Round 7 Init 12
HP = 21/23
AC = 18/14/15
Weapon Equipped = Light Crossbow
Speed = 15'
Channel = 1/5 (2d6)
Oracle Spells Left (CL 1, +2 melee touch, +6 ranged touch):
0 Create Water, Detect Magic, Guidance, Light, Stabilize
1 5/6 Cure Light Wounds (DC 15), Bless, Burning Disarm (DC 15), Sun Metal (DC 15)
Status Effects = Inspired
Harlan fires again.
Malnival leans around the column and peppers Nindinzego with another arrow, eliciting a chorus of enraged cries from the monster. Parity, grimacing with effort, lurches over the edge and stands on the lip next to Harlan. With an exhaled huff, he draws his falcata and asks, "Which way is it?"
Heng begins spinning the kusarigama, ready for the monster to come back into range. As it spins faster, the weapon makes a shrill buzzing sound, echoing through the cavern beyond.
Harlan reloads and fires his crossbow, again hitting Nindinzego, but this time the bolt just bounces off.
Spewing curses in a dozen languages at Malnival, Nindinzego swoops across the room to attack the elf up close. While flying over Maeve's head, she takes a couple swings at it, missing narrowly. Parity has more luck, lashing out with precision and nearly slicing a tentacle clean off. Nindinzego continues on unabated, calling out arcane words as a tentacle glowing sickly green slaps Malnival across the chest.
Now, with the foe in range of his chain, Heng strikes out with a flurry of attacks, like an angry wasp striking its prey. Nindinzego screams as the sickle blade viciously cuts its flesh.
Maeve covers the short distance in a rush, aiming a wild, flying crescent kick at the monstrosity.
Fort Sv :
Malnival grins at the monster through his pain. "Right where I want you."
He drops his bow and draws his scimitar activating his arcane pool to charge the weapon.
Attack :
Damage:
Round 8 Init 12
HP = 21/23
AC = 18/14/15
Weapon Equipped = Light Crossbow
Speed = 15'
Channel = 1/5 (2d6)
Oracle Spells Left (CL 1, +2 melee touch, +6 ranged touch):
0 Create Water, Detect Magic, Guidance, Light, Stabilize
1 5/6 Cure Light Wounds (DC 15), Bless, Burning Disarm (DC 15), Sun Metal (DC 15)
Status Effects = Inspired
"Last one, make it count."
Harlan channels again to heal all but the thing.
Malnival strikes while Parity moves in, slashing with his falcata, but Nindinzego deflects their blades with its free tentacles. Harlan channels one more healing burst to aid the group.
Unable to stand back any longer, Kelda calls out an Ulfen battle cry as she flies into a rage and charges into the fray. Holding the jagged scimitar in both hands, she cuts into Nindinzego's hide with a powerful downstroke, getting through its protected hide with sheer force.
Maeve charges in, trying an impressive kick but missteps on a piece of rubble, nearly diving headlong into the monster. With a dancer's grace, she manages to make the fumble look intentional.
Nindinzego continues to assault Malnival, attacking with claws, bite and tentacles. Mal easily avoids the worst of it, but takes cuts from the monster's hooked claws.
Heng continues to strike in rapid succession with the kusarigama, carving another wound into the beast. Now bleeding from many wounds, Nindinzego begins to scream wildly and spin in midair, tentacles flailing at all within reach.
Maeve attempts to continue her assault, fruitless as it has proven so far.
Round 9 Init 12
HP = 21/23
AC = 18/14/15
Weapon Equipped = Light Crossbow
Speed = 15'
Channel = 1/5 (2d6)
Oracle Spells Left (CL 1, +2 melee touch, +6 ranged touch):
0 Create Water, Detect Magic, Guidance, Light, Stabilize
1 5/6 Cure Light Wounds (DC 15), Bless, Burning Disarm (DC 15), Sun Metal (DC 15)
Status Effects = Inspired
Harlan moves to the other side of Heng and attempts to heal Mal.
Round 9
Perception take 10: 19
"Pazuzu, what the …? Time to end this!"
Parity grimaces and reaches down deep for extra strength, dropping his shield and using two hands on his falcata.
miss chances,
Even spinning, Nindinzego continues to parry off Malnival's and Parity's attacks. Harlan gets a healing charge off of his wand to help Mal, while Kelda brings down another powerful chopping blow, slicing a tentacle off.
Nindinzego's din of babbling voices comes to an abrupt stop when Maeve lands a crunching heel to the center of its skull. The monster flops to the crypt floor with a gurgling gasp. Its tentacles writhe and twist a moment before finally lying still.
As the fiendish decapus dies, the remaining gloom over Brinewall fades with it. In the space of a few minutes, the aspect of the castle goes from a mysterious lair of corruption to that of a crumbling, abandoned ruin. The ghosts of old have fled, leaving only the memory of their haunting.
Maeve thinks for a moment. "It's a possibility. It was claiming to be the son of a demon lord, so it may have had power beyond the physical ones we saw. It certainly held some power over this castle."
"But first, let's search the room and then head back to the caravan to check. I suspect that this was the last thing holding any forces together in any organized way, so we can probably safely retreat without a renewed defense if we have to return." Maeve is clearly trying to sound rational, but there's a certain glint in her eyes that suggests she's just eager to see if Ameiko is well.
Malnival slaps his scimitar back into its sheath and leans forward against the pillar. "Once again thank you my gumbo loving friend. That would have went rather badly had you not bosterd us with the healing from your god."
As Valwen lands on his upraised left arm, he moves forward and looks over the edge of the pit casting a quick spell.
"His father was the self-proclaimed king of the wind demons. If this thing was powerful enough, then it's certainly possible that Ameiko will feel better now. There is something we shouldn't forget though Maeve. Why would it do that to Ameiko? We need to finish searching this room, it might tell us what was really going on. Also we need to pick up our feathered friend before we leave, she might be willing to join us."
************************
"My pleasure Mal. I'm glad it ended when it did, I'm almost tapped out."
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"There is still the upper floor of the keep to examine. The mad poet may have had some notes on the matter or at least more clues."
Heng shakes his head at Harlan's continued interest in the harpy.
"I would still advise against trusting the harpy. We had a tentative alliance against a common enemy, but their kind is often cruel and treacherous and I wonder if it is really only coincidence that she dwells in the shadow of this King of Wind Demons."
Maeve nods to Heng. "That's definitely a possibility. And Harlan, I did say we should search the room, I just want to check if Ameiko's awake before going through the rest of the castle. After all, I'm sure she'll want to be here if there's any chance of it."
"I'm no expert on harpies Heng, but aren't they usually dirty and screechy and evil? If this one was evil wouldn't she have just waited until we killed the king and then killed us while we were weakened? It's not like she really helped that much against the king anyway, I mean let's face it between the four of you that crazy bird didn't stand a chance. I think we should trust here, after all none of us are paladins but even if we were and she was evil, does that make it her fault? Think of how she was raised, never learning anything different until she met us. Maybe we could redeem her. Think of all the strange things we're going to see where we're going. Some of them will look fair and be foul, and some of them will look foul and be fair, and some of them will make really really good gumbo, but is that something we can decide based on how they look? Imagine if we'd met Kelda here wandering through the halls, would we have assumed she was evil? But we found her in a cage, locked away from the rest of the world and tortured. Maybe Zaiobe was locked in this castle as a sort of cage, and this dead thing here was her jailor? I'm not saying you shouldn't keep an eye on her Heng I'm just saying give her a chance. Please?"
Harlan stands there panting, having finally run out of breath.
Malnival's eyeybrows raise in ginuine suprise as he looks at Harlan. "Very well said my longwinded friend. I agree with you. Evil, and good, comes in all shapes and size. I will not drop my guard around the harpy, but I will not dismiss her as evil."
The elf turns and looks once more into the pit.
Perception:
Exhausted after her rage fades, Kelda leans wearily against a column, offering to guard the crypt while you explore below.
Malnival's spell picks up a few pieces of magic on Nindinzego's body, and some auras in the south end of the cavern beyond. Climbing down carefully, you find the bottom is bare, and no feet have trod there for a long, long time. The twisting passage to the north ends where a collapse has blocked further progress. In the rubble, you find half-buried bones of a crushed dire corby.
In the small cavern to the south, you find the remnants of a leathery, eldritch egg strewn across the floor, still weirdly moist and pulsating even though it appears to have opened long ago. A small horde of treasures, perhaps offerings to the mad decapus, sits on a flat rock at the far end of the room. Amidst the many coins piled up, Malnival detects magic on several items, including a shield, ring, pearl, and a small palm-sized metal disc, with a spinning compass inside a flip-lid... a Pathfinder's wayfinder.
Also there you find a darkwood-and-silver disc with an intricate etching of Brinewall under a midnight moon. The disc is a twin to the one you found on Kikonu.
Lastly, standing at the center of the flat rock, as if looking over the horde, is a stone statuette about a half foot tall, depicting a four-winged, bird-headed humanoid with a scorpion tail where its genitals should be. Its right arm is raised. Harlan identifies it as a depiction of Pazuzu, while Malnival says it also radiates magic.
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Heng sighs after Harlan's heartfelt plea, "I suppose many have made certain assumptions about my heritage. Still, I am not so certain that I believe in the redemption of monsters. I will not hinder your attempt to ally with the harpy, though neither will I let down my guard as I have heard too many tales of travelers lured over cliffs by harpy song and I am quite sure that your friend wouldn't think twice about enjoying halfling gumbo... and I don't mean one of your recipes."
Parity smiles at Harlan, "She's probably gonna try and eat you but I'll be willing to accompany you for a parlay. Not until we destroy this shrine though. Anyone have any problems with that? However, we need to get these discs back to Ame. Mal, do you think there are more?"
If there are no objections, Parity power attack sunders the statue with a great 2-handed blow.
Maeve sighs. "I might be more convinced if she hadn't been fairly honest that all she wanted was Birdy's death. Someone so casual about turning on their allies of several months probably isn't going to think half a second about turning on allies of a day. But, there's no need to go looking for trouble, so I wasn't going to attack first."
{b]"Hang on a sec ... do you think this is the Secret third vault or did we miss something. I sorta have the feeling that there is something more, something more specifically related to Ame's family. Not just these discs."[/b] Parity wrinkles his brow in consternation, "Unless of course, that thing was one of her ... relatives? If so, who was father that she was talking to. I assumed it was Pazuzu, but maybe it was someone else?"
"Well, to be honest, I don't know." Maeve says. "But only one way to find out."
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"It called its father Pazuzu and clearly there was some resemblance. Do you think it came from this egg? Perhaps all the birdmen came from below. One appears to have been trapped in the cave-in. Destroy the statue, Parity. No good can come from that.
I do not think we have discovered all the vaults mentioned though. There is the upper level of the keep and the haunted donjon yet to investigate."
"I do realize that, Heng." Maeve says quickly. "I just don't think there's any rush anymore, and Ame really would want to be here if she's up."
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"And if she isn't, we have wasted another day or two traveling to the caravan and back. I agree that the others should come to Brinewall. I want to show Koya the shrine to Desna in the graveyard, but I think it unwise to assume all is fine without making sure we have solved all the mysteries this place presents."
Maeve just pouts and quickly storms back into the crypt, although it's easy to tell by the sound of her footsteps she doesn't go any farther, at least.
Waiting for a response from Mal on the discs, but Parity is inclined to stay. Not so certain that we found what we're looking for. I feel we ended the haunting, but not the family-specific issue affecting Ame.
"Well to tell you the truth I am not sure.. but I do not beleive the is the vualt we are looking for. We should keep this with the other until we find what they are used for,"
"The status should be destroyed. It's ugly. Also evil."
"Thank you Heng. Remember Maeve, they weren't really allies. Kikonu stole her voice, that doesn't seem like a very allye thing to do."
"I vote we stay. It's a long walk, and I don't think we've found three vaults yet."
After you gather up the treasures and Parity smites the demonic idol, you resume searching through Brinewall Castle, starting with the main floor...
The walls of this wooden stable are gray with age and sag ominously, yet the building seems relatively sound. An old forge sits to the south, while five empty horse stalls stand to the north. Beyond a disturbing number of spider webs covering the walls and ceiling, the building appears empty.
*
This large circular room features a ring of pillars that support a balcony just over fifteen feet above. A flight of stairs winds up to the balcony along the southern wall. Faded paintings of dancing elves decorate the walls, spattered here and there with ancient bloodstains. It appears that in the battle for the castle years ago, a major fight took place here. One of the combatants must have had prodigious strength, judging from the deep gouges in the walls by the bloodstains.
*
It's impossible to tell what this room may have originally been used for, as the walls and floor are decorated with countless preserved animals and creatures, ranging from small birds and forest creatures to fearsome predators. Several of the displays look uncomfortably fresh or humanoid in shape.
As you enter, a small figure appears from thin air, moving toward you in a blur of motion. It is a tiny elflike woman, a foot shorter than Harlan. She has long, twitching antennae and wears a brightly colored dress made from butterfly wings and preserved wildflower petals. She smiles at you, but continuously moves, as if standing still were uncomfortable.
"ohhelloIwaswonderingwhenyouwouldstopby," she says in rapid fire words.
Maeve wrinkles her nose at the mix of destruction and age. "You know, I don't think I want to know." Nevertheless, she does look quickly with a detect magic spell.
Maeve looks around in wonder at her surroundings. While she's still clearly not happy with the decision to keep exploring, it can't quite keep her from smiling as she imagines the parties that must have once taken place....until her eyes go to the gouges in the wall. "Okay, no way did anything we fought make that." She moves in to take a closer look.
Maeve almost seems enchanted and put off guard by the creature's adorable appearance, but something about the twitching suddenly clicks in her head and she adopts a more guarded approach. "You were expecting us?" she asks cautiously.
"Be careful Maeve, there might be big spiders in there."
Harlan looks around.
"What happened here?"
"Hello there, what's your name?"
Parity will climb into the cistern and swim down, feeling the edges for anything of interest and coming up for air as required.
Perception take 20 --> 31.
"Her dress is made from butterfly wings?" Parity exclaims with mock shock, a smirk tugging at the corners of his mouth, "How cruel."
Need to do a thorough search here as well. Take 20
Did we search all of the crypt? If not, do so now.
"I'd still would like to swim out this way just in case there's something else hidden in this underwater passage. Need someone, or multiple someones, to go with me to be my eyes. Any volunteers?"
We could always go back and mess with the lizard. It may be guarding something in its nest. Probably not, though
Maeve doesn't see any magic auras in the stables.
*
Parity's more thorough searches doesn't turn up anything additional. The cistern holds only brackish water. You've culled all the worthwhile items from the armory, and the crypt sarcophaghi were all looted of bodies and valuables long ago.
"Buttersnipsismyname," the little creature replies. "IheardyoubashingaroundKikonu'sbirdies, figuredyouwouldendupheresoonerorlater."
Her eyebrow raises at Heng's question, "Graveyard? Nowasn'tme." Buttersnips flits around the room, blurring with each step.
"Haveyoucomeformenow?"
Maeve narrows her eyes slightly. "Well, so far we've been willing to just let you guys leave us alone, but I suspect you're not going to do that."
"She's a quickling. Fae that are noted for being cruel and fast. This one seems even moreso the first than usual, looking around." Maeve says, still sounding cautious.
Buttersnips looks cautious as well, especially at the mention of 'cruel'. As you look around the parlor trophies a little closer, you notice one that at first glance appeared to be a large crow or magpie, is in fact a dire corby's head attached to an elf or human child's body.
"Ileaveyoualoneifyouleavemealone," Buttersnips says. "I'mnotlikeKikonuortheothers,crazymad.I'manartist.Icanpayyouinjewels,unless you'dlikeoneofmypieces?" She gestures to the trophies, looking hopeful.