Still on one knee, Janus tries to catch a glimpse of whatever is focusing attention on him, pointing towards Chaia, who produces the Replica-Staff.
<Auran>"Waffles! Us ho-nor Icosiol!"
"Hmph. Could do a little better yeah?" Lu mumbled to herself and pushed a bit of magic into Janus attempt!
[dice=Linguistics!]1d20+3
Still on one knee, Janus tries to catch a glimpse of whatever is focusing attention on him, pointing towards Chaia, who produces the Replica-Staff.
<Auran>"Waffles! Us ho-nor Icosiol!"
Picking up on Janus’ cue, Chaïa held the staff in front of her in a gesture between presentation and salute. Having no Auran, she could only guess at the particular greeting the young man was offering. Making the best of it, she took her chance that entities from other planes might know the one planar language she knew, and added her own greeting in Celestial. “Long centuries have passed. We seek to revive and honour the memory of the glories and heroes of old.”
Well, sort of. Speaking for herself, she was more interested in magic, architecture, and their combination, but to appreciate them properly one had to have a sense of their history, and it would be easy to make sure that she at least gestured to the personalities behind legendary events.
[dice=Linguistics!]1d20+3
Still on one knee, Janus tries to catch a glimpse of whatever is focusing attention on him, pointing towards Chaia, who produces the Replica-Staff.
<Auran>"Waffles! Us ho-nor Icosiol!"
The mood of the presence shifts. For a moment Chaia feels it pass over her. It still remained intensely watchful, but they sensed a curiosity within it.
"Is this ... better?" Even Lu could feel the changing mood. "I zink so. Now what do we do? Try for ze depts?"
It was an uneasy feeling to have an unseen watchfulness sweep its attention over one, but as the moment passed, the silence of the chamber – barring the group’s attempts to communicate – grew heavy again.
“I think so,” Chaïa whispered to Lucrecia, switching back to a modern mortal language, and somewhat relieved that, whatever this presence was, it didn’t seem to be able to read them quite like open books.
Straightening, she addressed their watcher again in carefully enunciated Celestial, “We would be grateful for any help. Could you show us more of this place?”
She paused, then continued breathlessly before she lost her nerve, with a radiant smile as suited a priestess of Hanali, “If you’ll pardon the outrageous familiarity, but just as a token of our trust…”
It was another aspect of the One and the Three to whom Chaïa offered a quick, silent prayer, though. Winged Mother, catch me if I’m wrong about this! With that, she stepped into the column of air blowing up through the ring, trying very hard to feel like a leaf rising on the wind.
Saeri winced slightly as Chaia stepped out, but made no move to stop the other woman - they had to do something or they'd never get anywhere. And that would be just awkward.
The wind caught Chaia and bore her smoothly aloft. The ceiling approached and then was gone, passed clean through like empty air. She found herself in a smaller chamber, the whooshing of the column filling her ears. Opposite her and up a set of three short steps rested a white marble sarcophagus, just the same as the one far below in the chamber with the lanterns. Another relief filled the wall near to it, showing a genie lord wielding a mighty longsword. To his left stood a demoniac figure of darkest red, the color of dried blood. The horned figure held a small loop with a handle attached, presenting it toward a a globe of absolute blackness two feet across. It just touched the warrior, who raised his arms in surprise as he faded from sight. A diadem on his brown bore an elaborate glyph matching the one upon an amulet worn by the carved figure built into the sarcophagus' lid.
Between her and the sarcophagus stood two suits of empty armor that looked to be made of some sort of ceramic, each with twin longswords crossed over its chest. Blue streamers danced in errant breezes about both.
As soon as she got her feet on solid ground again, Chaïa brought the staff up into a cautious guard in case something jumped out at her. After a moment, she relaxed. Praise be to the Lady of Air and Wind! That was actually kind of fun.
Turning to the disguised entrance to the upper chamber, she called down to the others below, hoping they could hear her. “It seems to be safe! Think uplifting thoughts and you should be able to follow! There’s another sarcophagus up here…”
While waiting, she examined the relief more carefully, before peering at the suits of armour as closely as she could without touching them, in case they were trapped. If there was a nasty surprise lurking here, better to find out sooner rather than later.
"Well zat worked better zen I expected ..." Lu stares in amazement then Chaïa just floats up into the air. She has to take a few cautious steps forward so she could keep the mage in her view as she ascends. And then simply don't smack into the roof. "Much better!" Though she had to admit, it would have been quite funny if the gust had simply gently boinked the mage against the roof. Heh.
"So! Who want to go next?" She looked around in the chamber, quickly finding Janus and then Saeri with her gaze. With a nod towards the vortex she continued. "I'll take ze rearguard like normal. Oh and I'll tie some more rope down here juuust in case ze wind doesn't want to let us down yeah!"
Saeri looked at Lucrecia for a moment, then turned. "Janus?" she volun- suggested, apparently thinking the dashing fellow would do a better job testing the passage up.
The armor turned to in place to follow Chaia as she moved about the room, but didn't recoil from her examination. It was empty.
She believes that the demonic figure is some sort of efreeti. The orb of darkness appears, from context, to be a legendary artifact variously called a doomsphere (also a name for a form of undead beholder), a blackball, a void that lives, a sphere of death, an entropy (or Entropy, some madmen believe them to be gods), or a sphere of annihilation. The item it holds would then be a talisman associated with such things that, somehow, allows the holder to control their motion. This makes a potent, through dangerous, weapon indeed. Whatever touches an entropy simply ceases to exist as though it never were. Using the talisman improperly often results in the wielder feeling the entropy's touch.
The history of such things is muddled. Humans sometimes say that ancient elves enchanted them, but no elf would do any such thing. More informed scholars believe them the results of magical catastrophies or the reckless art of the aeromancers of Netheril. A few believe they date back further still, to the work of the Creator Races who are only legend. All agree that they are somehow connected to planar Art of some sort; perhaps they are even places where the multiverse simply Is Not.
Chaïa shuddered at the thought that anyone would willingly create such a device. Hopefully there weren’t any left, but part of her brain was already setting space and energy aside to worry about what to do about it if that wasn’t the case. On that note, she looked around anxiously for signs of relatively recent passage. If other parties had recently been interested in the cairn, had they got this far? The world was a dangerous enough place when mages like her got ideas, whose magic tended towards chaos rather than annihilation.
Since the armour didn’t seem to be dangerous, though, Chaïa decided to continue her explorations while waiting for the others, and she stepped up the few stairs to the sarcophagus to do her due diligence.
Chaïa shuddered at the thought that anyone would willingly create such a device. Hopefully there weren’t any left, but part of her brain was already setting space and energy aside to worry about what to do about it if that wasn’t the case. On that note, she looked around anxiously for signs of relatively recent passage. If other parties had recently been interested in the cairn, had they got this far? The world was a dangerous enough place when mages like her got ideas, whose magic tended towards chaos rather than annihilation.
Since the armour didn’t seem to be dangerous, though, Chaïa decided to continue her explorations while waiting for the others, and she stepped up the few stairs to the sarcophagus to do her due diligence.
Chaia found no traps as she approached the sarcophagus, but the suits of armor smoothly floated into her path no matter what angle she tried to approach from.
"Meh. If you are afraid of heights, you could just say so!" Lu sticks out her tongue at Janus as she teases him and switches spot with him. Taking a deep breath she steps into the pillar of rising air - hoping that it would carry her upwards and not just let her fall down to the floor far beneath them.
"Right behind you!", Janus exclaims, when Lucrecia notices his doubt, and he steps into the column of air, trying to think uplifting thoughts.
You have no Feather Fall.
That fall would be deadly.
If that works, how will you get back down?
The positive thinking idea kind of failed, but he attempted to check on Chaia nonetheless.
Saeri, for her part, waited to see what happened to Janus. One way or another, it would be... informative.
Saeri, for her part, waited to see what happened to Janus. One way or another, it would be... informative.
The wind took Lu and Janus up to the ceiling, where they joined Chaia.
"Oh? Want to introduce us to zes tin-cans?" Lu blurts out when she sees the moving armours. They seemed to be very insistent on being in the way. Also moving. Now that was clearly some wizard shenanigans! Bleh. The annoying thing with these things were that she really wasn't sure how or where she was even supposed to start stabbing them if she wanted. Maybe it would pay off to be a bit careful around them. "Sooo... Zey are only two right? I wonder what happens if we spread out and approach from multiple directions. Zough I'm not sure I want to find out - maybe zey decide zere should be less of us?"
In the meanwhile she brought out a scroll and a stick of coal, trying to make some crude drawings that would at least convey the layout of the scene.
“Of course,” Chaïa offered, her small grin masking the beginnings of frustration as the suits of armour continued to block her way. “That’s Sir Dexter, and this is Lady Sinister. They are being most disobliging.”
“I think you have the right idea,” she continued, alluding to Lucrecia’s suggestion to try again now that the suits of armour were outnumbered. She chatted amiably as the swordswoman finished her sketches, as if ominous carvings and trying to win over animate armour were perfectly everyday occurrences, “It seems safe, but these reliefs do tell an alarming story: I wouldn’t be surprised if this turns out to be a cenotaph. From what I can make out, this poor creature ran into a – oh, what do you call them in the common tongue again? – a blackball, a sphere of annihilation. There aren’t many things I would wish that fate upon. This war must have been particularly vicious. I’m not surprised someone had to intervene.”
Once Lucrecia had finished her sketches, Chaïa waited for the others to spread out and then addressed the suit of armour in front of her at once sternly and ridiculously, “Now, ma’am, will you let us pass?”
Shrugging slightly, Saeri moved into the winds to head up and join the others - it appeared to be safe, and it was best for the group to stick together, after all.
The floating armor marked precisely everyone's approach, always focused on the explorer nearest them save when two moved abreast. Then they stared at a point just between them, silently splitting the watching and disobliging duties amongst themselves.
Chaïa watched the suits of armour for a few moments longer, then calmly shrugged off her backpack and set it on the ground, as if resigning herself to a long wait while figuring out what made them tick. Feeling the reassuring weight of her rapier on her hip and the staff in her hand, she took a few seemingly aimless steps as if most interested in examining the reliefs more closely, then quickly calculated her moment and tried to dodge around the nearest bit of armour.
"Hmm. Maybe if we try some roooop-" Lu's train of thought was derailed when Chaïa suddenly tried to tumble past the armours. An admirable effort but she couldn't help but think there might be some contingencies against things like this? But. If it worked it worked! Lu smoothly shuffled towards the other end of the room, intent on taking advantage of any opening the armours might leave. Not that she was really sure what she was supposed to do if she got past but hey - not like she could let some inanimate objects win right?
"No worries, there's 4 of us and only 2...", Janus also stops mid-sentence, when Chaia jumps into action. Rather than watch the elf, Janus's eyes dart to the armors who meant to block their passage...there was a significant chance, after all, that they did not take kindle to what happened here...
As Chaia moved forward, Saeri raised a hand and started to speak, then shrugged and stopped. She did, however, concentrate a bit of magic power around her eye in case she needed to start hexing things.
"No worries, there's 4 of us and only 2...", Janus also stops mid-sentence, when Chaia jumps into action. Rather than watch the elf, Janus's eyes dart to the armors who meant to block their passage...there was a significant chance, after all, that they did not take kindle to what happened here...
Chaia darted past the suits of armor, but one spun in place and cut deep into her side with one blade. The other surged forward and sliced twice into Janus.
damn she gets by. Now it's round 1.
Inits
Swords: TWF for Chaia
yup
miss
TWF for Janus
nope
"Oh now you are gonna get trashed!" Lu cried out as the snotty tin-cans stabbed her companions. How rude! But on the bright side they could now solve this all with violence. And she sure loved to solve things with violence.
Lu stepped into the fray and swung her blade towards the construct closest to Janus, hoping they could finish it quickly!
I suppose I ought to have taken the hint, Chaïa thought, the elation of having got past the guardian taking some of the sting out of the nasty gash she could feel along her ribs. Not wanting to feel that again, she tried to dance back out of the way even as she concentrated on getting a spell out.
She was able to stay out of the swords' way this time, but in doing so, her armour slowed the arc of her gesturing arm just that little bit too much, turning what should have been a gout of flame into a harmless fizzle of sparks. Her hurried incantation turned into a most unclerical Elven curse.
As Janus was hit, Saeri darted forward. Positive energy swirled around her hand as she moved, and she didn't even hesitate to expend what healing power she had and send a surge of recovery into Janus' body. "Come on, you've got this." she said encouragingly.
Feeling emboldened by Saeri's healing, Janus steps into a flank with Lu, bringing his blade down on his enemy in a swift stroke.
With a subtle chance in stance, he got ready to violently deflect the first strike aimed at him, intending to follow up with a savage blow against the wide-open opponent.
"Oh now you are gonna get trashed!" Lu cried out as the snotty tin-cans stabbed her companions. How rude! But on the bright side they could now solve this all with violence. And she sure loved to solve things with violence. Lu stepped into the fray and swung her blade towards the construct closest to Janus, hoping they could finish it quickly! The ceramic armor darted to the side, leaving her blade to sail through empty air.
As Janus was hit, Saeri darted forward. Positive energy swirled around her hand as she moved, and she didn't even hesitate to expend what healing power she had and send a surge of recovery into Janus' body. "Come on, you've got this." she said encouragingly.
Feeling emboldened by Saeri's healing, Janus steps into a flank with Lu, bringing his blade down on his enemy in a swift stroke.
With a subtle chance in stance, he got ready to violently deflect the first strike aimed at him, intending to follow up with a savage blow against the wide-open opponent.
I suppose I ought to have taken the hint, Chaïa thought, the elation of having got past the guardian taking some of the sting out of the nasty gash she could feel along her ribs. Not wanting to feel that again, she tried to dance back out of the way even as she concentrated on getting a spell out. She was able to stay out of the swords' way this time, but in doing so, her armour slowed the arc of her gesturing arm just that little bit too much, turning what should have been a gout of flame into a harmless fizzle of sparks. Her hurried incantation turned into a most unclerical Elven curse.
One swordsman (swordsarmor?) kept its attention on Janus, swinging twice. He dodged the first and parried the second while the other slashed deep into Chaia's side and then thrust the other blade into her stomach. She fell to the floor, blood pouring out.
Janus
That was frustrating.
Chaia
And she's at -6.
"Ah! Slippery little utensils." Lu groaned as her first attack went wide. Even worse - Chaïa got shredded! But lets take one thing at a time. Lu took another swing at the flanked armour and called out "let's send this crap to the slag-heap!"
Faced with the durability of their enemies, and seeing Chaia go down in the back, Janus next slash is rather meek, easily deflected by the creatures armor.
All things considered, Chaïa wasn't bleeding as profusely as she might, under the circumstances, but it was in the hands of the goddesses whether she would last another minute at this rate.
She'd have to wait a few moments to help Chaia - stopping even more from falling came first. Aiming at the one Janus was about to target, Saeri sent the curse of the Evil Eye rippling towards it, aiming to tear down its defenses.
"Ah! Slippery little utensils." Lu groaned as her first attack went wide. Even worse - Chaïa got shredded! But lets take one thing at a time. Lu took another swing at the flanked armour and called out "let's send this crap to the slag-heap!" Her blade clanged against the armor, not penetrating at all.
She'd have to wait a few moments to help Chaia - stopping even more from falling came first. Aiming at the one Janus was about to target, Saeri sent the curse of the Evil Eye rippling towards it, aiming to tear down its defenses.
Faced with the durability of their enemies, and seeing Chaia go down in the back, Janus next slash is rather meek, easily deflected by the creatures armor.
All things considered, Chaïa wasn't bleeding as profusely as she might, under the circumstances, but it was in the hands of the goddesses whether she would last another minute at this rate.
The bladesman kept on Janus, slashing past his guard and cutting deep. The other moved to flank Lu and cut a painful wound across her arm.
Janus
miss
not parried :(
"Ahrgh!" Lu groaned in painful annoyance. This wasn't going so well. Maybe third time was the charm? She made yet another attempt at cutting down the flanked and cursed armour.