A small, warty goblin in a finely cut leather jerkin sits in the left throne.
"Glogroth von Bloover." His voice is raspy, high-pitched, and irritating.
"I watch the doors."
0
doors
0
"The door to my left is very unsafe. I don't know anything about the other door. Ask my partner."
0
partner
0
"She knows what is beyond both doors."
1
stnd
0
A petite goblin female, hideous beyond comprehension, eyes you from the throne.
"Groovilla dar Throgpull." She flutters her eyelashes at you. They are two inches long, and greenish gray.
"I tell people about the doors, and keep my mate company."
1
doors
0
"I think you should know the door to my right is perfectly safe. Well, not perfectly, but far preferable to the other door."
1
mate
0
"He's the one who lies. I just love him for it! It's so precious!"
18
stnd
0
A small lizard wanders the tower. When it sees you, it winks at you.
"Hithis-sss."
You would swear it smiles at you.
18
gnrc
0
It hisses.
17
stnd
0
There is a piercingly beautiful woman sitting in the throne. She looks at you with an expression of haughtiness and utter confidence. Occasionally, a spark flies from the wand in her hand.
"Welcome, adventurers. I am Erika, formerly of the Triad, master incantatrix of Exile."
She smiles. The reptilian coldness of her eyes makes you shiver. "Now? I greet visitors."
17
visit
0
"Few manage to penetrate my tower. Even fewer are of value to me. You are both." You notice she doesn't look at you as if you're quite human.
17
value
0
Her expression darkens. "I am an exile here, like you. A prisoner, but worse because of my curse! And, more than anything else, I thirst for revenge, beautiful revenge. You should help me. I can assist you in many ways."
17
curse
0
"I cannot ever see the sun again. Its light would melt me. It is a permanent curse. There is no appeal, even for one such as me."
17
revenge
0
"That is why I came here, why I left the Triad. I wish to bring suffering to the petty fools of the Empire, who put me here. To do that, I need tools. I would allow you to fulfill that function, to join me in my mission."
17
triad
0
She snarls. Sparks shoot from the wand as her hand tightens its grip upon it. "Small minded fools of the tower. I helped imprison Grah-Hoth! I summoned items from the underworld, magic, tomes, tools! And I realized we must fight those above!"
"They will slay us if we don't slay them first. They must die so we can live. Sad, but true."
17
mission
0
"I want to assassinate King Hawthorne. It would be a good start. It was his father who sent me down here, and he who accelerated the pace at which people were exiled. He poured people down here like water! He is a tyrant, and tyrants must die."
"If you would help me strike this blow for our freedom, ask me for instructions."
17
instruc
118
17
aydin
2
"A traitor from the Empire. He hides on the islands north of the giant's cave. If you can win his trust, he should know where you should go. When you get there, perform this ritual to summon me."
(She teaches you a ritual.)
66
7
17
prepared
0
"For a fight. The biggest of your lives."
17
assist
0
"I am adept in all the magical realms. If you wish to buy some priest spells, I can sell them to you. I know certain spells that are beyond the reach of most. I know much alchemy, and my libraries are open to you. There are advantages to allying with me."
"Also, I can help you with dealing with my tower, should you want to return to aid me."
17
spells
15
Erika
12
13
17
alchem
16
Erika
1
8
17
library
0
"Through the door. Most of the books I magicked down from the surface. It was difficult, but how could we develop out magic down here otherwise? Non-mage insects don't realize how much they need us! Just for the mushrooms alone!"
17
mushroom
0
"The mushrooms down here, that are edible, nourishing, and grow with only the slightest light? I created them! The worms down here should worship me! They owe me their lives! But do they appreciate me? No! The insects!"
17
tower
2
"Now that you've passed my defenses, you don't need to do so again. There is a spare key to the second gate in the library. Also, the password to the third gate is 'Dry rot.'"
(You take note of this.)
101
9
17
brooch
0
"When the First Expedition came down, each of their five leaders wore a magical brooch, which was linked to the Empire above. They were used for communication. I can use them for something more - using their magical link to teleport you up there."
"The problem, of course, is finding them. The statues may help."
17
finding
0
"I'm not sure where all five of the brooches are, but I've done some research. Look in the library. I've written some notes on their locations. Four of them may suffice for me to help you. All five, however, would be ideal. Much safer."
"The link to the surface will be weak. The more brooches I have, the easier to trace it."
17
scimitar
0
"A group of brave fighters, resisting the foulness above. Weak as most people are, but they do their best. Go below Bargha to contact them. The password is 'Phaedrus.' They have been trying to find a different sort of password."
17
password
0
"There is an exit to the surface world! The Empire, careful as always, wanted to leave an escape route. The Scimitar is searching hard for it. The dragon Sulfras guards it, but that isn't the most well defended thing about it."
"There's a four syllable password needed to go through. Fortunately, I know one syllable."
17
syllable
2
"I stole it from above. Don't ask how. It was a challenge, even for me. The third syllable is 'Eng.' Certain mages may know the other three."
(You take note of this.)
128
3
17
mages
0
"The two greatest mage-sages in Exile are Aimee, who lives as a hermit on a island far to the north, and Patrick, who is choked with grief but may be useful anyway. Then there are the dragons. Khoth and Athron are the wisest. They may know."
17
statues
0
"To keep an eye on things, I created six intelligent statues and placed them in each of the six largest cities of Exile. The word to get them to tell you what they know is 'Divulge.' They might have heard something."
