As they begin opening the keep doors, Darwin will quietly say "Just getting this out of the way now: this is a trap."
Abu makes sure to be the last one in.
The party files into the entrance. This austere hall is finished in irregular blocks of dark basalt that form natural columns along the walls. the doors of the monastery's front entrance face south, while interior doors lead east and west. An interior courtyard lies just to the north of this room, visible through a pair of narrow windows.
The one who answered the door seems to be an older woman, she is dressed in robes and motions for you to take a seat, though there are none here. She herself sits crosslegged.
"I have sent for a higher ranking member to come and escort you to those in charge. I must remain here, so we wait."
"Don't be so paranoid - maybe the Earth cultists are the good guys who buried the convoy after the bandits attacked? We need to hear their side of the story first." He tells Darwin.
"That will be fine, Mam." Krogar tries to take a seat cross legged, then finds that that position really doesn't suit bulky dwarves well, and opts to sit on his heels instead.
Darwin continues to stand, but finds a wall to lean against with his arms crossed. He is intently staring at the woman.
"You remind me of someone I used to know."
Abu smiles. "Thabk you kind ma'am."
Jamenas comes in and sits down as well. Hmmmm... She mentioned rank. Is this a military operation, or indeed a cult, as Darwin supposed? If it's a cult, why would they invite us in?
"Do I?" she asks Darwin, after giving him a curious look. "And who would that be?"
"Just a young woman from the village where I grew up. It's uncanny, really."
Everyone make a perception check.
You can hear the soft grinding of stone behind the closed door you entered and the door that you sit waiting for someone to enter through.
Krogar doesn't really notice anything.
Darwin is too busy observing the woman to notice.
Jamenas notices something. Earth cultists, Darwin says these people are? He approaches the door they entered through, throws it open, and backs away quickly.
Abu nods, "I hear what you hear. Should we be ready for an attack?
"Attack from what?" Darwin says while still watching the woman like a hawk.
Jamenas throws the door open, to reveal a solid wall of stone.
The woman sitting on the ground smiles.
You all start realizing that you're breathing a bit harder, a bit faster.
"That funny, is it? Here's something I find funny." Darwin sucks in air, then draws his sword and stabs her.
God's damn you! Jamenas looks for a way to get out. He inspects the blocking stone, then the walls.
Darwin's blade digs into the woman's shoulder and she breathes in sharply in reaction to the pain. She scoots away from her attacker, and begins to mutter a spell.
"Enemies of the Cult will be buried," she says, as she finishes with a flourish.
Darwin, beneath your feet you can feel the earth begin to rise up under your feet, surrounding your feet.
Darwin attempts to bound away from the hands, but one of them grabs him at the last minute and he hits his face on the ground. He manages to stand again quickly enough, but not before more hands find purchase.
"Uhhh...guys? Help?" he says while glaring daggers at the woman.
Jamenas turns away from the wall to see Darwin being grappled by the very Earth itself. He marches up to the woman,draws his longsword, and swings it at her.
Jumping back Abu is a little surprised by the woman's attacks. He quickly draws his swords and attacks once.
Prone is flat on your stomach or back, not sitting.
Jamenas does his best to attack the woman, and even Abu lends his blade, but both fall short.
Suddenly the air seems to become empty, and as each of you hold your breathe, you realize that you have a bit of a countdown clock on how long before you suffocate (1 + CON bonus minutes).
The woman cackles, not seeming to care that she is using up the last of her air. She begins to mutter and cuts her arm. Her blood flows down her wrist and spills onto the floor, and she collapses.
It seems a strange gesutre until the blood begins to crack the stones on the ground and the seems to cobble together the blood forming like restrictive veins across the missmatched stone body. A large humanoid stands before, body of stone and hled together by dark necromatic blood magic.
"I've got a bad feeling about this." Abu says before attacking her again.
Darwin continues to struggle to break the earth that is pinning his legs, but to no avail.
Jamenas grits his teeth and swings at the Rock figure in front of him.
Jamenas swings his blade in a wide arc, managing enough force to knock off a few pieces of stone from the Blood Crag's form. It doesn't seem as effective as it should, but damage has been done.
Abu dives in close range and plunges both blades deep into the woman's sides, even past her proesting ribs. She coughs and turns pale as she slumps to floor dead.
The Blood Crag turns to Abu and raises its fist.
As his fist plunges downward, it hits with such a great force that it literally creates a small crater approximately 5 feet deep and 5 feet wide.
Trying a different tact, Darwin will drop his rapier, draw his shortbow, and shoot at the being made of blood.
Stumbling a little bit, Abu swings out with his swords after finding his feet.
Jamenas talks quickly, trying to use the least amount of air possible. We can't keep on doing this. Hitting it doesn't do much but chip some stone away! We should try to immobilize it! Quick, get some rope! Jamenas gets out some rope as well and ties it into a lasso.
Darwin's arrow strikes true, though given the rocky composition of the entity he's aiming at, the full power of the piercing doesn't get all the way through. Abu is barely able to keep out of the small crater, and goes again for another two strikes, this time against the Blood Crag. Jamenas makes quick preparations, though he uses precious time and air to to do so.
The blood crag takes aim at Abu once more, but doesn't have enough strength for such a powerful blow. Instead, a normal attack is made.
Darwin will swear in a dozen different languages, including Elven, Dwarven, Tengu, and Draconic, throw down his bow, and then try and break his legs free.
Jamenas takes a deep breath, whispers a little prayer, and throws the lasso, trying to restrain the creature.
Quickly dodging out of the way of the attack. "You'll have to try better next time." he says then quickly attacks back with two swings of his sharp swords.
But faints away acting as if he missed.
None of the party's attacks seem to be working, and their dire situation seems to be turning desperate.
Then....
There's a loud sound of something slamming into the stoned off door to the outside. You can see the dust fall off the walls.
Wham!
A second loud bash echoes through the room as slight cracks appear in the stone's surface.
The blood crag pays little mind and moves target's to Jamenas.
Darwin is now desperate to be free of his imprisonment.
Jamenas abandons his lasso and attacks with his sword once more.
Abu slashes out with his twin blades one more time.
Hits the air and hears it scream.
Krogar walks up to the bloody crag and starts whacking it.
Dot
Darwin finally mangaes to free his trapped form, smashing the stony limbs that grasp him. Abu is finding nothing but difficulty against the Blood Crag, but Krogar and Jamenas move to cover their small friend, dealing solid blows to the creature. More stones seem to lose grip on the vibrant blood that ties the blood Crag's form together.
There is a sound of more cracking, the dent in the earthen wall preventing your escape cracks more and suddenly collapses. Through the opening, you see the grim faces of the feathergale knights, accompanied by....someone you don't recognize.
Her face is almost fae in appearance, and her beauty is undeniable if only marred by the thin smile that seems to tug on the corner's of her mouth.
"These are those you've told me about?" she asks a knight.
"Aye, my lady."
Her smile broadens, and with a flick of her wrist, she floods the stale air in your makeshift tomb with fresh air. Not only that, you all look to your weapons to find a something of a sheen of air surrounding your weapons,
Do finish up lads. There's more work to be done."
The Blood Crag hurls a particularly large spike of stone at the mysterious women.
However, she seems to brush the attack aside with a subtle wave of her hand, and spins to one side, off into the forest where a loud thud indicates it's impact into a tree.
"May Moradin lend us his strength this day."Krogar sheathes his quarterstaff, then chants.
Jamenas grins as his sword is blessed with first the Feathergale magic, and then Krogar's. He strikes.
Chuckling at how the tables of have turned, Darwin drops his bow, draws his rapier, and moves into combat with the blood elemental.
Seeing the new foes, Abu moves forward and attacks with one of his swords.
Between Darwin and Jamenas, the Blood finally crumbles down and returns its stone to the earth.
The mysterious woman chuckles as she sees you all injured, battered, but victorious.
"First the water cult, now earth? My, you boys have been busy."
"I don't think these crazy cultists are quite finished yet. We need to sweep the castle to be sure."