Heldar |
Dien, after we understood our exact positioning, Heldar would still pose the same question to Smart - any answer on that one? ;)
GM Dien |
Lighting conditions: Unless otherwise stated (like in the audience room, with the 'sunlight' coming through the 'windows'), the only light source is what you guys have with you. That is, I believe, Heldar's light spell, or other light sources like your wayfinder.
A cursory examination of the room for magic reveals no magical presences or auras in the room. Likewise, Javi perceives no traps.
Rosalia smirks a bit at Shaggar's sarcastic observation. "Seems simple enough," she agrees sardonically.
When Heldar asked Smart what was present behind this door, the clamor was thoughtfully silent for several long seconds. Then, in a rather shrill voice:
"ਮੈਨੂੰ ਬਾਹਰ ਕਰੀਏ! ਦੇ ਭੱਤੇ! ਤੁਹਾਨੂੰ ਧੱਕਣ ਰਹੇ ਹੋ! ਸ਼ਾਇਦ ਰੋਕੋ! ਜਾਣ ਦੋ! ਬਹੁਤ ਤੰਗ! ਦੇ ਭੱਤੇ!"
Heldar |
Heldar puzzles at Smart's words - "Our friend seems to relate the voices of those that shared a cramped space... 'Let me out! Ow! You're pushing! Stop shoving! Let go! Too tight! Ow!' Not sure of what exactly he is trying to relay to us"
His eyes are inexorably drawn towards the writings, but he hesitates, instead deciding to move towards the bottle, and observing it more cautiously, trying to fathom if there is indeed something within - "There is no alternative - I should focus on the writing... No real way around it, is there?" - he speaks to his companions, though his eyes never leave the bottle.
Javi the Wasp |
"Cramped spaces, huh?" Javi mutters as he walks a circuit around the room, often eyeballing the bottle. "And yah, unless there's something we can learn from the bottle itself ... someone just might have some reading to do."
He stops and peers into the bottle with a half-smile, "My gold's on the voices coming from inside the bottle."
GM Dien |
Heldar studies the bottle on its dais. It does not move or otherwise react to his staring.
Hmmm, a crushing wall trap...! What a great idea-- that is to say, these walls do seem to be pretty solid and set in, uh, stone. The bottle; however: Lyrian is pretty sure that something nasty is going to happen when or if the bottle's uncorked. You might even say that's a trigger mechanism for, oh, nasty things coming out of the bottle maybe.
Javi circles the dais. The bottle is unmarked, with no handy descriptive text or label. The bottle is also corked, so peering in is rather tricky.
Rosalia says a mental 'to hell with it' and starts squinting at the walls, but doesn't read the language, so she is of limited usefulness in that regard. "I don't see any circled runes," she informs the others. "Yet."
Reading walls? Opening bottles? Disabling bottles? Forcing Shaggar to drink the bottle? Leaving the room entirely?
Javi the Wasp |
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You said Javi detected no traps in the room. Should I assume I'd need a specific attempt on the bottle? Or was that assumed in the room's search?
And yah .. not sure how Javi would go about forcing Shaggar to drink the bottle. O.o
... you saw what he did to that spider, right? :D
Lyrian Arkwright |
"Do you ever wonder if we'd be better off just leaving this kind of thing alone?" asks Lyrian.
Snorting, he continues, "Nah, me neither."
He attempts to disarm the bottle.
Disable Device: 1d20 + 19 ⇒ (18) + 19 = 37
GM Dien |
Javi, you made a check (as I understood it) from the room's doorway, meaning you would have been relying on your visual senses pretty much for anything outside of arm's reach, which penalty was sufficient to make you miss the trap on the bottle. You could have made another check on the bottle if you wanted, yes. But at this point...
Lyrian, with witty comment in hand, steps forward and... disarms the bottle. Don't ask me how that works. He is able to tell everyone the bottle held lemures, but that the threat is now negated and the bottle can be safely handled. However, with the trap disabled, there is now nothing of particular interest in the bottle.
(I don't know how a bottle of 'compressed devils' is not somehow a magical trap, but, well, there you go. Anyway, you disabled it.)
Javi the Wasp |
At Lyrian's actions, Javi's eyebrows rise in surprise, then his face scrunches up in confusion. "So, were those guys the knowledge? Or the immortality?" He shrugs, "Either way, I'll bet some museum would kill to get their hands on it."
GM Dien |
Shaggar starts skimming....
The northern wall, on his brief glance through, seems to be a listing of major military victories of the four pharaohs. He catches references to expanded territories and to the military genius of the Fiend Pharaoh.
The eastern wall seems to be largely filled with mathematical equations, reminding him strongly of the scrolls he got from the auction that were also heavily filled with numbers and calculations.
The southern wall contains some stories about... snakes and bugs? At least, you see the hieroglyphs for those repeated several times on your quick scan.
The western wall holds text in two languages, the ancient Osiriani, and another tongue. The language here seems somewhat cryptic and poetic, or perhaps religious in nature, and talks of 'visitors' and 'gifts'. Lyrian is able to point out that the second language on this wall is occasional fragments of Aklo.
Devoting any time to more thoroughly reading or studying any of the four walls?
Heldar |
Well, I guess we gotta do this one way or the other ;)
"It must be done indeed Master Shaggar" - Heldar concurs, focusing his attention on the western wall.
Perception?: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (5) + 14 = 19
GM Dien |
Smart whistles to him-her-or-itself as you settle in reading...
Lyrian and Heldar look over the western wall, while Shaggar takes the north. Rosalia, after a moment's consideration, sidles out to wait in the hall with Hatyah and Rook, since she can't read the old script. Hatyah is in the hallway, on guard for anything approaching, and Javi is Javi-ing.
Shaggar and the northern wall: At first, this seems like a fanfic starring the Fiend Pharaoh, Hetshepsu. Wait, Shaggar doesn't know what a fanfic is. Never mind: it sounds like a reverent ode extolling the military genius of Hetshepsu, who was the only one of the four pharaohs (at least judging by this) to personally command large numbers of soldiers and to see mass combat as a useful way to maintain power. The murals extol the military victories of the four pharaohs and the vast expansion of Osirion under their rule, with Hetshepsu as general. Tribe after tribe of 'savages' and lesser kings were subdued and brought under the rule of the four pharaohs, who was often not in the capitol but waging war at the frontiers of the empire.
Judging by the years mentioned, he was actively out conquering other lands for at least an eighty-year period.
The paean of his accomplishments abruptly ends. A slightly different style of script picks up and explains in short terms that Hetshepsu "broke pact" with the other pharaoahs, and was in turn slain by them. The passage ends with the terse statement: He was given the number fitting to a traitor.
Lyrian and Heldar and the western wall: While neither Lyrian nor Heldar can read Aklo without additional magical assistance-- Lyrian only recognizes it as being the same language as was on the obsidian pillar-- the ancient Osiriani script poses no trouble to them.
It does seem very religious in nature, though there is no mention of the traditional Osiriani gods one might expect. Instead, there are references to the Visitor, and the Stranger (possibly the same entity?), and of 'lords who reign over the dominion of the night', and of this visitor bringing gifts of 'mind quakes' and 'openness of being'. The tone of the script is overall one of of great reverence, even adoration.
GM Dien |
Addendum re: the previous post, because you guys came across some of this information earlier. In case people need a refresher about 'The Stranger', it's here.
Sigh. I was halfway into the next post and the browser ate it. Anyway... I assume you're going to read the other walls now that you started reading them, so:
The southern wall contains two stories that happened during the reign of the Four Pharaohs. The first concerns Anok Fero, the Cerulean Pharaoh, and how he punished his tax collectors in a year in which they did not bring him the full tribute he expected. As the panels indicate, Anok Fero raised the rod of his office and called forth hundreds upon hundreds of writhing serpents, one for each tax official in the land, and the snakes pursued the officials, and each one bit his quarry, and they all died of the venom of the bites of the snakes.
The second story concerns Ankana, the Radiant Pharaoh, and her manner of ensuring loyalty in her servants. According to the hieroglyphs, when they became servants in her household, men and women were invited to a lavish feast. Only after they had eaten and drunk their fill were they told that the food had contained the eggs of a terrible scarab-like insect. The eggs took several months to wholly incubate, during which time the servitors could prove their worth. The final panels show priests curing the 'worthy', and the unworthy being devoured from within by the hatching insects.
GM Dien |
The eastern wall is the one Shaggar had thought compared well to the mathematical scrolls. Indeed, if he bothers to borrow the scrolls again from Rosalia, he sees numerous confluences and similar equations-- it appears as if the scrolls might have been a rough draft, or notes, for the final version of the charts that appear here. There is, on this final version, an inscription that leads the sequence:
I, the Pharoah of Numbers and Speaker to the Dark, did chart the approach and arrivals of the Visitor, and have summed the measure of time unto its end....
The scrolls were an incomplete version of the formulae here displayed. A lot of it is quite simply over your collective heads: complex equations with numerical symbols you don't even recognize, mathematics that seem to follow no sense of logic you understand, the work of one who was such a genius, or perhaps a touch mad, so that the true import of all the calculations is a mystery. What you can more readily identify is that the charts for Aucturn's 56-year proximity have been preserved and diagrammed extensively. You have it reconfirmed that you are in one of those 56-year points right now, in fact, the crowning occurrence of an 11-cycle sequence of these events. Eleven also seems to be a much-repeated number in the equations.
Shaggar detects no secret compartments.
Heldar |
Sense Motive: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (16) + 9 = 25
Knowledge (Religion): 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (11) + 15 = 26
"These writings are unusual in some aspects of their form and their content" - Heldar begins - "Although it seems religious, there is no particular reference to the Osiriani gods, but instead to 'The visitor' and 'The Stranger' - the first seems to be a ruler of sorts, and someone or something highly regarded by the one who has written all this, whom I believe might have been a Pharaoh, which makes such high degree of respect even more strange..."
After a few moments pondering, Heldar continues - "It is the reference to this 'Visitor' that actually concerns me - something in the way it is written, and the denominations used herein... I believe it to pertain to something much older than the Pharaohs themselves - many would say older than time, dark and more terrifying than a nightmare - an entity known as Nyarlothotep - alien and cruel, stemming from the Dark Tapestry itself" - the oracle pauses - "It seems the Pharaohs, or at least one of them, made contact with such entity? It is a dreadful thought"
Javi the Wasp |
Engineering DC 25: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (16) + 6 = 22; dang, it was worth a shot.
Not knowledgeable in ancient Osiriani nor Aklo, Javi follows along as best as he can. As the others vocalize their readings, he does his best to mentally file the details into the expanding mental catalogs of details and revelations this mission has produced so far. (And his player is beginning to make notes to keep all details in one place. I’ll try to update that google doc I created at the outset of the game so you guys can reference what I put together. I just work better when information is consolidated … as opposed to trying to track down multiple posts and references over the history of the game thread.)
Along the way, he scowls, frowns, head-scratches, and gives any number of other non-verbal hints at his struggle to keep up. At Heldar’s revelation, however, a light-bulb seems to go off in his head. ”Um, guys,” he pipes up … a mixture of excitement and concern, ”So what do we know about this Nyarlothotep? If we assume he’s from Aucturn … and that this eleven year cycle was how the Pharaoh of Numbers made contact with him … and that his calculations are correct about Golarion and Aucturn being close enough to interact right now … a safe assumption given what we’ve seen so far … we may be dangerously close to getting a little face-time with this Visitor while we’re here.” He gives his clothes—currently covered in sand and tomb-dust, but ragged and disheveled in the best of times—a quick tap. ”I didn’t exactly bring my court clothes. Hate to make a bad impression and all that.”
Lyrian Arkwright |
Sense Motive: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (10) + 9 = 19
Knowledge (nature): 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (6) + 9 = 15
Knowledge (engineering): 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (11) + 9 = 20
Knowledge (planes): 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (15) + 9 = 24
Knowledge (religion): 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (4) + 9 = 13
Knowledge (arcana), eastern wall: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (1) + 9 = 10
Knowledge (engineering), eastern wall: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (13) + 9 = 22
"Yep, 'the Visitor' is the planet Aucturn." notes Lyrian gravely.
Then, brightening, he says "Who wants to die of boredom, anyway? Think of the stories we'll be able to tell!"
Javi the Wasp |
"Ha! Indeed. Let's just make sure to keep our skin and senses of humor intact so its a tale we'll actually be able to tell."
Obviously still considering, Javi turns and looks around the room .. hoping to somehow include the Clamor’s location in the gesture. ”Smart, in your absolutely astounding recreation of the Radiant Pharaoh’s words back in that Audience chamber, she said something about ‘swearing on the Pact’ … what can you tell us about this Pact? Who was it with? Do you recall its words? Or anything, really? It could prove incredibly useful in all of us getting out of here alive.”
”Secondarily,” Javi says, turning and pointing to a section of the northern wall. ”Hetshepsu’s story here seems to be cut off a bit abruptly. It labels him as a pact-breaker and ends with a bit about him being given the number fitting to a traitor.” He looks to the vacant space in which he hopes Smart exists, ”What pact did he break? And why not the same fate as the Pharaoh of Numbers?”
Diplomacy (if necessary, to get Smart to give these details): 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4; that's not even funny, dice-roller.
Javi the Wasp |
"Yep, 'the Visitor' is the planet Aucturn." notes Lyrian gravely.
Just for clarity, I thought Aucturn was called "The Stranger" and this mysterious figure in this adventure Nyarlothotep (?) was called "the Visitor".
Shaggar |
Shaggar crouches and thinks... and thinks... and grows frustrated with thinking. "These pharaohs weren't very... benevolent, so I can see why they liked Nyarl-errrr, the Visitor. If 11 and 56 are important numbers, what would be the number of a traitor?"
Lyrian Arkwright |
Lyrian Arkwright wrote:Just for clarity, I thought Aucturn was called "The Stranger" and this mysterious figure in this adventure Nyarlothotep (?) was called "the Visitor"."Yep, 'the Visitor' is the planet Aucturn." notes Lyrian gravely.
Yeah, that.
GM Dien |
To be fair, the text of the hieroglyphics itself is rather vague. There seems to be a lot of conflation between both the entity of Nyarlothotep, and the planet Aucturn, as they are both referred to as the Stranger and the Visitor; it's just that you also know the Stranger is a word for the planet as well. The joys of trying to decipher crypto-religious text!
GM Dien |
Okay, going off Javi's comment, I'm a little unclear about whether there is still some confusion over which pharaoh is which. So, to reiterate:
Hetshepsu, the Fiend Pharaoh, has been consistently referred to as a traitor. He was not present with the illusions of the other three pharaohs. His statue was defaced in the hall with the four trapped statues. The room that apparently holds his traitorous remains was sealed with the personal cartouches of the other three pharaohs. He is the only one whose "fate" you know, as this room states that he was killed by the other three pharaohs. You do not know the 'fate' of any of the other three pharaohs, so I'm not sure what Javi is referencing when he mentions the fate of the Pharaoh of Numbers.
Smart pauses after Javi's question in its usual thinking fashion, a slightly longer pause than previously. Then Smart says in a man's voice (in ancient Osiriani, natch), "..the pact of alliance and life-as-one has been broken and subverted. He wages war upon us and has divorced his fate from our own. What manner of punishment shall be visited upon him...?"
Another pause, and a different voice from Smart saying, "...the four God-Kings rule, and live, and die, as one..."
After that, a vaguely apologetic silence from Smart, as if Smart wished Smart had more to contribute.
Javi the Wasp |
Ill go back and look over how I got to my conclusions, but I thought I had read something about a pact broken with the Pharaoh of Numbers.
Theres a really good chance it's just sleep deprivation at work. :/
GM Dien |
Well, you know, it's not like you've had a busy or stressful life recently or anything. :P
Lyrian Arkwright |
Slacker.
"Thanks, Smart. So they proposed to share the same fate? I wonder if that meant a suicide pact or are they all sealed in there with old Hetshepsu? That's taking group identification a bit farther than I'm comfortable with, just so you all know now."
"Are we done in here?"
GM Dien |
Smart floats around the room (at least, judging by the sound) murmuring Nyarlothotep, Nyarlothotep in Heldar's voice.
Rosalia wrinkles her nose. "Stop that," she tells the clamor. "It sounds-- creepy. And since I can't read the walls, I'm ready to get out of this room myself," she adds on, in answer to Lyrian.
Javi the Wasp |
Did that second voice from Smart (about living and dying as one) sound like either of the pharaohs we heard in the Illusion chamber? Or is it a new voice?
"I kind of agree with Rosalia." He gives the room one last sweep with his dark eyes, "I don't see much more to do in here that's useful." He looks at the crew, "Which leaves us with the question of ... hit the sealed room or head down to another level? I'm on the fence about it myself. While I think it's smart to leave the Fiend Pharaoh locked safely in his cell while we explore this place ... if he really is in there—and is in any kind of shape to actually talk to us ... ya know, assuming he even would—he may be an interesting source of information about Nyarlothotep."
Lyrian Arkwright |
"As fascinating as that sounds, let's leave it for last. First, I want to recover as many artifacts as we can." says Lyrian, wiping sweat from his brow, glistening in the torchlight.
"I vote we head downstairs next."
Javi the Wasp |
Javi waits for the other members to give their input. If none comes, he shrugs, ”And the vote goes un-challenged.” He gives a mock fist-pump in the air, ”TO THE LIFT!”
GM Dien |
To the lift!
The group leaves the room with knowledge and its now-safe "immortality" behind. The air of the vast pyramid is still deathly quiet aside from the noises of your group (now made the noisier by Smart's companionship).
As you wait for the lift that Shaggar has explained, Smart occupies its time by imitating Hatyah (to Hatyah's growled discomfort) and then Rook (this provokes some wary hissing) and then Lyrian for a bit ("My chariot is full of eels,") then Javi ("Genitals genitals genitals..."). Rosalia pinches irritably at the bridge of her nose.
"Not that it's not potentially useful," she mutters, "but this is going to get really old, really fast."
"Getitoffgetitoffgetitoff!" Smart answers, in a perfect mimicry of Rosalia's panicked scream when first grabbed by the spider-thing. Rosalia does not look amused.
1d60 ⇒ 4
You've timed things well, it seems: a mere four minutes of Smart's audio performance passes before another sound cuts in, the rumble of the approaching lift.
1: going up, 2: going down: 1d2 ⇒ 1
Shaggar peers over the edge until he is able to verify that the lift is coming up towards you all, and that therefore nobody is in immediate danger of seeing the encircled rune that is lurking on the underside of the lift's stone... lifter.
Okay, the lift is approaching. Are you all planning on simply jumping on to it as it goes past? Or do you have any other, more convoluted/interesting/dangerous approaches to take? I will assume that Shaggar told you what he knows about the lift: i.e., you know it goes past once every hour, and you know it is powered by some sort of construct that is climbing the far wall of the shaft from the PCs, and you know that the construct has one of the encircled, cursed runes on the sole of one of its feet. The platform itself is ten feet by ten feet, and fits fairly close to flush with the walls of the shaft.
Rosalia picks up Rook, not wishing to risk her familiar getting left behind.
Heldar |
Apologies people, busy weeks end that was... Phew...
"I guess we're jumping on board?" - Heldar offers with a smile, his spirits clearly lifted by Smart's antics.
Shaggar |
Shaggar's ears fold back and his brow wrinkles in what must be a sign of concern. "We should only risk one to start - in case the lift is trapped." Making the decision, the gnoll leaps onto the lift while it is still a couple feet below the level of the floor. He ends in a three-point crouch, claws digging in, as his 270 lbs of weight impacts the lift.
GM Dien |
You gave me a line like that, I had to use it.
Shaggar lands lightly on the lift, or at least, as lightly as a gnoll of his bulk and mass can land. Nothing explodes, breaks, eats his face, or otherwise negatively reacts to his sudden presence on the lift. It continues rising steadily and inexorably upward.
Rosalia looks to the others, shrugs, and then steps on to the lift as well.
"With all of us on here it's going to be a bit tight," she warns. "If you're getting on, get on quick!"
Javi the Wasp |
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Javi steps on, squeezing into someone else's personal space to make room. He looks up at Shaggar, "I appreciate your willingness to do stupid stuff, but .. .ya know ... that's my job." Despite his usual grin, he seems pretty serious.
Not only was Javi more-or-less built to trap-spring, the group suffers less if Javi gets hit with massive debuffs, up to and including death. :D
Shaggar |
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Shaggar gives the thief a jagged tooth grin, "Did you not say you were the muscle in this expedition?" His snarl-grin fades into a nod. "Your point is taken, Javi. The next stupid risk is yours. I'll just look pretty and bat my eye-lashes, as usual."
Javi the Wasp |
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Javi nods with an exaggerated gravity, "I was the original muscle-head, you know." Shaggar's final comment catches the halfling off-guard, and he blinks up at the hunter. "Gnolls have eyelashes?"
Shaggar |
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Shaggar watches the wall as the lift ascends, never looking at the halfling. "Yes, we have them. They are hard to see and, generally, anyone close enough to spot them is on the menu... so they have other concerns."
Heldar |
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"I seem to remember a camel that was quite impressed by those eyelashes Master Shaggar" - Heldar quips in a good mood, stepping into the lift, and standing almost face to face with the gnoll - "Would half-elf ever be found to be a part of that menu?" - he questions.
GM Dien |
Bleh, sorry for the delay. Momentum, once lost, is hard to find again.
By fiat of the voice in the sky, everyyyyybody jumps on! It's tight, with some jostling and squeezing, but as long as nobody feels the need to stretch you can cram on okay.
So, we have five medium-sized creatures (Shaggar, Hatyah, Rosalia, Lyrian, Heldar) and one small creature (Javi) in four squares. I'm just gonna randomly determine who's NOT squeezing for speed's sake:
1-S, 2-H, 3-R, 4-L, 5-He, 6-Javi: 2d6 ⇒ (1, 5) = 6
Shaggar has a square to himself, and Heldar has a square to himself. Everyone else is mechanically squeezing. If you want to change who is close with who, let me know.
Rosalia glowers as she realizes she's going to have to get really close to SOMEBODY; after deliberation, she edges in close to Hatyah, while Javi and Lyrian give each other a shrug and stand nice and cozy.
"Stop shoving--"
"Hey, watch your elbow--"
Smart's 'voice' cheerfully mimics you as the lift rises smoothly into the dark. The walls surrounding you are very smooth, more of the ubiquitous green marble, and, save for the rut where the stone guardian travels, unmarked. The stone platform is very steady, not even wobbling at your combined weights. The guardian never breaks his smooth tread pushing upwards.
Overhead, the shaft rises as far as you can see.
For several minutes, nothing happens except for the fact that you all get a little too familiar with what everyone smells like after two days without baths. Hatyah has a particularly pungent musk. The platform continues to rise.
Shaggar Perception: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (19) + 12 = 31
Lyrian Perception: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (1) + 13 = 14
Explanations on the eating habits of the Canis gnolleus notwithstanding, Shaggar's eyes are peeled up into the dark, watching for any sign of danger. After a bit, he sees something that breaks the regularity of the polished walls: just at the limits of his sight, there appears to be a carving or decoration of some sort set against one of the walls. At this distance, he can make out no further details.
The platform is ascending steadily, but slowly: we'll say each round it goes ten feet. So, you have 6 rounds before you reach the carving; you may be able to tell more about it as the lift rises closer to it. That said, I'm going to stick us into rounds now to clarify when people are acting-- no actual initiative, this is just there to help me be organized.
Round 1
(Shaggar notices an irregularity in the stone.) Doing anything?
Shaggar |
Shaggar mentions what he sort of sees and looks away, "It might be another of those runes. Perhaps one of you should smell it for magic before it is within your sight. If it isn't magical, I'll try to determine what it is."
Lyrian Arkwright |
Lyrian offers Rosalia a pleased grin as Shaggar's bulk pushes the icy lady bodily into the aasimar archaeologist.
"Too easy," he say to Shaggar, although it's not entirely clear whether he's referring to the rune or the girl. "Don't look. At it. At the..." he waves his free hand vaguely, still smiling.
"Don't look.