Nacyl Rock

The town of Nacyl Rock is chiseled out of the plateau.

Every building is carved stone, barely any other material in sight. We walk down the straight road from the gate, reaching a large, hewn pillar of stone. Other immensely straight roads spoke out around this stone in a circular layout. I marvel at the bands of burnt orange banded against the reddish brown of the stone. From a distance, it gives off a deep amber color, almost like a dark sandstone. Wishing to feel a piece of home, I trail my fingers along the buildings as we make our way to the only inn in town. More chalkiness than I hoped comes dusts my fingers. Not sandstone then. The texture is finer and softer than the stones from my home. Siltstone perhaps? Nevertheless, I take some solace is the beautiful hue as we walk, citizens quiet and staring as we pass.
The inn is a very noticeable structure, as it's the only building made of wood. It has a rustic charm, with large letters above the proclaiming the name of this inn; Eager Beaver. I snort. I suppose we'll see how enthusiastic the staff is with us compared to the townsfolk.
Inside is darker than I expected. I blink my eyes, trying to adjust to the intimate lighting. My boots meet the soft, dark red carpet. I squint, still fighting the lighting change. A lighted hearth helps illuminate the wooded interior, cushioned chairs, and homely decoration.
"Hello, welcome to the—gods above!" says a voice from behind the bar. The shirtless tabaxi turns away, becoming very invested in polishing the already spotless wine glasses. The woman in a very low cut shirt and tight leggins fluffs her stack of pillows with more focus, and the man in a loose robe stokes the lively fire with more intensity. Oh. This isn't just an inn.
Feng approaches the bar. "Give me something I've never had before," he challenges the nervous bartender.
The man gives a polite smile. "Alright. Four gold pieces." Feng slaps the gold down with no hesitation. The bartender takes the payment, and then steps into the back room. A moment later, he reemerges. "This has been aged for more than a hundred years, made from grapes of the Jade Empire." He stands proud as he presents a bottle of nearly black wine to Feng.
I hold my hand to my head. Why? Why would he spend so much on something he's had before? But then I realize why as Luban, Mordax, and Mildred join in the drinking. They've likely never had it. But that still doesn't justify the outrageous price on such a mediocre wine. I sigh and lean against the bar to get the tabaxi's attention.
"Excuse me," I say with an innocent tone. "Is there any way to contact the Maha?" The guard had told us we could spread word that we had the letter from his son, but there has to be a more efficient way.
"Uh, ahem," he begins, though more likely because of that fact that eight foreigners walked into this establishment and not because I was a striking figure. "Nina, on the other side of town," he stammers out. "She knows how to contact him."
"Oh, thank you," I say with exaggerated relief in my voice. "And, well, can we rent some rooms for the night?" Laying it on bit too thick, Vaelynn. Anyone can see through that. At least I didn't bat my eyelashes.
"Two to a room, then?" The bartender gives us a lascivious smirk. I glance around. The inn is only one floor, and there are only five doors labeled with numbers. I give a little laugh as answer. He has the wrong idea, but I'm not about to explain us to him. "Four gold," he says, at least a little more comfortable now. Feng offers the money as I pretend to dig through my satchel. I smile in thanks. Such a thin smile. The bartender produces four keys.
I pass a key to Morgan, who will room with Mildred. Another key for Luban and Mordax, who seem to moderately enjoy each others company. I offer one of the remaining keys to Shen Po, figuring he'd room with Alto, leaving myself and Feng to share a room. Alone. In a—likely decently—thick-walled room. But Feng plucks a key from my hand, Alto in tow. "We're going to spend some time together, finally," Feng slurs only a little.
"Oh, that's.. good," I say, choking down disappointment. I turn to Shen Po, who waves dismissively. He's not going to be staying in a room tonight; as usual, he'll sit up all night in the common room. Alone. As you will be until you fix yourself.

---

After getting our things settled in our rooms, we head to Nina's, stopping to inspect the Maha's rock at the center of town on our way. But we can't find anything odd about it; no secret buttons, no suspicious crags. The thought of another sophisticated illusion crosses my mind. I run my fingers all over the stone, but it feels real everywhere I touch. So did the adamantine gate when I knocked my fist onto it. Curious, I reach for the power gifted by Julius. I focus on my suspicions of a hidden entrance and circle around the rock. My eyes continue tugging me to circle the rock, and halfway around I see an opening not there before; a passage down into the rock. I press my fingers tentatively into the opening, but they find resistance. I can see the passage, but I can't get past it, no matter how hard I press against the barrier. "Damnare!" I swear. "I can see an entrance, but I can't cross it," I tell everyone. "We'll have to see what this Nina knows."
Nina's front yard is a modest zen rock garden, something popular back in the empire. Interesting. I step along the path to the door and knock. Within a heartbeat, the door swings open. Stunned before me is an elderly woman, long grey hair in frizzed in nearly every direction. She looks at us, jaw hanging, and then smooths her long-sleeved, pure white coat. "Would anyone like some tea?"
We pile into her modest living room, filling the large couch, pair of chairs set up around a dragon chess set, and all available floor space. Shen Po and Alto remain standing on what little space remains. Nina passes out cups of hot tea.
Shen Po takes his cup, but doesn't take a sip and instead cuts right to business. "We are the Seekers of East, and we were told you would know how to contact the Maha."
"I believe on the madam half-elf here can help you." She takes a sip of tea. I open my mouth, about to spit out an impatient question. "I can offer you a scroll that will allow you to get inside." Nina pulls out a scroll from somewhere behind her. But I don't remember any pockets in the back of her coat. Had it been on a shelf back there? "It sounds like you are on a mission of utmost importance, so I will offer you a discount. 20,000 gold pieces." Alto chokes on his tea.
There's no way. We begin bargaining things that we have. Feng's paintings, spare weapons. I stifle mild anger, tea cup shaking slightly. This letter is supposed to be incredibly important to these people, and this ninny is demanding payment? You can use force. You probably won't even have to kill her. That's never been my way. Oh, Vaelynn, when will you learn that you'll need to do anything to be whole? We just need to- to promise her something, tell her- tell her—a good lie? His laughter fills my head. And then Feng grabs the tea cup from my shaking hands, snapping me back to reality. He doesn't even look at me as he takes a sip from the full cup.
"Perhaps you have something of a more magical nature I can trade the scroll for?" Nina asks.
There are thoughtful looks from people. What do we have that can actually be worth meeting the Maha? Mildred digs through her pockets, and then pulls out a small vial. "What about this?"
Nina waves her hand in front the vial, considers for a moment, and then offers the scroll to Morgan. Morgan takes the scroll and Nina takes the vial.
Morgan skims the scroll as we walk back to the Maha's rock. "It's a scroll of True Seeing," she says, practicing the motions for the spell. We reach the rock, and Morgan reads from the scroll in earnest, casting the spell. Her hand lands on my chest as she finishes. I blink in surprise. She didn't want to cast it on herself? I gently shake my head and look to where the passage was. Sure enough, it's visible again. I press into the barrier, my hand meeting no resistance this time. "Oh, wow," Mordax says. It seems with my touch, the illusion was dispelled. I gesture for Feng to take the lead into the darkness ahead.
We descend the rope ladder into the pit of darkness. It reminds me again of our encounter with the strange man, or rather, the Maha's son. As out feet find the ground, Shen Po provides some much appreciated light, despite the weird shadows that it casts. We find ourselves in a room with four hallways, at the end of each are symbols in draconic. Feng moves closer to each symbol, saying they're numbers. One, three, seven, and ten. The sound of falling sand tugs my perception, and I turn to watch the last of the ladder disintegrate into dust. "Uh," I begin, but then the far walls spin, numbers rotating, until finally it stops, each end of the hallway showing a different symbol. And additionally with each new symbol is a monster. A green, frog like creature. A huge, four-armed ape. A flame in a suit of armor. And a monstrosity with a single blood-shot eye and tentacles that end in a plant-like pod, crackling with magical energy.
The Maha likes to test people indeed.