"Well, that was uncomfortable. Well done everyone!"
Sir Bleeparolo gets down off his saddle and begins to examine the wreckage.
"Looks like we have to put weight on this platform to get the stairs to appear."
He looks over the debris, and with a wave of the hand his eyes glow briefly.
Gods that was fun Ash is smirking, still lightly giggling, we should take those shields, could be useful, if not we can sell them for some coin in town.
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"I agree Ash. I can hold one if I need to, but I think it's the same size as Bleepy!" He gives a hearty laugh and friendly pat on Bleeparolo's back before helping ash search the room.
"So which direction should we be heading now?" He asks as we walks up to the door to the south checking for traps and seeing if it's locked.
Gods that was fun...
"Fun? FUN? You didn't get your head half-smashed in. See how much fun it is then!"
Sir Bleeparolo tries to be grumpy for a while but he too is pleased by the victory.
The shields themselves are not magical, although the carvings on them have a faint aura, possible from when they were engraved into the wood.
I apologize...i had hope none of you would see me like that, I tend lose myself during real combat, the smell of blood, the adrenaline...It feels right.
"So which direction should we be heading now?"
"Well, considering the fight it gave us, it would be a shame not to have a look at what it was guarding," Bela suggests, indicating the door to the south. Moving down to the lower platform of the room, Bela lays a gentle hand on Bleeparolo and Ashling's shoulders as she passes them, binding their lives to hers.
Stepping over to the shields, Bela slings her longbow over one shoulder and tries to heft one in both hands, getting a feel for its weight. "Roldare did mention something about 'shields and keys', didn't he? Perhaps we should take these with us..."
"Roldare did mention something about 'shields and keys', didn't he? Perhaps we should take these with us..."
"Yes, I think he did. Good Point."
Fonzy finds the door behind the statue was neither trapped, nor locked, and opens quite easily to a small, well lit chamber.
Inside the chamber is a table with a general map of the area, and four bundles, each tied shut, each one bearing one of your names. As you open your respective bags, you each find the following:
Inside your bag, you find a potion that is almost clear, and blends with the background. You also see what you recognize to be a healing potion.
Inside your bag, you find a familiar dueling sword similar to your own, but clearly of masterwork quality. Upon closer inspection, you notice a unique carving on the hilt and it comes to you...this is your father's blade!
Inside your bag, you find a wand and a scroll. A quick study of the wand shows that it is one you are familiar with, as is the handwriting on the scroll. The scroll is written in Father Prasst's handwriting, and the wand is one you saw him use many times to assist the ill or injured when time was a necessity.
Inside your bag, you find a dark amber potion, one you've seen sold when traveling alchemists have come through Kassen. You also find what you recognize to be a healing potion, along with some treats for Vharka.
Ashling takes a masterfully crafted blade, as she takes it in hand she falls to her knee's. No... impossible, it...it was broken a single tear falls down her face, Dad, i'll wield this in your and mom's memory. She barely gets to her feet, sheathing her old blade, it hard to tell exactly what she's feeling but there is more there than normal.
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Fonzy takes two small vials from his labeled bag and places them in his pack. "How weird is this? They try and kill us with a statue, then give us stuff. I don't know if they want us to fail or succeed. I'm on an emotional roller coaster right now." A funny look comes across his face. "I've always wondered what a roller coaster is. I've never really understood that phrase, but it seems appropriate."
Sir Bleeparolo looks thoughtful. "Well, a 'coaster' is a nautical term for a ship that travels along coastlines, because it is not seaworthy enough to go far out into the ocean. And I think heavy breaking waves are sometimes called 'rollers.' So I suppose a 'roller coaster' must refer to a ship that is not suitable for rough seas but is caught in them anyways."
Sir Bleeparolo shrugs.
"And I imagine it is not especially pleasant to be aboard one. Does that sound about right?"
"But remember, this whole thing is supposed to be a test. So this is likely a reward for defeating the wooden giant. Which at least means that this is a part of the test and not the corruption that has taken over this place."
Sir Bleeparolo looks back. "There was a passage leading out of the statue room. Shall we head that way next?"
"Which at least means that this is a part of the test and not the corruption that has taken over this place."
Bela clears her throat after Ash's emotional moment. Fairly certain that the other woman wouldn't care to share her feelings, the healer tries to add a little levity to the atmosphere. "That should be a comforting thought," Bela says, looking as though she can't quite seem what to make of it. "I'm not sure what lesson the elders were trying to teach us, though. 'When in doubt, set it on fire' perhaps?"
"At any rate," she continues, holding up the wand and the scroll, "These should help see us through whatever tests lie ahead." But whatever darkness has caused the dead to rise may be another matter entirely...
With a shrug, Bela indicates her approval of Bleeparolo's suggestion. "With no way to tell where Dimara or the Everflame might be, the best way to find them seems to be to search every room."
maybe it was just a test of our abilities in combat
maybe it was just a test of our abilities in combat
"I am sure it was. And these are the rewards for success!"
Sir Bleeparolo takes out his portion of the map and begins scrawling a crude map of the complex on the back, using a bit of burnt wood to draw with.
"No sense not taking notes here."
"And Belasara is right. We need to search the whole place, not only to find the Everflame, but also to find the others that are missing and discover why the dead do not rest here."
"So maybe we should backtrack a bit before going deeper into the crypt? I know we passed a few doors back there that we could check." He watches over Bleeparolo's shoulder as he draws the map, helping him mark where the doors they passed were.
"Hmmm.... is there a specific door you prefer to go back to? Let's mark them as A, B, C, and D. A being the closest one to our position now, and D being the furthest. But there's no way to know which exit leads to the 'deeper' part."
"I simply suggested A because it is close by. But as you see from the map, it may be that A eventually connects to D near the entrance. It is certainly going the right direction, though it may turn out not to connect at all."
The door Fonzy tries isn't locked, and opens with ease. Before you, is a long corridor flanked by a row of human statues, set into alcoves on each side. The statues you can see look like Kassen, and each one holds a keen longsword out in front of it.
"Hmmm... more statues. Think these will come alive also? Let's have a look."
Sir Bleeparolo makes a gesture with his hand and his eyes glow faintly.
"Hm. Nothing. All right, let's move then."
At this point, i am done with statues. do you see anything?
Disarm it, better to be safe.
"Watch to either side... the trap may cause the statues to do something."
"I have a feeling about what might happen to us if we set off that trap, so take all the time you need, Fonzy." While the archer works to disarm the trap, Bela says a brief, quiet prayer and then huddles behind her wooden tower shield.
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"So here's the deal. I may or may not have fixed it. It's best we don't test it out. Let's just avoid it best we can okay? Once we get to the other side of the room I'll shoot it and we will see what happens." He points out the pressure plate and carefully maneuvers by it, then checks the door on the other side for traps and locks.
"Here - use this piece of burnt wood to make marks on the floor so the rest of us can see where the pressure plate is."
"Jumping across should be no trouble if we know where we need to land safely."
"But first, make sure you have a look in the spot where we would land if we jump across. There could be another trap there!"
"Or, if you're not sure, we could try to devise a way of tripping the pressure plate from a distance to spring the trap while we are not in it."
"Maybe we can slide one of these big shields across the floor towards it? They are as heavy as I am."
It takes you a minute or two, but you find what you suspect is the trigger, and feel it give beneath your tools. You're satisfied in your work, but there's still no way of knowing whether or not the trap has been neutralized without stepping on the pressure plate.
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Now confident in his work, Fonzy takes a step forward onto the plate slowly to feel if the plate will hold. Then places all of his weight onto the plate. If nothing happens Fonzy continues walking. "Alright let's go, I didn't kill us, yet." He walks to the door down the corridor and check to see if it's locked or trapped.
As Fonzy steps onto the pressure plate...nothing happens. There's an attempt from willing gears, followed by a grinding noise, and then silence. Nothing moves in those tense moments.
Confident now that his abilities have been proven, Fonzy moves to the door ahead. A quick wiggle of the knob tells you that it is locked, but you can detect no trap on it either.
"Can you pick locks as well as you can disarm traps?" Sir Bleeparolo asks with a smile.
As Fonzy is working on this door, there is an audible snap that echoes throughout the chamber. Closer inspection reveals that one of the lock picks has snapped at the base, and is stuck inside the lock itself. Removing it would require removal of the entire lock, and with it being stuck as it is, there is no remaining free space to continue to work the lock.
What now? break it? Torch the door? remove the lock?
"We could try breaking it down, if it's possible. Or there may be another way around if we want to double back?" Bela suggests, leaning against the tower shield.
"How hard can it be to break down? It's just a door."
"After you finish listening to the door, we can break it down, or we can go back and try another route."
Sir Bleeparolo takes a swing at the door using his new morning star.
If it seems to be working but needs more swings, Sir Bleeparolo will continue.