As the stone door swung outward on hinges that were unseen until the door began to move, light spilled out from the chamber beyond. Four sconces held pale flames that cast a pallid light over the chamber, which was barely ten feet on a side, with much of the space opposite the door being taken up by armor stands, weapon racks, and a pair of solid oaken chests. To my eyes, the majority of the items in the room had magical auras about them.

Of course, there was only so much that could be fit in so small a space, so this would be ill-suited to serve as an armory for any force of fighting men. However, as someplace to store some emergency gear for an agent or two, it was plenty of room. At a glance, all the items here were of the practical variety. Perhaps some less practical items were hidden away in the chests, but the weapons and armor I could see all looked to be focused on function over beauty. There were no gilded, ornamental works of finery here, but tools to be hidden away, and then used, when the time was right.

In fact, the only item of any beauty at all was a mirror set upon one wall, with a burnished silver frame, and glass that looked like rippling silver. It, too, was magical, that much I could plainly see. Even if I didn’t have magical sight, the mirror’s nature would have been evident the moment the mirror’s ‘glass’ began to shift, stretching out to form face-like shape, as if someone had stretched a piece of fabric across a man’s face.

“Report.”

Siora’s Diplomacy Check: 1d20+18 = 38

I was taken aback for a second at the sudden voice, coming from the mirror, but Siora, ever light on her feet when it came to social situations, stepped forward, and said in her most diplomatic voice, “The Moonwood is under threat by the servants of Malar, who have conjured the Blood Moon in the skies above. Those the wolves of Malar take are either turned into werewolves themselves, or have been turned into components of a vile ritual, to provide a constant food source for the wolf packs.”

“Who is this? What is your callsign?”

“We have no callsign, for we are not Pipers. We are adventurers, answering a call from the Temple of Selune to investigate the Moonwood. We found a Piper who had been caught by the Malarites and turned into a living food source for the wolves. As we were pledged to end the Malarite threat, he told us how to enter this cache, so that we could complete our task, before we freed him from the unending agony he faced.”

“If you are not one of us, which of our people told you of this place? What is their name, and who are you?”

“His name was Beltran, and mine is Siora.”

“Very well, Siora. Should you survive your task, then visit the Green Stag Inn in Deepwater. Ask for Beluar. He will reward you for your efforts.”

“We will see what the gods have in store for us.”

At that, the mirror’s surface rippled once more, as the face faded away, and went still. Siora looked at me, and then at the mirror. Figuring what she wanted, I looked at the item, and found it to be an ‘Aspect Mirror’.

Aspect Mirror

Type

Tool

Weight

5

This enchanted mirror made of silver is beautiful in its own right, but its true power is in the ability to convey messages between the mirror and its twin, anywhere on the same plane. Messages of up to 25 words can be sent in this way, using your voice. The mirror can send a message up to 4 times per day.

Remaining charges: 0

I nodded once, and said, “You can speak freely. It has used up its magic for the day. And I’m afraid that one of your speeches was… truncated. Only twenty-five words at a time, I’m afraid. So, whoever this figure is, whether it is this Beluar or an intermediary, he might not actually know that Beltran is dead, yet.”

Siora breathed a sigh of relief. “Well, that’s fortunate. I didn’t like the idea of having someone listening in while we explored this cache.”

Frostmane chuffed. “So, think it is real, or a trap?”

Vestele grinned. “At the moment? Probably both. They’ll probably have other agents check to see if Beltran lives, and the situation in Moonwater, and report back. So, if we do well, then it will likely be some sort of reward. If they find we just killed their agent and ran off with their goods, then it will be a trap. And if we don’t show, they’ll probably send someone after us.”

I grinned. “Well, that’s a problem for later. For now, let’s check out what the Pipers left in this cache, and see what we can use to help us kill the wolves.”

+2 Frost Shortsword

Type

Sword

Weight

2

Damage

1d6

Damage Type

Piercing

Critical

19-20 / x2

This masterwork sword is completely unadorned and without any distinguishing features that might tell one where it was forged, or for whom.

+1d6 Cold damage on hit

+2/+2 Quarterstaff

Type

Staff

Weight

4

Damage

1d6/1d6

Damage Type

Bludgeoning

Critical

X2

This quarterstaff is completely unadorned, and would be overlooked as a simple staff by a lay person. However, it is a magical weapon, which can be used either in one hand, or in two, allowing the user to attack with both ends (enchanted separately).

+2 Shocking Longbow

Type

Bow

Weight

3

Damage

1d8

Damage Type

Piercing

Critical

X3

This longbow is of high quality, but no markings can be found upon it to identify its maker or its purpose.

+1d6 Electricity damage on hit

+2 Disruption Morningstar

Type

Mace

Weight

6

Damage

1d8

Damage Type

Bludgeoning and Piercing

Critical

X2

This morningstar is of high quality, and is a potent force against the undead, but its origins are unknown.

Any undead creature struck must make DC 14 Will save or be destroyed.

We quickly noticed that the cache seemed to be set up for a team of up to four to resupply or replace lost gear. That wasn’t an uncommon size for an adventuring company, so it made sense that the Pipers might make plans with that in mind. And if it were a lone agent who needed supplies from the cache, then they would at least be able to get something that could fit their abilities.

+2 Chain Shirt

Type

Light Armor

Weight

25

AC

+6

Max Dex

4

ACP

-1

ASF

20%

This shirt of steel chain links is well-made, but bears no identifying marks.

Potion of Cure Serious Wounds

Type

Potion

Weight

This potion heals the imbiber for 3d8+5 points of damage.

While the weapons were different, the suits of armor were all the same, and there were four of them, along with eight potions in identical unmarked vials. The Pipers were definitely going for the idea of outfitting their agents to be as deliberately nondescript as possible. Well, at least as far as weapons and armor went. The other gear was a bit more interesting, though they still weren’t exactly unique items.

Boots of Striding and Springing

Type

Boots

Weight

1

This set of boots gives a +10 ft Enhancement bonus to base speed, and +5 Competence bonus on Jump checks.

Cloak of Charisma +4

Type

Shoulders

Weight

1

This woolen cloak not only protects the wearer from the weather, but also offers a +4 Enhancement bonus to Charisma.

Gloves of Dexterity +4

Type

Hands

Weight

1

These gloves give the wearer a +4 enhancement bonus to Dexterity.

Periapt of Wisdom +6

Type

Neck

Weight

This necklace of silver links is enchanted to provide the wearer a +6 Enhancement bonus to Wisdom.

Headband of Intellect +6

Type

Head

Weight

1

This headband is woven with arcane sigils, and offers the wearer a +6 Enhancement bonus to Intelligence.

Belt of Giant Strength +6

Type

Belt

Weight

1

This belt is engraved with symbols of strength, offering the wearer a +4 Enhancement bonus to Strength.

Amulet of Health +4

Type

Neck

Weight

This amulet is inscribed with symbols of fortitude, giving the wearer a +4 Enhancement bonus to Constitution.

Amulet of Natural Armor +2

Type

Neck

Weight

This amulet is inscribed with symbols of protection, giving the wearer a +2 Enhancement bonus to Natural Armor.

They were all basic magical items, really. Some were improvements over the versions that I or the others already had, but they were all fairly easy to understand, and all of them were items that could easily be slotted into a group’s existing gear to empower different members of the party.

Chausible of Fell Power

Type

Neck

Weight

This necklace is made from the items infused with the blood of demons. It adds +1d6 to the damage of any Eldritch Blast the wearer uses, or any spell they cast that does hit point damage and has the chaotic descriptor.

Ring of Arcane Power

Type

Ring

Weight

This ring grants the wearer a +1 bonus to arcane caster level for the purpose of spell penetration, caster level checks, and all level-based variables of any arcane spell the wearer casts.

Ring of Force Shield

Type

Ring

Weight

This iron ring generates a shield sized and shaped wall of force that stays with the shield and can be wielded as if it were a heavy shield (+2 AC). This shield has no ACP or ASF as it is weightless and encumbrance-free. It can be activated and deactivated at will as a free action.

Ring of Anticipation

Type

Ring

Weight

This ring is wrought from a translucent lavender glass. While wearing it, a creature gains +2 Competence bonus to Listen and Spot checks. When making initiative checks, roll twice and take the better result.

Ring of the Predator

Type

Ring

Weight

This item was originally designed by the fey to help hunters stalk their prey. The wearer gains +10 competence bonus to Hide and Move Silently, and the Trackless Step ability (identical to druid class ability).

This is where the real score for the cache came in. These items, mostly rings, were all more niche in their uses, but they just so happened to be niches that were very important to adventurers. It was easy to see how the Pipers would want a team of agents to have access to items like these.

Assorted Items

20 arrows, Silver

800 gp

4x Everburning Torch

4x Alchemist Fire

4x Dungeon Kit – Backpack, 50’ hemp rope, grappling hook, flint & steel, chalk, waterskin

Then there were a few odds and ends, to finish up kitting out an adventuring group. Well, mostly. There weren’t rations or the like, since those would go bad. But, otherwise, it was a fairly ideal way to get some agents ready to act in the field.

However, I could also see a major potential problem in the future. The Pipers already knew that we’d come here, and they were doubtless going to check up on us. There were, quite literally, thousands upon thousands of gold worth of magical gear in this cache. Even if a group like the Pipers might have a habit of ‘acquiring’ items through essentially stealing from thieves, that didn’t mean they would be happy with us cleaning this place out completely.

On the other hand, that was only a problem if they lived through this, and between Siora and me, I figured that we could talk the Pipers down if they got upset. Looking to the others, I said, “All right, we got plenty of loot here. Not all of it we can use, but what we can’t use will sell nicely when we get back to civilization. I say we leave the dungeon kits and everburning torches, since we got enough of those already, and take everything else. Then we can even truthfully say we left some of the cache for those who came after us.”

Everyone readily agreed, and we began sorting through the loot. The arrows went to Siora, who was the only one who used a bow, and the twins each took two of the vials of Alchemist’s Fire. The coin and healing potions we split between us. Sure, Frostmane couldn’t exactly use a potion himself all that easily, but it was better to have them spread out, instead of all in one person’s bag. Vestele eagerly picked up the morningstar, which was better than her own, and Siora took the quarterstaff, despite her preference for her rapier. The Amulet of Health, Ring of Force Shield, Ring of the Predator, and the other weapons and armor we couldn’t use, so they went into Frostmane’s bag for safekeeping until we got someplace where we could sell them.

For the rest, naturally, the Cloak of Charisma and Chausible of Fell Power went to me, since I was the one that could make the best use of them. I also took the Gloves of Dexterity, since I was the one more likely to be dodging blows, and the Ring of Arcane Power, since I would get more use from the increased caster level. The Ring of Force Shield had a lovely effect, but wearing iron against my skin wasn’t really something I wished to do. My damage reduction would keep me from actually taking damage from the ring’s touch, but that didn’t mean I would enjoy the experience.

As for the others? Frostmane got the Belt of Giant Strength, being our main melee attacker. Vestele got the Boots of Striding and Springing, allowing her to keep up with her sister, as well as the Periapt of Wisdom, an upgrade from the one she wore, and the Ring of Anticipation. And Siora got the Amulet of Natural Armor and Headband of Intellect, giving her a substantial boost to her abilities.

When we were through looting the cache of everything we could use, or could sell when we got back to Northport, or some other city, we closed the door to the cache. I could hear the click of a lock as I removed the Piper signet ring from the indentation, but the glamour did not reappear, leaving the door still visible to anyone who came into the cave. Well, if there was a secret to reestablishing the illusion, no one had told it to us, so I chalked it up as being not our problem.

The cave was fairly dry, despite the stream running through it, so we decided to make camp here for the night. The oppressive feeling coming from the ruins was still there, but it was focused on the power of the Malarites, not us. We could deal with it later. Right?