Attempting to see any kind of augury, weal, or woe into his own fortune in the dungeon, the cards were obtuse and vague.  Murmuring and putting the cards back into a stack, he patted Rensha’s shoulder, “Ah, it’s nothing, just cards.  We’ll make our own fortunes, as always.”<br/><br/>Any nerves about the failed reading were forgotten with an expedition into the city.  For whatever purpose it was, it was always a treat to go out together and explore the vast, teeming metropolis of towers.  Flying together in an air skiff, they could see the bridges, stairs, and aircabs crawling like ants or flying overhead, and even the occasional gargoyle or familiar flying about on errands.  Reaching Clifftop, it was a whole different wonder, with a plurality of adventurers, treasure-seekers, and sellswords, all looking for equipment and work themselves.  Here there was a more eclectic mix of races as well, humans, elves, halflings, but also freelance warforged, shifters, drow, and others they didn’t even recognize on sight.  Redhurst was obviously cosmopolitan with its planes-spanning faculty and student body, but seeing all the adventurers with their exotic weapons, chitinous armor, and wand-holsters made one wonder what they’d seen and done.<br/><br/>They had their own adventure to prepare for, though, and in a group they were able to browse around and find their own particular needs.  Minor alchemy and lights were easy, thieves’ tools were branded as a dungeon security maintenance device (but still came in a convenient hiding pouch), and minor scrolls for protection and exploration were only marginally harder to find, needing a magewright’s shop.  The poison was a little more delicate to find, but some discreet inquiries about “alchemical incapacitation” led Kleris to a shady drow vendor who was easily able to provide some knockout poisons.  When offered something more deadly, however, he politely declined.<br/><br/>“Here we go, Ari, this’ll make you good as new!  Yes it will!” Kleris cooed to the iron defender, giving him a gentle tap on the “nose” with the miniature hammer-wand.  “And with that, I guess we’re as prepared as we’ll ever be.  Let’s get heading back…”<br/><br/>Having explored some of the untraveled and secret parts of the school, it was still creepy sneaking their way down into the catacombs.  Coming to the general area they knew the hidden dungeon<em>should</em>be, just finding the entry was their first challenge.  Their dungeoneering classes were paying off, however, and divination made that trivial.  The second lesson, of course, was never to just rush in.  With Lillin’s incorporeal servant to open the door, its dangerous payload was safely spent, and they were able to finally enter.  "Good thinking, Lillin.  I can open a lock, but I don't want to be sprayed with poisonous acid at the same time."<br/><br/>Examining the calendar page Andrei posted, it was quite easy to commit to memory.  The cute girl was smiling and posing in a bikini, and the image was produced to be memorable and evocative.  “Polka dots, polka dots…” Kleris reminded himself, memorizing details beyond just admiration.  Looking around the rest of the room, it appeared to be a disused bedchamber, though for some reason rugs had been stored there, and iron bars blocked the rest of the complex.  “Huh, were these to keep someone in here or someone out there?  And what is this device?”  Kleris looked around carefully, not wanting to walk into any obvious pit trap or the like, before coming to examine the shrine beyond the iron bars.<br/><br/>“Arturon, would you send Edgar through to see what is in the other room while we work on this?  Andrei, you want to go too?  Maybe there’s something else to see on the other end of this shrine-thing, or just a big ‘open’ switch.  Someone check out the rugs maybe, I’m going to look around…”  Examining the shrine, there wasn’t anything obvious about its operation, so Kleris looked for other clues around the room, in the cabinet, and even under the bed.  That paid off with a tiny letter tucked under, which he brought out and carefully unfolded before reading.<br/><br/>“Huh, some letter, they’re talking about painting, beginning techniques, color theory.  I wonder if it has anything to do with that—” gesturing to the insectoid shrine of various colors.  “Maybe it needs to project some sort of color?  Lillin, that’s your specialty, isn’t it?  Want to take a crack?”<br/><br/>Seeing the bright blue star, Lillin apparently immediately knew what to do, experimenting at first with how the orbs operated, then immediately going about pumping up the blue and adding enough white light from all three to produce the exact right hue and tint.  Her satisfaction of producing just what she intended was rewarded with the gate lowering itself, allowing everyone else to join Edgar and Andrei.  Stepping around the light-shrine, a raised level brought them to some form of laboratory space.  What kind of experiments were done here was questionable, however, judging by the restraint-table and alchemy.<br/><br/>“What was all this for?” Kleris mused aloud, not sure he wanted to know the answer.  But he had some basic lab training at school, and could identify basic ingredients, reagents, and products, so he examined the bottles and devices, trying to work out what they might produce or work toward in this context.  “Let me just see what this is about, maybe it can give us a clue about this place and what it’s for.  Or at least grab some alchemist’s fire, if nothing else.”<br/><br/>[Sending Edgar and Andrei to scout lab and device<br/>Kleris perception 19+11 = 30, success, found letter<br/>Lillin craft (painting) 11+10 = 21, improved success, solved light puzzle<br/>Kleris craft (alchemy) 10+11 = 21, attempting to discern purpose]