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"Lil Killa" does not necessarily want this lady dead. She may have much needed information. Khayal begins hitting her with the side of his blade.
His first hit connects hard on the side of her head, the rest are a bit less accurate.
Khayal hits the ten-foot-tall woman with the flat of his blade; but Yazi drops down with her black greataxe, slicing the woman's back. Iqilma collapses to the stone floor.
The four guardians in the room move slowly but surely to attack the humans. The Harrower flips a playing card at the impending construct, but the card doesn't hit the stone creature.
The construct in the South-West corner drops down a level, and unlike the others, pantomimes throwing a ball at Yazi. Instead, bits and pieces of rock detach from its' arms and hands, flying towards the woman.
Your speed is reduced by half, and you take piercing damage that must be magically healed. The healing has a DC 16 Heal check, and must take at least 10 minutes.
A Large arm and hand come out of the rock where Iqilma fell, going over her waist, and pulls the woman under the granite surface.
Over by Rayhan and Bartan, a male head and an arm holding a scimitar comes out of the wall above Rayhan's head, looking around.
ROUND THREE
Init:
The guardians of the room keep attacking the humans.
The North-East construct drops two levels, moving towards Nasir.
The redhead disappears from view under the floor.
The shaitan on the East wall calls out "Guardians, halt!" The stone constructs freeze in their movements. Looking at the helmeted paladin, the warrior adds "Do you wish to parley?"
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"And this is what you get for disrespecting a sphinx." Yazi calls out to the downed woman. When the arm appears she swats at it on reflex.
Letting out a grunt when she's knocked silly by the guardian she's ready to retaliate when the man appears and stalls the guardians and calls out to them. [b]"Uh, what?"[/n] Yazi asks while thinking that scimitars and falchions aren't really made for parrying.
Yes! Stop this foolish attacking and let us speak with Oberhak! We seek to prevent the destruction of Kakishon.
After the call for parlay. I have no desire to kill, we came here seeking assistance.
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Bartan takes a major beating and decides his only option is to play dead.
He falls to the ground and lies there motionless.
OUT OF MELEE
"Lord Oberhak sees no one until the next day." the young man with his head-and-shoulders, and an arm holding a blade, coming out of the Western wall, says to Hajar. "Come back tomorrow when the sun is high in the sky, and make your petition then."
"After what we've been put through in order to get here, we will not be leaving. Tell your master that he will see us today."
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Khayal looks momentarily surprised at Bartan's return from the dead, but he keeps his mouth shut. Yazi seems to be antagonizing enough.
Kakishon is unraveling! Rayhan says almost angrily
Tell your Lord Oberhak that he might not have until tomorrow!
The young shaitan bristled at the mortals' demands. "Leave this place and return to the Golden Bowl above." he ordered. "I will tell Lord Oberhak your message. If he accepts, he will meet you at the former temple above within the hour. If not, you have your answer." The man half-in, half-out of the wall looks around at Bartan and Khayal, adding "You can see yourselves out."
Khayal watches the battle of wills between Yazi and the Shaitan. He stands ready in case the parlay devolves into hostilities.
Look, surely you have felt this plane begin to unravel. Surely you have sensed something wrong. We must find the heart of Kashikon to save it. Or all of this, and us will be destroyed.
Help us or die, not by our blades but by the destruction of this world.
The shaitan in the wall purses his lips, but a voice from below the floating rock says "Hold, Spar. These visitors have earned my interest." A new earth genie, this one clad in a beautiful red robe, his skin dark like brown gemstone, his hair black like flint, holding a massive two-handed falchion, appears. Rising out of the stone floor at the bottom of the chamber until his bare feet are clear of the granite, the shaitan moves from under the floating rock to address the adventurers to the south.
"I am Oberhak." the ten-foot-tall man declares with strength. "And so far all you have proven is that I need to adjust my security measures at the temple above. General Jhavhul led us here, and then trapped us here when he killed the human wizard who ensorcerelled us in this prison. Still, there is much to be said when you can be king of paradise, and with the efreeti gone - the shaitans will rule this demiplane!" The charismatic man of stone looks Hajar and the others over, adding "Adventurers come and go from Kakishon. What can you say that will change my mind to let my guardians deal with you and toss you back onto the Golden Bowl's sands?"
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"As in tune as you must be with the earth around you, surely you have felt Kakishon itself bucking and flailing. The Proteans that keep this plane together have begun to......go against that duty. You speak of being King of Paradise, and a noble King you would most definitely be my lord, but what good is it to be King of Nothing?" Nasir asks, bowing just enough to show deference when the genie appears and adding a bit of awe and possibly respect, to her tone.
Forgive me, I am not one of many words, but Nasir speaks the truth. Someday I would like to bring my wife to this kingdom of yours. But this place has been grievously injured, perhaps mortally by evil doers who called forth the Jhavhul and his army. And now with this plane unraveling towards destruction, they seek the destruction of our world as well.
"My friends speak the truth, oh powerful one. We wish not to be destroyed along with this plane, and your help is necessary in order for us to stop its destruction."
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Hajar bows low as custom dictates when speaking to a King
Most High Genie Lord. We lowly mortals grovel before your might and wisdom. It is as my companions have stated. This place is being destroyed. Much like a home in disrepair will soon find itself fallen down on top of its inhabitants. We beseech you, Most Noble and Wise Oberhak, Guardian of Kakishon, assist us in returning Kakishon to its previous existence.
"I have felt no changes to the earth on this island." Oberhak counters. "I know Jhavhul has left. My followers are scouting this demiplane. They would have told me if there were any catastrophes. Apart from the arrival of a few adventurers who immediately went on Archwizard Nex's Golden Ram hunt," the genie says as he looks over the humans in the room, "there has been no mention of Kakishon itself in trouble."
Listening to Hajar's words, Oberhak replied "The Proteans were tasked by Nex to continuously restore this demiplane. They would not go against the Archwizard's desires - they fear his wrath when he returns. Your very presence confirms that the Scroll of Kakishon is again being used by Archwizard Nex to reward his minions, as he did before the other human wizard stole the Scroll from him." The earth genie's face is still stern; he doubts your declarations.
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My brother is a Paladin of Sarenrae, he is forbidden to lie. A man of your wisdom would know that if a Paladin lies, their powers are revoked. Ask my brother to demonstrate his power by healing with his hands. Doing so will reveal the truth of his words.
Hajar frowns at Khayal's casual use of his Goddess' favor, and the outright lie that he cannot tell an untruth. However, he doesn't say anything to contradict Khayal.
Diplomacy: A creature's attitude cannot be shifted more than two steps up in this way
Hostile 25 + creature's Cha modifier
Unfriendly 20 + creature's Cha modifier
Indifferent 15 + creature's Cha modifier
Friendly 10 + creature's Cha modifier
Helpful 0 + creature's Cha modifier
If a creature's attitude toward you is at least indifferent, you can make requests of the creature. This is an additional Diplomacy check, using the creature's current attitude to determine the base DC, with one of the following modifiers.
Oberhak shifts his two-handed falchion to having the point rest on the granite floor, his hands on the pommel. "My followers have not returned to Khandelwal in several days." he admits. Looking at Khayal and Hajar, the taller man states "The gods have little to do with this place, only how Archwizard Nex set it in place. And I know the Proteans fear him more that their own lives, despite their battles with us. Even you mortals can walk the Planes. Nex's absence is not proof of his death, and his rage at the loss of his creation would rival Jhavhul's, I suspect. But with more authority backing it up." The earth-genie smiles at his own joviality.
The shaitan captain grows silent, then appears to have come to a conclusion. "Had this realm’s creator slain the Proteans after their work building this realm was completed rather than just banishing them to the Isles of Not, Kakishon would have endured forever! Yet he was crippled by cowardice and compassion, I suspect, as are all humans — he could not bring himself to slay his slaves, and instead just locked them away in a place where their anger would be allowed to fester and grow." he says.
"You adventurers like traveling." Oberhak offers. "Find the Proteans beyond the oceans. Convince them to return to their duties - one way or another. With them gone, Kakishon will survive, and you yourselves can work out how to return to your Material Plane. I will still have my paradise."
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"I understand your logic, well as much as one such as myself can deign to understand a mind as grand as a general of Genie kind. But should our conjecture prove to be even the slightest bit true, should we not be up to the task without your aid, it would truly be a tragedy for the magnificence of your reign to fall apart with the unraveling of the plane." Nasir says, her tone an body language emanating a blend of deference, awe and tragedy.
Do you in your wisdom and knowledge of this place, know of its heart? The center of its existence? Does such a thing exist? The heart could be critical to the whole plan.
The undead dragon said Kakishon has no center, but it does have a heart...
Dilix the earth genie said there was no "heart" on the central island...
Dilix also said Oberhak left Jhavhul, and went to this island, and has not left since...
Oberhak is also an earth genie like Dilix, which means he can shape stone, talk to stone, and comes from another plane, other than Golarion...
The gnolls and Dilix said the Proteans were fighting them, but you haven't seen a Protean since you arrived over a week ago...
There's a weird serpentine being stuck in a floating rock in the middle of this room...
Has anybody closely inspected that rock? And why is a creature stuck in it?
That's an Imentesh Protean stuck in that rock floating in the center. Not a noble of their race, but pretty high up on their hierarchy. What's it doing stuck in a rock, when they can transverse the Planes? Oh yes, Nex's barrier around Kakishon. But the Proteans would be able to control all matter in this demiplane, by their chaotic nature.
Unless.
That rock is a very special rock.
That "rock" floating in the center of the room - that is no ordinary stone! It is a bedrock stone from the Elemental Plane of Earth! Archwizard Nex must have used it as the building stone of the demiplane itself! Such a stone, a seed, if you will, could control all of Kakishon, depending how you used it.
And shaitans are earth-genies from the Plane of Earth. They could recognize this seed from the Plane of Earth the way you could recognize the welcome mat in front of your door at home!
You have found the "heart" Venema Shodair talked about!
But why is there a Protean stuck in this "seed"? And what damage would that do by sympathy to the rest of Kakishon?
Rayhan studies the stone in the center of the floor, now that the battle is over he has time to look at it more closely.
My word. the man says, a bit awestruck.
This is it. This is the heart of Kakishon...
Lord Oberhak, how did such a creature manage to become lodged in that stone? he asks the Shaitan