Daedrie, helped by the rest of the party, consults the Oracles at the Moon door, but something seems amiss. The fey oracles only anage to utter a few words, among them "Sigil", when a pulse of teal energy washes across the entire area.
The answer to the question just posed is lost in a surge of sound like that of surf breaking on a beach. And just as the surf recedes and leaves behind things in its wake, the energy wash deposits several gleaming creatures in the area, each with a menacing metallic hue. One of them, a great dark creature of burnished iron and golden armor, points at the heroes. "You have transgressed the boundaries of knowledge set by your betters," it says. "You have earned the wrath of those who keep the balance. Your ritual is concluded, and your lives are forfeit."
These are the Balance Keeper, Marut mercenaries used by Orcus against anyone who would investigate his plots. Once all of them have been destroyed, our heroes investigate the word Sigil, and discover that it is the name of a magical city "in the center of all existance", some kind of planar metropolis where everything can be found, and all things meet.
Having recovered a Ritual Scroll with the location of a portal in Sigil during their adventures in Death's Reach, our heroes depart for the mythical place.
SURPRISE ASSAULT
As the portal opens, our hereos find themselves in some sort of warehouse.
Black dust covers the floor of this old stone warehouse except for in the central alcove, where fresh hlood pools on the ground. A humanoid in fine robes standing near a haphazardly stacked pile of crates screams, "You'll regret finding your way here!" Elder Arantham himself!
Two winged demons stand nearby, each wielding a whip of fire and a sword of lightning. Several robed humanoids around the chamber begin to scramble for weapons.
Our heroes finally get their revenge on Arantham, and find several crates containing black stones. On a workbench, they find mundane carpentry tools and a document titled "Delivery Schedule." Items on the list include "meteoric debris" and "livestock," but the delivery location is described only as "the drop point." Most of the delivery dates are in the past, but a final delivery is scheduled to occur in three days. A handwritten note scribbled on the document says, "Balance Keepers, keep us secret one last time."
Set upon stopping the flow of black stone, our heroes ready themselves to step into the streets of Sigil. A fantastic city stretches in all directions. Layers of smoke and haze distort the middle distance, but not enough to conceal the fact that the buildings and streets slowly curve up and around, farther and farther, until they meet high overhead. This city appears to he built on the interior of a great ring, and they can see the rooftops of other buildings hanging far overhead.Structures vary greatly, and no two are exactly alike, though many are barnacled with ostentatious metallic blades and stone spikes. Sculpted faces and figures similar to gargoyles perch over lintels. Fanciful iron grillwork covers many windows, and evil-looking vines sporting serrated leaves grow wild in the shadowed side streets.
The main thoroughfare, though dingy and dilapidated, teems with all manner of creatures. Humans, dwarves, eladrin, elves, and other humanoids are plentiful, and here and there more monstrous creatures saunter, including a fiery angel, a smokeshrouded devil, and a metallic concordant.
By investigating the streets of Sigil, our heroes discover that the best source of information in the city is Vocar, a fallen follower of Vecna, last seen in Sea Nymph Plaza.
SEA NYMPH PLAZA
The stink of the Hive seems less oppressive in this wide plaza. A fountain of clear water bubbles in the open space as several people stand near it, watching the water flow and listening to its melodic sound. Three merchants hawk their wares from nearby food carts, and a ragged old man slouches on one of the benches.
But our heroes notice something weird. A merchant picks up the same piece offruit and shows it to a prospective customer again ami again. A storyteller by the fountain repeats the same opening phrases over and over. In fact, everyone in the plaza seems to be repeating the same few activities over and over. When our heroes move to confront the old man on the bench, the illusion is broken.
All the people in the plaza shimmer as they change shape, becoming humanoid figures of silvery radiance. Three are revealed to be large, faceless, winged figures with metallic skin and golden weapons. One of these figures carries a spear and speaks to them in Supernal. "Leave here immediately. I shall not ask twice." the party is not intimidated, and takes care of the Angels, before investigating the scene. The find a few sugar cubes, indication that Vocar must have been around. As they enter a sewer grate, they're transported through one of the many portals of Sigil.
VOCAR'S REDOUBT
The rusted iron ladder terminates at the edge of a stinking sewer. Green fluid flows from a pipe into a wide, smelly channel. Rotted garbage lies in clumps along the edge. A chamber illuminated by a flickering brazier opens beyond the sewer. The chamber is mostly bare, but a red design is smeared in the center of the floor. A sarcophagus rests against the far wall.
When the adventurers enter the chamber, the brazier flares. A huge creature that has a vaguely humanoid shape and is fashioned of mismatched iron plates suddenly appears, standing over the red symbol. The clumps of rotting garbage along the edge of the sewer congeal and rise as rotting creatures of vile appearance. After defeating these guardians, they finally meet Vocar.
An elderly human with a long white heard and a bald head spotted with age sits on a decrepit chair, using coal to smear nonsense glyphs on a broken table. He wears a corroded brass prosthesis on one hand, and his left eye is covered with a ratty cloth. He whispers constantly, mumbling utterances that seem to make no sense.
TALKING TO VOCARThe adventurers attempt to learn a specific piece of information from Vocar. But because the man is mad, extracting the information requires a delicate balance of diplomacy and lies, all the while remaining cognizant of Vocar's mood and current disposition. their first attempt doesn't go very well, and Vocar lets slip a secret that acts like acid on the minds of rational creatures.
But finally they manage to make sense of his ramblings, and he reveals them that the "drop point" they seek is hidden deep into a warehouse in the Market Ward, and offers them indication of how to reach it.
SLAVER DROP POINT
A warehouse fronts the street here. Instead of doors, sets of stone pillars allow relatively easy access to the interior. Workers move about the area, loading and unloading goods from arriving and departing carts. Most of the workers look human; one woman appears to be a half elf wearing elaborate robes.
When the adventurers try to enter the warehouse, several workers block their path and cannot be convinced to stand aside. As the characters persist, battle begins.
A worker near one wall grabs a lever and pulls it down. Twin bursts of light flash in front of the warehouse. When the light fades, two hulking constructs of stone stand in the street.
A black sword strikes from nowhere. Behind it, a humanoid creature cloaked in writhing shadow becomes visible, though it's hard to tell where the cloak ends and the black, scaled thing begins.
Our heroes slaughter the whole bunch, and descends into the well.
SLAVER STOCKADE
The well shaft drops into a cluttered storage area. To the west, grand stairs flanked by roaring braziers open into a huge, well lit chamber. In the center of the large room is a horrific stone carving that looks like a giant toad. Dried blood stains the floor around it.
Numerous humanoids stand between them and a large creature that looks like a cross between a spider and an eel.
A gagged human male is strapped to a wooden board that contains grooves apparently designed to catch fluid. Several glass plates are set in the floor at the foot of the sacrifice table. Ghostly humanoid faces visible behind some of the plates appear to scream for help.
The spider-eel creature, also known as Blarux the Ancient, shouts in Common, "Thieves! Saboteurs! Kill them or capture them, I care not! Just stop them!"
After a victoriuos battle, the party forces Blarux to surrender, and he tells the adventurers that he operates under contract with a secret organization in Sigil called the Embassy of Ghouls. Blarux is paid to pick up slaves and crates of stone from a warehouse elsewhere in Sigil, route them through the drop point, and deliver them to the embassy. The neogi explains that the embassy is hidden in Passion's Rendezvous, a fake temple of Sehanine in The Lady's Ward.
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