marigold checks the north door but finds no trap, and unlike the door to the east, this door is not locked. Marigold cracks the door open, and once again there is no sound coming from the hinges, indicating they too have been oiled. Light spills from the other side, along with the sounds of murmured discussions. Mon turns invisible, and misty steps through the crack, and finds himself in a dining room. There are enough tables and benches to accommodate 20 people, but the room only has a few occupants. Two figures dressed in black robes sit at the scarred wooden table closest to the door, quietly whispering to each other. Two other figures, also dressed in black robes, stand at another table, clearly engaged in some sort of chanting or incantation. Two heavily armored guards, also clocked in black and faces hidden behind their helmet, stand by double-doors to the north. Additionally, two zombies stand by the tables with trays of food, awaiting a command.
Mon eavesdrop on the two figures closest to him, their voices dropping to urgent, conspiratorial whispers: "Look at the hour," the first cultist mutters, his fingers nervously tracing the rim of an empty cup. "The time is finally at hand. I... I still can't quite believe it's actually happening after all these years of planning." The second cultist leans in closer across the table, eyes wide with manic fervor. "Believe it. Listen to the hum in the stone beneath our feet. It's started. It has begun."
Having heard enough, Mon returns and alerts his friends to his presence. Marigold suggests they pile boxes of weapons and armor against the door leading to the dining room, to prevent any of the cultists on the other side from following them. After some argumentation, they decide against that possibility. Mon suggests removing the bars to the west doorand seeing where it leads, as he suspects it enters the basement of a nearby business. Branna instead suggests going back into the hallway and seeing where it leads.
After they leave the armory, Marigold relocks the door, then breaks the lock, ensuring someone will have to work hard to enter the armory from the hallway. They head down around the corner and walk several feet, before turning around another corner. They hear the sound sof a kitchen, and the smells of food cooking confirms it.
Mon, still invisible, enters the kitchen. The human chef is at least seven and a half feet tall, and he and his assistant are discussing preparing a feast as they labor over two large stone stoves. Two zombies are carelessly chopping vegetables on one of the counters. The chef complains about the zombies and their horrible methods. Mon mimicks the voice of the assistant, and asks the chef what they are celebrating. The chef replies that they are celebrating the return of the Black Sun, but that he now regrets taking on this assignment.
Knowing that the complex is now occupied, Mon returns to find Marigold and Branna waiting for him by the privy. He tells them about what he saw in the kitchen, mentioning the zombies. Marigold freaks out. Mon had not told them about what he had seen in the dining room after he had misty stepped through it. Mon now reveals what he witnessed. After a brief discussion, they decide to return to the stairs and head back to the South Gate Hotel's dining room. Before they climb, Mon takes Branna's spoon, and leaves an arcane mark so he can cast locate object. He hides the spoon in an inconspicuous place where hopefully no one will find it.
Emerging through the secret door back in the dining room, Mon is surprised to find Herald and his lady friend, Rouslana, snuggling in the corner. Herald is surprised to see Mon emerge from the wall, but quickly recovers and he introduces Mon to Rouslana. Recognizing her from the time he saw her at the Coughing Raven tavern in St. Boris, Mon greets her. Casting zone of truth, Mon questions Rouslana about her relationship with Tarashenko, Cardinal Feodore's right-hand man. She tells him that Tarashenko told her he is friends with both Herald and Mon, and that the two of them are famous actors in Katarina, and he was hoping to surprise Mon while he was in Konstantina. He asked Rouslana to keep an eye for Mon, and leave him a message at the Coughing Raven if she had a chance to meet him.
Mon then asks Rouslana how she feels about Herald. Compelled to tell the truth, she reveals that Herald performs well in bed, and she finds him charming and attractive. She tells Mon she and Herald were heading back to Herald's bedroom, which he shares with Mon. Not really interested in the two of them using Herald's bed, Mon reminds Herald the raven painting is still in the room. Herald shudders, but Rouslana is suddenly very interested in the conversation. She asks Mon about the painting, and Mon obliges her by creating an illusion of the painting. Herald falls off the chair to the floor, but Rouslana leans forward, her eyes fixated on the illusion. She tells Mon she would love to come up to their bedroom and look at the painting.
At the same time, Mon passes gas. Marigold and Branna, still standing in the secret passage behind him, are overwhelmed with the stench, and Branna is unable to suppress a small cough. Herald, who stood up again, looks at Mon and at the passage behind him, and asks Mon who is behind him. Mon turns himself invisible, leaving Herald and Rouslana with perplexed looks on their faces ...
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