Iofiel channeled a second wave of power through the air, healing a smidgen more damage, before she darted forward again to end up five feet away from her foe. She was curious as to whether or not it refused to go any further at all - and if there was a reason for that - or if she could entice it to moving in ways it might not want to. Either way, this put her within range for smacking it upside the head in a few moments - assuming she could avoid getting beaten down in the meantime.
After watching you heal yourself and begin to advance, the creature takes a quick look back toward the darkness but stands its ground.
New Round
The runes running down her staff faded, and rather than igniting them again with a new surge of power, Iris chanted briefly before stepping forward and punching out again. This wasn't as strong of an attack as it had been before - lack of godly power could do that - but she was more focused on dealing further damage to her foe in hopes of dropping them with one solid swing later on. "No matter how deep the darkness is, a single candle can keep it at bay." the Goddess said softly.
for
The creature reels in pain as electricity arcs through its body. Dealing a hasty cut to your leg in an attempt at slowing you down, it backs into the darkness .
New Round
Well, it seemed to be worried now, that was a good sign - but she couldn't fight very well in darkness like that, and her power hadn't recovered enough for her to destroy the darkness. ...Or had it? Maybe she was looking at this the wrong way, and all she really needed was to do what she did best - bringing the light to places where it could banish the darkness.
There are bioluminescent fungi growing in scattered patches all over the place. As for discarded waste: there's none in this tunnel.
Iris pointed her staff at the patch of fungi closest to the save and whispered a word under her breath. A burst of fire shot out of the end of her staff and directly towards the plant life. This probably wouldn't last for very long, but if she could generate enough light, it might be enough to help her see into that void, at least for long enough to see something more lasting that she could light up.
...It probably said a lot about her that her approach to solving a problem was "more light".
The darkness instantly snuffs out your light, but the brief glimpse you received is able to reveal much about your surroundings. You're looking at something manmade - a room. Though naturally formed, the walls and floors are reinforced with additional construction, although it appears that these newer structures have been recently partially torn down. At the chamber's heart lies a crude and massive machine-like device. It consists of a large stone and iron tank fitted on a crossbar to a disk plated with reflective metals. Strings and cables, threaded through the device in intricate cat's cradles, secure delicate and precisely oriented refractive devices.
Strapped to the far side of this machine is an unconscious man. Tubes filled with a bubbling green substance pierce his skin in a multitude of places. On the near side of the machine crouches your assailant.
By one of the room's walls is a small box filled with what appear to be sunrods.
Noting the items in question, Iris hurried towards the sunrods, then reached out to grab one of them.
As soon as she had the chance to act again , Iris struck the Sunrod to light it up and illuminate the present area. This creature didn't seem to enjoy light at all, and perhaps this would throw it off... or perhaps not. Either way, she had every intention of rescuing the man as soon as she could. Unfortunately, her entropic shield had fizzled out - not that it was likely to have done much anyway - but at least she ought to be able to hit her foe now.
You feel something *swish* past you as you rush to the box of sunrods. As soon as you light one, you hear the creature scream in pain. When your vision adjusts, you see it standing withing your reach. It's holding it's eyes and doesn't appear to be able to see you.
Iris winced slightly as she heard the scream of pain, but dropped the sunrod - to let it continue illuminating from the floor - even as she shifted her grip slightly and quickly began casting a Brand spell.
for
Touch spells were easier to use than many others, but she fumbled a bit on it as her staff came around... though at least her weapon was rather more accurate as she clubbed the creature over the head with it. "Begone, foul creature! There is no darkness the light cannot banish!" ...Assuming light could ever manage to catch it, which it might not do if light kept being so loud. It was true that dawn could creep up on people before they were paying attention, but sooner or later - and it was usually sooner - daylight started metaphorically smacking people and demanding they take notice of it. Iris may have been, ah, a bit too influenced by people's perception of the dawn...
The creature flails around wildly as it continues to shield its eyes from the light. It does manage to connect with a lucky strike , but you easily dodge the other blows.
New Round
Iris let out a brief cry of pain, even as she grabbed her staff with both hands and swung it around to strike at the creature as it flailed. Blood splattered the ground beneath her, coming out of her rather severe injuries - but there were times when all you could do was grit your teeth and do your best... and perhaps that was what was guiding her weapon to hit as hard as it could.
Your staff strikes the creature's skull with a resounding *crack*, and it drops limply to the ground.
Iris exhaled, then carefully stepped away from the creature, moving out of range from it with her superior speed (40 feet) before channeling positive energy to catch both herself and the victim within its radius - why waste energy when she could be efficient and help both of them at once?
Moments after you move away, the creature combusts in a flash of white-hot flame, leaving only his gear behind. The unconscious man strapped to the strange machine looks slightly better, but you can tell his condition remains unstable.
Loot
Silversheen x1
Leather Armor x1
Shortsword x2
Black Smear Poison x4
boots of elvenkind (Drow-crafted)
Iris didn't even bother looking at the dropped items - her attention was focused on the injured man in front of her as she knelt down beside him and tried to find out what was wrong. Except in extreme circumstances, she considered people far more important than objects... which may have been part of why she began tending to him as best she could.
Fortunately, she still had two open cleric spells - if necessary, she could focus for a few minutes and grant herself the ability to cast what she needed, though hopefully that wouldn't be necessary. She was still getting used to the concept of limits on the use of magic, and it was... strange. "Can you hear me?" she asked when she was done tending to him.
The man remains unresponsive. As you examine him, you realize that the tubes protruding from his body are filled with acid. Unless they're removed, his condition will continue to worsen. Of course, removal will have to be done extremely carefully so as not to accidentally cause greater harm.
Very carefully, Iris set about disconnecting the man from the system - though she did take a moment to see if there was any obvious shut-off control before she went about cautiously extracting the tubes. What kind of fool creatures plugged others into acid, anyway? That was barbaric.
You carefully remove the tubes and magically produce water to soothe the acid burns. It's touch-and-go for several anxious minutes, but your impromptu surgery is successful, and the man appears out of danger. You realize, though, that without serious restorative magic, he'll never fully heal from the acid-induced nerve damage. And, of course, there's the mental trauma that can only be cured with time and therapy.
As you finish tending to the man, the northern door bursts open, and four strangers rush in with weapons drawn. There's a human male wearing plate armor and wielding twin swords. There's a female elf with dozens of daggers strapped to her leather armor. There's a Kelish woman holding a scimitar and symbol of Sarenrae. Lastly, there's an elderly human male dressed in robes holding a cane. You notice the four of them have identical patches on their clothing.
"Who are you? What have you done to Miregrold? Answer quickly or face our wrath!"
"I've saved his life." Iris said, standing up and raising her staff slightly. Her tone wasn't threatening, precisely, but it was a bit... stern. She didn't take well to threats from anyone, regardless of who they were. Most deities didn't. She wasn't familiar with the symbol on their clothing, either - it was probably from after her time - but at least none of these people looked outright evil. The holy aura that protected her flickered slightly in the light, and she paused for a moment to consider what this might look like to them. Bursting in to find evil, only to find someone looking completely out of place... mortals did worry about treachery quite often, didn't they? Hmm. "Some fool was pumping acid into his body, but his injuries aren't totally irreparable. You're quite fortunate that I happened by when I did, or he might not have made it. Now, since this is almost certainly a misunderstanding on your part, I will accept your apologies and forgive you if you show me the way to the surface. I would dearly like to get out of these caves and back into the light."
With that, she moved over to the pile of dropped goods and examined them curiously as she collected them. She could check them in more detail later on, once she reached somewhere safe - for now, all she really wanted was to escape these caves. Perhaps she could talk them into escorting her all the way to a city...
They look completely nonplussed at your words and glance at each other in confusion. The Kelishite examines your patient while the others keep a wary eye on you. "He's alive and stable. The Decemvirate will be pleased." The elderly man raises an eyebrow. "That's all well and good, and you certainly aren't a dark creeper. But you still haven't explained who you are or why you're here."
"No, I haven't." Iris answered primly. Some instinct - what a mortal would have called 'good sense', though Iris had rarely been accused of having much of that - suggested that being entirely truthful here might not be the best plan... especially because she had no idea who or what the Decemvirate was, other than obviously being an authority figure of some kind. On the other hand, they were apparently opposing something called a 'dark creeper'... and that was already making her like them. Supporting those who opposed darkness wasn't just part of her personality - it was literally part of her very existence, the idea that defined who she was. "Manners indicate that it's most polite to introduce oneself before demanding the identity of others, so why don't we start over and try to fix these misunderstandings? I am Iris, and I'm here because I haven't found a way out yet - and you are?"
The elderly man pointed to himself before gesturing briefly at his companions in turn. "Ezren, Kyra, Meresiel, Valeros. You're not with Aspis, are you?" The four of them remain cautious, but their initial hostility seems to have faded somewhat.
"No, I'm not." Iris answered simply. "At least, I'm fairly certain I'm not - I have no idea who Aspis is, nor why I'd be expected to join them. Now, how about we take your friend and leave? I did spend effort on trying to make him better, and I'd hate for all of that to be wasted just because we stood around talking for too long - he needs proper care, not battlefield remedies." With that, she made her way over to the box of sunrods and looked in to see how many were left after picking up the one she'd already lit. They were useful things that brought light to darkness - fetching them was practically instinctual for her, and they might be an acceptable substitute until she'd regained enough power to summon light through her staff.
The man nods. "Very well. We'll bring you back to the Lodge. Miregrold will get the help he needs, and the Venture-Captain can figure out what to do with you. Of course, if you don't want to come with us, you're free to go. You're not part of out mission, so you're not our problem." He shrugs dismissively and motions the others to take your patient and leave.
One of Iris' eyes twitched slightly, but she quashed the feelings. They didn't recognize her splendor - and she couldn't prove who she was at the moment - so their reactions were only natural. You could hardly fault people for behaving naturally - that would be like blaming the sun for rising. Sure, some people did it anyway, but there was no real point to it. "If you reached this far underground, I'm sure you're a reasonably capable group of people. I think I will go to your... Lodge. Perhaps I'll want to call upon your services in the future." She quietly stowed the sunrods away, then gestured for them to go ahead and lead the way as she carried the lit sunrod from beside them. She'd picked up the dropped items and the light-sticks... that did seem to be everything, and she didn't want to stay down here any longer than necessary.
Outside the room, there's a rope tied to a post alongside three gondolas. The rope stretches out across a vast deep underground lake. In the distance, you can see a makeshift platform standing between a series of limestone stalagmites protruding from the water. By following the rope, you could easily paddle a gondola to the platform, where there appears to be a thick chain hanging from a hole in the cavern ceiling.
"Well, shall we get going?" Iris inquired as she made her way over to one of the gondolas and sat down, holding up the Sunrod to light the way for whoever was paddling them forward. There were three vessels and six of them, so two per-boat sounded about right... "...Are there any creatures in the water that would be attracted to the light?"
"No lake monsters, if you're worried about that sort of thing. We noticed the standard blind fish and cave salamanders, but nothing out of the ordinary, "responds Ezren - who indicated you can share his boat. Meresiel pipes up suddenly. "Don't forget those damned vampire bats! They're attracted to light, so put it out!"
They were worried by bats? Hmm. Still, it was the duty of a goddess to listen to the requests of mortals, and Iris ultimately complied with Meresiel's wishes. The darkness didn't bother her anyway, and she simply enjoyed the ride across the lake, stepping out onto the platform once they arrived and looking up at the chain. "The sooner we're out of these caves, the better. Is there anything I should watch for up there?" she asked as she carefully began her ascent. She was still a bit weaker than usual courtesy of the poison, but some rest ought to cure that, and fortunately she didn't have very many belongings to carry.
"We cleared the building of hostiles before entering that cave, so you should be fine. Of course, we're still unsure as to your status, so we can't mark our mission as completed yet. I'm sure you understand." Ezren seems almost apologetic at the insinuation.
"Please do let me know if you figure out what my status is." Iris said as she emerged into the building and looked around, occasionally poking at a door with her staff before opening it. "Ack, building parts of houses underground, too?" she shuddered visibly, hurrying up the stairs and onto the first floor to see if she could catch the light of the sun from anywhere. It was always possible that this little raid of theirs had happened during the night, but she couldn't say for sure until she actually found a window and figured out what time it was.
You follow the Pathfinders upstairs, looking for windows all the way. Finally, you reach what appears to be a sun room, but all the windows have been covered with thick blankets. Pulling aside a corner on the closest one, you're hit with a ray of sunlight - the first you've seen in who knows how long!
Once outside, you're able to bask in the warmness of a noonday sun. There's not a single cloud in the sky, and while the heat would cause discomfort and sweating for an ordinary mortal, it has a quite different effect on you. You feel rejuvenated and slightly stronger.
It could really only be described by those who were there to see it. As soon as she recognized that it was indeed light outside, Iris yanked open the door and literally dove outside, landing on the ground and spreading her arms out as she simply lay there in the thrice-blessed light of a star. "Just... just give me a moment, please. I need this." she said to the mortals who were almost certainly wondering what in the world was wrong with this crazy woman. She didn't care. It had been literal ages since she'd last felt light on her skin, and there was no way she wasn't going to enjoy every moment of this to the fullest.
Your escorts shake their heads bemusedly as they observe your strange behavior. "Sure, lady, whatever you want." Their assessment of you as a potential threat is definitely dropping rapidly. After all, a crazy woman making dirt angels is clearly about as dangerous as that weird Gnome who stands on the street corner all day shouting about how nothing is real and everyone's existence is part of a game of chance played by extraplanar entities. Unless of course, you're faking and are actually a disguised Aspis agent. One can never be too careful.
After two or three inconveniently long minutes, Iris let out a sigh and brushed herself off as she stood, continuing to revel in the feeling of sunlight against her skin. All right, time to see if that knowledge she'd crammed into her skull had anything useful in it - she'd only been able to save a fraction of her wisdom, so there was no telling what had plopped out along the way.
Sadly, quite a few things had changed while she was asleep... but she quite willingly followed them towards their home base - it probably had more people somewhere around it, and she wanted to get a better feel for the local area.
Unfortunately, much has changed in the world since you were last here, and you have no idea where you are. You see a lot of pale-skinned humans, so you're probably not in the Mwangi Expanse, but that doesn't narrow down the options much. As you walk, you do see a blacksmith, a general store, and several other shops where you can probably buy/sell items.
The Pathfinders lead you to a large building marked with the same "open road" symbol as their patches. Inside, you're greeted by a lean pale-skinned woman wearing an elegant crimson gown. "Welcome back, friends. It appears your mission was successful, but what's happened to Miregold? And who are you, my dear?" she asks, turning to you.
Ezren responds respectfully. "Based on what we saw, Miregold was working on some sort of light-emitting device but was attacked by Dark Creepers before he could complete it. The building has been cleared of hostiles, and we discovered an underground cave system leading to a secret laboratory. That's where we found Miregold and Miss Iris." He nods at you. "She claims to have been lost underground, found Miregold, and saved his life. She doesn't appear to be with Aspis, and we weren't sure what to do with her, so we brought her here. Now, with your permission, we're going to go back and retrieve Miregold's device."
The lady nods to them, and they exit - leaving the two of you alone. "Well, Iris, it's nice to meet you. I'm Venture-Captain Basia Kalistoff of the Pathfinder Society. Do you have anything to add to Ezren's account?"
"You have weird enemies." the goddess said, tilting her head slightly as she looked at the woman who was clearly the commander of the four who'd helped her jump into the blessed sunlight. Why yes, that was the part she cared about... "They were also pumping his body with some kind of toxin. Mire... gold... is probably going to need professional long-term care, or at least some fairly serious magical healing. He may have been hurt in ways that haven't been noticed yet, and I did what I could but my resources were limited down there. Also, the kidnapper really didn't like light." The heathen. "If you're going to have more encounters with creatures like that, your people should pack a few of these amazing light-sticks." she held up one of the sunrods.
Start: 0 GP
Selling:
Dagger x2 = 2 GP
Shortsword x2 = 10 GP
Leather Armor = 5 GP
Silversheen = 125 GP
Black Smear x6 = Doesn't seem to have any value, so she'll donate them to the Pathfinder Society.
Keeping:
Drow-crafted Boots of Elvenkind.
Sunrods (She feels obligated to. XD As far as she's concerned, these are the best inventions ever.)
Total:
+142 GP
New GP Total: 142 GP
Gear Value: 2513 GP
"Ah, yes, sunrods are quite effective at dealing with them." She steeples her fingers and looks you up and down. "So... just who are are you, and what were you doing under Miregold's house?"
"My name is Iris, and as for why I was there, in particular, I'm afraid I don't remember. It's not the kind of place I'd normally visit, you see, though I think those caves may be bigger than people have given them credit for. I suspect that I came in through a different route, and the house is where I just happened to come out. A better question might be asking why someone's living on top of the entrance to a bunch of caves where strange darkness-dwellers live... because that's probably not a coincidence." She placed a hand on one hip. "Any other questions?" Iris seemed honestly curious about the answer, rather than being impatient as some people might have been.
Basia Kalistoff frowns thoughtfully. "Hmmm... a Darklands entrance under the Miregold house? I would think something like that would have been noticed if it had been here long. Did you see signs of recent excavation?"
"Just the giant chain leading down. That looked a little too... permanent... for hasty or temporary access." For one thing, rope was much easier to carry around. "I also saw signs of long-term habitation, including a farming area, not too far away. I did have to break through a wall to get to Miregold, and that might've been more recent, but nothing else I saw looked particularly new."
"That's rather disturbing, as it's unusual for Dark Folk to be so close to the surface. Especially if they're preparing mushroom plots... How long were you lost down there?"
Iris shrugged. "I don't know. It's not like I could count the days or anything." she answered truthfully. She didn't even know if she'd been there at all until she'd woken up, and this lady probably wouldn't believe a claim of thousands(?) of years in stasis... best to shy away from that for now. "What are these Dark Folk, anyway?"
"Short answer: they're descendants of those who burrowed underground to escape Earthfall. Over the years, the Darklands warped them into their current state. We don't know much else, but what everything we've gleaned over the years is in our library. Tell you what: since you've been of assistance, I'll let you look around there if you'd like." It's pretty obvious that you're supposed to feel impressed and honored by this. It's also clear that Ms. Basia isn't really sure what else to do with you at the moment.
"I'd like that." Iris said, nodding. It was always best to know one's enemy, and she had this... thing... about creatures who hid and tried to avoid the light. It was fairly solidly ingrained within her, and she spent some time in the library reading up on them before saying farewell to those within the lodge and heading into town to try and gather rumors and information. She wanted to get a better sense of where she was and what problems might be affecting the people in the area... and seemed to be substituting pure charisma for her lack of knowledge about local customs and the like.
over
You spend some time reading up on Dark Folk and learn a lot. Afterwards, as you're still not sure where you are (although you've hidden your ignorance pretty well thus far), you leave the lodge and wander about the city. Through careful observation, you discover that you've surfaced in the city of Karcau in the Sinarian county of Ustalav.
Iris quietly blew a tuft of hair out of her eyes as she learned more about the region... but a shard of pure sunlight, hmm? That was... something she probably couldn't ignore, even if it did mean needing to go underground again. She didn't want to, exactly, but pure sunlight wasn't something that should be trapped beneath the ground. More importantly, how was she going to find such a thing? She'd probably need to recover more of her power before going deep underground - reaching the third level of spells ought to do it, for that was when she could access far more of her staff's useful spells, including some important for long journeys - but at least she had something she wanted to do.
...
Now how did mortals actually get stronger? Perhaps there were ways to practice her skills within the area and get used to her body again...? She wasn't used to the idea of dealing with limits, and had no idea how capable her body actually was. Being mortal wasn't a comfortable feeling, though... and she didn't want to lose what little she'd managed to scrape together. With that, Iris began looking around for anyone who might be able to benefit from one of her various talents.