"Don't do anything Thayan now, Azarra.." says Kardas with a voice taut with stress.
Thayan? asks Azarra, after she completes her spell*.
"Don't do anything Thayan now, Azarra.."
"Hey! What do you mean with that?" Ishta frowns when caught in the comparison, unfocusing her attention from the chest or the spirit.
Going back to it, however , she thinks it's a good time to have found the rest of the password.
"Um... maybe we should come back when we have the whole pass?"
Ser Armithia nods his helmed head.
Agreed. We shall look elsewhere.
Azarra's spell flips the box open and the spirit flares with a brilliant blue light and Azarra gets thrown across the room landing in a heap!
Azarra tries to see what is in the box
but was unable to see anything before being thrown across the room by some force.
Don't worry. I'm okay. she says, trying to make sure that her friends don't overreact and attack the spirit if there is another way to handle this.
Ishta rushes in to help Azarra while having an eye still on the spirit. She's not sure the creature will or won't go on attacking.
Thank you, Ishta Azarra says as she is helped to her feet.
The gold elf casts detect evil as they continue.
He moves to door A.
Perhaps, our orc friends could be lead here and encouraged to meet the oozes.
Zane stared at the apparition apprehensively having just witnessed its raw power. Thinking to call upon Lathander's grace to battle the undead spirit, Azarra's reassurances that she is ok halt what could possibly be a suicidal move. Thinking that such a powerful guardian would obviously be charged with protecting something important, the priest shrugs and barks out. "Lux! Shestnik!"
That had already worked for them, so probably wouldn't this time, but it was worth a shot. The cleric hears Ser Armithia's suggestion and knows it is a decent one, but he really just wanted to move deeper into the complex.
Azarra waits to see if the apparition responds to Zane in any way. If it doesn't respond, but it still isn't attacking, she tries casting unseen servant.
"Ehm.."
"Lux! Shestnik!"
In an echoing and reedy voice the spirit replies to him, "Greetings! I am Ferran Martinez, sworn to protect the fort until the last so that the civilians may be evacuated. The situation is grave, the dragon armies have fallen upon us time and again, their engines pounding the fort till you could barely recognize it. How goes the war, do you have dispatches from the front?"
Perception
Having paused due to the fact that spirits are not the forte' of the Ranger, Mal finally acts as it seems that once more the spirit encountered is friendly or at least not a foe, "Greetings Ferran, the front goes poorly, Orc minions even now seek to penetrate the Fort and learn its secrets. We are badly outnumbered. Is there any assistance you can lend us? They are nearly upon us even as I speak".
Azarra starts walking toward the box again, now that the spirit seems friendly.
If Ferran starts freaking out, she will stop and cast unseen servant instead. But if she can just walk to the box without the ghost getting all rankled, she will look inside, and acquire the contents.
Zane listens to Ferran's message with clenched jaw, emotion welling up in him. Due to this brace man it was likely that time enough had been bought for Zane's grandmother and father to escape the doom that had befallen Phlan. And now the poor bastard was cursed to roam Faerun in this state. What a poor reward. Still, Zane could do his part to thank the undead priest by finding the horn and releasing Ferran's soul to the afterlife.
The Cleric nodded in agreement as Malstei spoke as he blinked tears away, unwilling to say anything against what the elf says for fear of turning the spirit against the group once again. Hearing the sounds of battle approaching, he waves for the attention of those around him then points to the entrance where the orcs most likely will enter from, his grip on his mace tightening as they wait for Ferran's response.
The knight salutes the guardian.
By Helm, you will be rewarded for such honorable service!
As Mal and Ser A are already talking to the spirit, Ishta decides not to intervene. She catches Azarra trying to sneak near the coffer, so she positions herself in a spot from where to block Ferran's line of sight as much as possible, if a spirit has normal line of sight, of course.
When she hears the noise of battle, she points out aloud: "Can you all hear this? It's the dragon armies approaching!"
Azarra, Ferran wags his finger at you as if to say no.
Voice echoing as if from eternity, Ferran replies, "Yes I sense them, their blood has sullied this place. I smell it on your blades, it is unlike the other ones... They have not been tainted by that accursed pool. Yet I sense the tyrant's hand in this even if his own peculiar stench is absent... Still their numbers are many and despite the fervor of my followers I sense the tide of battle will turn against us. The sleepers must be woken by the sound of trumpets for one final push, so the orc may be cleansed from this place in glorious battle... It will be our last, I sense it now, we shall make Tempus proud!"
Azarra stops, but casts unseen servant, telling the unseen servant to fetch whatever is in the box. She doesn't understand what is going on at all. If he is our friend, why can't we see what is in the box?
Zane's eyes grow puzzled as the ghostly man mentions a pool and a tyrant. The priest assumed the tyrant referred to Bane, a common deity of the orcs, but what pool did Ferran refer to? Perhaps it was a metaphor for something, no matter. As the undead priest mentions the trumpets, Zane nodded eagerly. "Yes, yes! The trumpets! Where do they reside, so that we may sound them?"
"Yes! The trumpet is the horn right? I just hope when we blow it the undead don't go away and leave us in the middle of a sea of orcs... but wait!" Ishta's thoughts run like gunpowder, trying to make sense out of all this. "He mentioned a pool that corrupts, or taints... and a tyrant. I must know about this, it can be key..."
Believing it could be linked to her past, and even knowing that the horn is the most urgent thing, Ishta has but to ask.
"Erm... excuse me, Mister Martinez... Where is that pool you just talk about? And who is that tyrant? We should probably be informed about who or what we're fighting..."
Just a second and she falls to sheer curiosity. "Also, what's so important in that chest that shouldn't be touched or beheld?"
All the questions that need asking have already been asked so Kardas simply waits, trying to ease his grip on the sword as he fears he might just grind the handle to dust if he doesn't.
Ser Armithia also follows Kardas' lead; keeping ready.
"The trumpet yes! It should be in the trophy room." Ferran suddenly stops and frowns, "No that's not right... Its a musical instrument I'm certain of that but it's..."[b] Softly almost like a whisper he adds, [b]"My memory isn't what it used to be, full of holes. I can't remember what it looks like, but I know it's important. If sounded right it will herald the last call for us. The details escape me now but I think, er..." . The spirit pauses again seeming most befuddled before adding, "That's it, if used to sound the battle song of Tempus we will all sally fourth for one last glorious battle before passing from the mortal realm to take our place in the eternal battle in Tempus's halls."
"Erm... excuse me, Mister Martinez... Where is that pool you just talk about? And who is that tyrant? We should probably be informed about who or what we're fighting..."
Ferran replies, "In our hubris we thought Phlan to be strong, well defended against any foe. We were not reckoning on unblessed creatures empowered by an accursed pool rising up to unite the warring factions of orcs and other fell creatures. Chief among them were the great generals Tiryanthraxus, Edranks and Torath. The sage Mandor wprked hard to gather records of all these things but his library is lost to us now, overrun by foul beings..."
"Also, what's so important in that chest that shouldn't be touched or beheld..."
He replies, "Oh just some personal effects, musical scores mostly. And a map of the city."
Azarra stops her unseen servant for a moment, thinking that Ishta is on to something here... why not just ask?
May we consult the map of the city?
"Which room is the trophy room Ferran? We've got to get to the Instrument and soon!"
Zane's brow furrowed as he listened to Ferran speak of a Pool and enemy generals. The Cleric dismissed it as history, noting that the library in Phlan could possibly hold more details on the matter. Seeing that the trumpet isn't likely to be in this room, the young man moved to the door directly across from him, trying the handle if he goes unchallenged.
The gold elf enters the chamber, closing the door behind him.
Hopefully, the orcs check out the ooze room before here.
He then joins Zane.
Ferran started to reply to Azarra but there was a great crash from outside and he suddenly looked distant as if his attention was far away. Malesti's question snapped him back to the present, "Over there..." He waved absently to one of the doors.
Zane walked across the room to examine the door. Like the other doors in the fort it was thick wood but unlike most it had mostly survived the passage of time undamaged, while not quite as strong as it once was it's still strong enough. The door is locked, and unfortunately the lock is rusted shut.
Frustrated, Azarra has her unseen servant continue.
After giving the door a quick tug and finding it firmly locked and rusted shut, the priest proceeded over to the door Ferran's spirit indicated. The ghost didn't seem hostile at the moment, so he was willing to trust it. After waiting for others to get into position he opened the door after hearing nothing from the other side.
"I knew I should've brought an axe.."
"Ahh... I could help you bring it down, but I guess I would be more of a mess than a help..." She turns to the spirit. "Do you have the key, by chance?"
The gold elf places his sword and shield away, readying to confront the door.
Azarra says
I have a traveler's any tool that will work as a crowbar if anyone needs it.
I don't think that unseen servants can sneak, and wasn't really trying to hide it, other than the obvious invisibility thing, and me standing somewhere else. :) ... But okay.
Zane shrugged as they gathered at the more northern door, his green eyes giving Azarra a concerned look. The half-elf seemed up to no good, judging by her determined expression, and the Cleric doubted the ghost would look kindly upon shenanigans. Still, he'd have to trust that she knew what she was doing. Taking another moment to study her fair profile, he turned back to the door, lifting the latching bar and pushing (or pulling) it open.
"Let us try the other door? It seems that this one, rusted through and through as it is, would tax us too much when there's another door we can take. If the saddle doesn't fit, don't ride the horse."
That made sense.
Ser Armithia rearms himself; readying his shield. The knight stands next to Zane.
Azarra surreptitiously sends her servant towards the box, Ferran glances at it for a moment before something unseen distracts him.
Just before it reaches the box, Zane manhandles the heavy oak bar from the door and prods it open with his foot. With a slight squeak, the door swigs open to reveal a room full of dusty cabinets which the meanest looking orc you've ever seen is rifling through! The orc is armed with a hatchet and shield, and grunts with surprise at your arrival but recovers quickly.
Wordlessly Ferran wheels about and streaks towards him, but the orc throws something at the door which flares out into a crackling transparent green shield which covers the entrance. Ferran tries to move through but is violently repelled upon contact, leaving a trail of his essence which dissipates like smoke. Silently he rages at his inability to get through!
Initiative rolls:
Malstei Alenuath <----- WE ARE HERE
Azarra
Ser Armithia-Seendren
Zane Levallis
Orc Champion
Kardas Rasalas
Ishta Khosiv
Spoiler:Malstei Alenuath
Azarra
Ser Armithia-Seendren
Zane Levallis
Orc Champion
Kardas Rasalas
Ishta Khosiv Mage Armor (1679 rounds)
Malstei Alenuath
Azarra
Ser Armithia-Seendren
Zane Levallis
Orc Champion
Kardas Rasalas
Ishta Khosiv Mage Armor (1678 rounds)
Malstei Alenuath, Azarra, Ser Armithia-Seendren and Zane Levallis are up.
Don't worry. The ward on the door probably won't hurt the living.
I hope.
Azarra moves to the box to get whatever her servant has obtained and stash it while the spirit is still distracted.
Zane nodded his understanding to Azarra, but still gulped nervously before stepping through the barrier. He quickly rushed to the other side of the room after that, cutting off any chance of escape for the wicked-looking Orc. Hoping his companions were following, he squared himself and then swung his Mace across at the creature.