Lord Talfryn's expression darkens at this revelation. "Hastening their deaths? Surely not... but to what purpose? Why take an active hand in such a wretched process?"
His questions, however, are half hearted; as the elevator hits the lower floor, he gives the Shoanti woman a curt nod. "We have indeed been too lenient. I have more fitting magics to deploy."
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Garvid's fist lands in the wall once more, raising dust from the old planks. "Now I wish I stomped on the girl's head, not her helmet.", he grumbles as the elevator lowers the party into the room. "If we're lucky, though, us sparing them might cause them to think again about following orders blindly.", he shakes his head. "Though our particular strain of luck is worse than that plague."
He sighs, rubbing his fist over his gauntlet. "Why wouldn't she? The plague's been a damn godsend to Her Majesty.", he groan the words, then spits down the elevator shaft. "Ever since everyone started getting sick, nobody's out protesting that Chelish whore usurping the throne. And if a couple of noble houses that don't align with her interests happen to die alongside the sick, all the better. Her Maidens are outside being seen with the doctors curing the disease, and will be seen as protectors of the peace, while the Guard barely has funds to patch their boots, and the birdbrains are one step above being executed for treason."
He lets out a dry smile, and pulls his mask up once more. "So, do I get your vote as the next tyrant of Korvosa?", he quips grimly.
"No tyrants," says Lord Talfyrn, voice equally grim. "But yes to unmasking the truth behind this atrocity. With as much force as that requires."
Once everyone is on board and all the pulleys and weights engage, the elevator begins its slow descent below the Hospice of the Blessed Maiden. It descends about 40 feet before coming to a jarring stop.
The room beyond the elevator is completely dark, barely illuminated by your light sources. The scuffed stone walls of this chamber have been plastered over and then decorated with lurid murals of skeletons cavorting among the dead of a Korvosa that has completely succumbed to blood veil. Simple wooden doors lead to the north, south, and west, each bearing a painting of a scythe- wielding skeleton. A sizable double door stands on the east wall, appearing in the mural as a massive set of double doors opening into the pyramid foundation of Castle Korvosa. Two more scythe-wielding skeletons decorate these large doors.
Li looks at the grotesque decorations and whispers, "This ain't encouragin' but I guess we be in tha right place."
She moves towards the double doors before glancing behind to see if anyone objected to her choice of doors.
Li realizes that a magical trap has been placed on the main door in the eastern wall. She's not sure what its effect might be, but it can't be good.
"That we will, Lordship.", Garvid nods just in time to see the grand necropolis under the Hospice. "Damn.", is all he can say, eyes studying the grim, dark room beyond him. "Well, now I'm sure that excavation isn't declared in the property writ.", he laughs out in a raspy tone, but the smile turns into a mask of anger as soon as he sees the bodies.
"I'm not an expert, but I'm willing to bet my boots that Pharasma doesn't approve of those carvings. And she'll be having a dear word with whoever's responsible for them once I found them." Looking over the doors, he points to the east. "Let's see what's under the Castle, shall we?", he suggests, opening the elevator's gate and stepping into the darkness.
Li pauses when she realizes the danger the double doors pose to unwanted visitors such as themselves. "Someone be makin' sure to be hurtin' anyone just wanderin' in down here. Even though it be magic, I think I c'n figure it out." She's not sure what the trap would do if triggered but she was pretty sure she could by-pass it.
Li draws on her specialized training of disarming magical traps; a dangerous business at the best of times. Judging by the macabre paintings on the wall, however, the people who devised this one had little regard for the well-being of others.
After taking out her loadstone pendant and placing her mana siphons on the floor in front of the door, she swings the pendant over her head with her left hand, all while chanting a song of unbinding, and sketching the breaking rune.
There is no response from the door, but from her experience, there rarely is. All she can do now is hope that she didn't mispronounce the words in Aklo.
Knowing how to deal with magical traps was one of the only good things that had come from her time with Lamm.
"I be thinkin' it be safe ta open now but there be only one way ta be knowin' fer sure." Taking a deep breath, Li goes to open the doors.
Talfryn times it such that his haste spell goes off just as Li opens the doors.
Li opens the door and seems to have done the job on any magical trap here, as nothing happens. The room beyond is lit and quite disturbing. Behind thick panes of glass, fragments and even whole bodies of the living dead line the walls and floor of this chamber. Their rotting faces sneer and broken fingers claw at each other as the shattered forms twitch in vain, their splintered appendages grasping hopelessly. Yet rather than some massive, nightmarish grave, this horror show seems instead to be a stomach-churning attempt at art.
The room has five other exits: two to the north, two to the south and one to the east. It seems otherwise empty.
"Spirits..." breathes Yaziyah as the room beyond the doors is revealed. She struggles for several moments, rage and disgust plain on her face. The murals in the hallway were bad enough, but this shameless, gleeful celebration of undeath, this twisted perversion of life and death... Seizing her spear, she lets out something between a roar, a scream and a sob as she runs towards one of the glass panes, intent on shattering it and perhaps all the disturbing "art" of this place.
Despite Yaziyah's fervent desire to destroy the nauseating necromantic display, the glass holding it back seems quite thick and strong. The Shoanti shaman's spear simply bounces off the pane, leaving a small scratch.
Lord Talfryn shudders at the sight of the imprisoned undead, and then feels a righteous fury when he considers the heights of corruption to which a soul would have to reach to create such a macabre display. Wehn Yazi dashes forward he tries to grab hold of her, but misses, and his cry of protest dies on his lips as he spear bounces harmlessly off the thick glass.
"We shall come back and bring them peace," he says gruffly, moving up to stand beside her, hesitantly placing a hand on her shoulder. "Come. For now, let's settle for bringing justice."
With that, he moves toward the exit toward the east and gives a careful listen.
Lord Blackoak can hear the bubbling of some kind of liquid from inside the room to the east. He can also hear muted conversation, although he cannot tell what they are saying. Near the door, the air also becomes infested with a foul, caustic smell that burns in his nostrils.
He turns around to glance back at the others. "Voices," he says, voice hoarse. "And evidence of some noxious alchemy that stings my sinuses even through this door. I say we enter and demand satisfaction."
Li understands the soul-churning disgust that the display triggers but she visibly flinches at the noise caused by Yazi's reaction. She strains her ears to see if they'd drawn the attention of anyone nearby.
When Lord Talfryn points out what he can hear in the next room she hears it too. Li quietly suggests, "Mebbe I should be goin' ahead an' takin' a look to see what we be up against."
Thankfully no one has responded to the loud noise Yaziyah made, and Li cannot hear any noises of people arming themselves or approaching in a hurry.
The door to the east is not ajar; in fact, none of the exits are and you have shut the door behind you as well to prevent any noises from carrying back the way you came.
"Agreed, Li. But please, execute the greatest of caution. Know that we shall be listening intently, and shall rush in to be of assistance if anything goes awry."
He then pulls a thick gold ring inscribed with runes from his index finger. "And here. Take this. It is an ensorcelled ring that shall provide you some measure of magical protection. If you're going in there alone, you need all the defenses we can afford you."
Garvid nods, grimly looking away from the scattered corpses. "It looks to me like Jolistina got her ideas about art from her master... I'm willing to bet Rolth had something to do with this..."I'd want to put him on a display like that... Nodding at Li, he glances at the door, then puts his back on the wall. "You shout, and we come running.", he nods, fingers dancing along the halberd's hilt impatiently.
Li moves over to the eastern door, listens, and checks it for traps. Finding it untrapped, she carefully opens it no more than an inch and looks in. Sadly from her angle, Li sees nothing of interest in the room. Judging from the bubbling sounds and the sharp, acrid smell coming from inside the room, something is definitely going on, but she would have to either fully open the door or sneak in herself before she can glean any more information.
The rogue nods at both Garvid and Lord Talfryn. She moves toward the door determinedly, comforted by the fact that their were others watching her back.
As the smells assault her nose, Li is grateful for the scarf tied over her face as a disguise as it helps dull the potency. She opens the door only enough to slip inside.
Li slips into the room, staying near the closest wall where the shadows seem deepest. The stinging scent of harsh chemicals chokes this high-ceilinged chamber. Three huge metal vats bubble here, each more than six feet tall. A sturdy series of catwalks ten feet off the ground stretches over and around the vats, allowing those above to attend whatever slurry produces the foul green-brown mist emanating from each gigantic vessel. Circling the upper portion of the room is an elaborate mosaic of white, black, and green stone that depicts a giant half-skeletal woman in black veils dancing among fields of the dead, undying, and dying.
Urgathoa.
Six armored figures move about the room, two on the catwalk and four on the floor below. The ones below move between workbenches aligned with the northern and southern walls. They carry supplies back and forth, or are busy with alchemical instruments such as mortar and pestles, alembics, retorts, and calcinators. The figures are covered head to toe in purple clothing and all wear breastplates and carry wicked-looking scythes on their backs.
They seem unaware of Li's presence at the moment.
Li's nose wrinkles in disgust, both at the smell and at the mosaic. Seeing six armored figures, the rogue knows that she'll need to get the others. At least they could have the element of surprise if they moved quickly. Quietly opening the door, Li slips back out.
She shakes her head sadly as she rejoins the others. "It be disgustin' in there. There be six armored purple-clothed people in there and they be brewin' somethin' smelly. At least I be thinkin' they be people but I couldn't be sayin' fer sure. There also be a mosaic featurin' that Urgathoa we be learnin' about at tha shipwreck. I ain't be seein' anyone that be lookin' like a physician or Grey Maiden in there but like I be sayin', they all be dressed in purple."
She tries to give them an idea of the layout in the room. "There be large vats of whatever they be brewin' an' there be a catwalk too. I be pretty sure they didn't see me or hear me."
Yaziyah lets herself be coaxed away from the unholy displays, but she is visibly seething. The older woman, usually cool and collected, is now clenching her fists and her jaw, her eyes smoldering with fury, fairly growling under her breath with barely contained rage. She follows the others, and only when Li returns from her expedition does the Shoanti woman regain some of her composure. Finally, targets for her retribution.
Garvid grits his teeth. "Even if the queen had nothing to do with death cultists under the palace, that's an insult to everyone who ever stood on the Crimson Throne.", he mutters. I wonder if Andaisin is here, too..., he ponders, before cracking his neck. "Let's leave at least one alive.", squeezes past his lips. He nods at the door, presses his shoulder to it, and raises three fingers at Talfryn and Yazi.
** spoiler omitted **
Correct. Everyone gets a move or standard action in the surprise round. So is everyone ready to attack, or do you want to do more prep work?
Talfryn gives a grim nod to Garvid, then pause as an idea strikes him. "Garvid, would you like to be enlarged so as to be able to reach our enemies on the walkways from the ground floor?"
Li loads a crossbow bolt into her weapon. "We ain't be pullin' any punches this time, right?"
Garvid nods, a wide, vengeful grin spreading on his face as he pictures grabbing the Urgathoans with a massive hand. "That would work, Lordship.", he replies in a low whisper.
"Very well," says Talfryn, and quickly casts the spell, causing Garvid to double in height and gain about eight times his weight. Further, the guard's halberd grows massive as well, and even Talfryn steps back from the now hulking form of their friend.
"There. Now for a spell for the whole group..."
And so saying, he casts Haste on the party just before they open the doors to attack.
Yaziyah grins savagely as Garvid's form is enlarged, and taps his knee with the blessing stick. "Now let us end these blasphemous cultists and wipe clean the city of their stain."
Garvid grows as Lord Blackoak's spell takes effect, until the guard's head nearly touches the ceiling. He'll have to duck to get in through the door.
From where he stands, Talfryn has a direct line of sight on the purple clad warrior before the doorway. As soon as the doors are thrown open, he extends his hand and calls out a phrase of harsh, clangorous magic!
Yaziyah throws her shoulder against the doors, flinging them wide open. She pauses for a moment on the threshold to gauge the reaction of those within, her features still twisted in a mix of rage and bloodlust. Then, a sound that hasn't been heard in these parts for hundreds of years burst from her chest - the ululating, ear-piercing warcry of the Skoan-Quah. Mournful undertones blend with triumphant notes to create a sound that raises the hair of those who hear it.
[dice=Intimeowdate?]
Lord Blackoak's magical fire hits the Urgathoan cultist on the catwalk in the chest, causing him to scream out in pain.
Li loads a crossbow bolt and nods as the others prepare their assault.
Lord Talfryn's magic takes hold and Li loves the augmentation to her speed. She quickly slips inside the room as soon as Yazi opens the door and moves to the left to get out of Garvid's way and to have a clear shot at the cultists.
As soon as she's in position, she releases her crossbow bolt at those closest to the doors wanting to prevent their potential escape. Her normally quick movements appear blurred with the magical enhancement to her dexterity.
Garvid sees the roof approaching rapidly, and breathes in deeply for a second, before realising that in fact he's approaching the roof, and not the other way around. "Hah.", he blurts out with a deeper voice, grinning as Yazi's hand helpfully opens the door, and Lord Talfryn's familiar spell takes affect, slowing down everything.
Stampeding on the floors, the armoured cultists no larger than urchins on the streets of Korvosa, his sprint stops shortly as a fist the size of a bull's head impacts the shocked man standing on the walkway in the centre of the room. He flies away from the impact, his panicked scream as he'd been set on fire shutting quickly as he splashes into the vat.
He lets out a rumbling, dark laugh as he turns to the man on the stairs, and with unnatural speed for a man nearly twelve feet tall, slams the giant halberd's blade's flat into the breastplate, causing a thunderous rumble. "Where is the damned necromancer?!", he roars out to the room, bringing the blade into the catwalk, sending splinters everywhere. "Tell us, or I'll drown you in those vats like rats!"
Li's first shot with the crossbow goes wild, perhaps because she is not used to being able to move as quickly as she can right now. Her second finds its target , inflicting a serious and bleeding wound.
Garvid's first attack knocks out the cultist that Li had already hit, and his next one takes out the cultist standing nearest to him, and the one after that after he ducks under the catwalk.
On the platform on the northern side of the room, the cultist calls out "Intruders! Intruders!" as his hands form a spell.
Sputtering and coughing, the cultist in the green vat manages to pull himself out, sliding down on the far side from the enraged guard.
The last conscious cultist throws open one of the doors leading eastward and runs into the next room screaming "Lady Andaisin, Lady Andaisin!" at the top of his lungs.
The giant guardsman seems to have the right idea. Give the cultists a taste of their own foul medicine. Rushing into the room, Yaziyah points at the one right in front of her and utters a single word.
"Sleep."