The bookshelf to the north held several minor objects of value. The books themselves were novels, mostly adventure stories or erotica, none of particularly high value. Some of the statuettes were valuable though, including an alabaster statuette of a tempting female figure with large bat wings unfurling from her back, an onyx statuette of a displacer beast, and a silver statuette of a rearing unicorn. The stuffed animals consisted of small but dangerous creatures like stirges, small monstrous spiders, and even what looks to be a giant shrew the size of a cat. None of these were worth much more than a few gold coins.
The two coffers on the shelves were jewelry boxes. The darkwood coffer contained seven silver and gold chain necklaces and bracelets. The iron box contained a dozen rings and earrings. The wooden cupboard contained several different articles of clothing sized for a human woman, including three courtier's outfits, a noble's outfit, and a flowing (and scandalous) robe of shimmering lavender silk.
The floor of the bedroom was thickly carpeted, and the walls had been smoothed with plaster and painted a soothing light green. A delicate crystalline chandelier hung from the center of the ceiling. Across the door, a dressing table sat next to a padded stool, and a large canopied bed with silk sheets loomed to one corner. Between these two objects sat a heap of oversized cushions.
This room was Rowyn's private sanctum, a place to relax and sleep. Lately, Vanthus had been sharing her bed, although he was not present at this time (having headed out of the city on another project).
There was a secret door across the bed.
A search of the dressing table turned up a large collection of exotic and expensive perfumes. Four are truly exotic imports from places with names like Mur, Alfheim, and Sigil. The final vial came from a place named Shendilavri, and contains six doses that grant the wearer a +10 competence bonus on Diplomacy checks for 1 hour. One dose of this intoxicating perfume is worth 200 gp.
A search of the bed found a small cache of letters hidden between the mattresses. Investigation revealed that the letters were from none other than Vanthus; they were exceptionally racy love letters written to Rowyn and dating back several months. It took an hour to read through them all, but there were a few pieces of information found in the letters (mostly in the more recent ones) of particular interest to the Tropic Thunder.
The door to the next room was locked and trapped. Graim unlocked the door, but also triggered the trap.
This plain stone room was empty, save for three large chests made of wood and iron.
Several traps guarded the contents of this room. The first was built into the treasure door. When Pillboxer opened the door it triggered poisoned darts in the wall; the darts fired at anyone standing in the 15-foot-long hall between this area and Rowyn's bedroom.
The second trap consisted of a bed of hundreds of needle-thin spikes hidden in the floor. This trap triggered after Pillboxer and Graim had entered the room. Both were suddenly struck by these spikes. The chest in one corner of the room was in fact a false chest.
Another chest was locked, but not trapped. Inside was a fantastic amount of stolen wealth.
The last chest was locked. Within was a fantastic amount of gold and gemstones - all of which were neatly collected in silk bags bearing the Vanderboren family crest. The contents of this chest represent all that remains of the wealth that Vanthus stole from the Vanderboren vault. The honorable Tropic Thunder, of course, returned it all to Lavinia (who rewarded them handsomely for such honesty).
The Lotus Dragons thieves' guild was led by Rowyn Kellani, a beautiful, dangerous, and ambitious noblewoman who hoped to seize control of Sasserine's harbor and sea trade through acts of terror and mayhem. Her guild was recently heavily funded through funds stolen by Vanthus from the Vanderboren vault.
In order to break the guild's back and prevent them from seeing their plans through, the Tropic Thunder drove away Rowyn and slayed many of her thieves.
At the end, the Tropic Thunder destroyed the Lotus Dragon operation and saved Sasserine from losing control of their harbor.
Lavinia Vanderboren certainly did not forget the Tropic Thunder as well. News that her brother was responsible for her parents' death shocked her, but she recovered quickly, steeling her resolve to put the whole affair behind them. She gave each hero a bonus for their services, and when she got a chance asked them to continue investigating Vanthus' whereabouts. Thoughts of rehabilitation had left her mind now, though - all she wants is to see her brother face justice for his crimes.Still, the Tropic Thunder continued investigating the Lotus Dragons guildhall, even after it seems that all remaining thieves have fled the complex. A large tidepool took up the next room, the waters thick with seaweed and its bed clustered with a veritable carpet of red and black sea urchins.
The walls and floor of the next cavern glistened with thick, transparent ooze. Mushrooms protruded from the slop on the floor here and there.
Three rhagodessas were kept here.
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