After oiling the lock, Tybalt works conscientiously upon the heavy wooden doors attempting to reveal the mysteries kept within.
Res keeps looking through the window to see if anything stirs as Tybalt works the door lock.
Noting the trap, however, you can see clearly how to disengage it while proceeding to pick the lock. The door opens with a satisfying creak.
Tybalt fiddles about with the lock for a bit, but Res sees nothing stir within the chapel. Finally satisfied, Tybalt is able to open the door, and it pushes open with a heavy groan.
Within, the ruined chapel lies under dust, and you are no closer to identifying the form by the altar than you were before.
"It is unseemly to linger in the doorway like gawping spectators, yet foolish to rush in without preparation," Leandro declares as he murmurs and presents his holy symbol, "Hold, friends. Sir Res, see you any evidence of foul magic?"
"No sign of movement Leandro. I think we need to enter cautiously and soon. We are still invisible to undead creatures." Res leaves his position at the window and rejoins the group at the door. "I am ready to proceed when you are Leandro. Do you detect anything magical?"
Whispering softly, as one might in the house of the Lord, Tybalt adds; "Lets' be careful and prudent... we need to locate the Skull. Anyone know aught of vampiric weaknesses? So long as it doesn't require me to dress in a skirt." He tries to inject a touch of joviality as he looks to the thick dust and see if there are any marks (or tracks) leading to the form by the altar.
Andrzej lights a pebble like a torch and lobs it towards the altar, more to see what faith the sacrifice is on than any real expectation of recognising the body.
You proceed into the chapel. The shape before the altar is still indistinct, covered as it is by an old, dusty sheet. The altar itself is unmarked and undecorated, as if dedicated to no god at all - an abandoned shrine to the absence of faith.
Andrzej starts looking around a little aimlessly. He is too busy flicking through spells in his head to concentrate greatly. The magus moves next to Leandro and waits while he half scans.
"Is there a way down?" Tybalt softly asks the group as he approaches the old sheet to try and ascertain what is below it, or even what it is. He kneels before it with some trepidation.
'An old altar cloth, or tapestry? I wonder...' the musician wonders as from his pocket squeezes his owl friend who takes to the rafters of the old church.
"There is some magic behind that altar," Leandro says softly, continuing to concentrate on his spell as he moves up the aisle.
Andrzej marches up behind Leandro with his boots deliberately echoing on the flagstones. His scimitar swishes from side to side like a cat's tail.
"Hold, friend. Let us lift the cloth with some prudence," Leandro admonishes Tybalt, gesturing with Thorn. The length of the weapon will allow him to disturb the covering from a distance. He motions Tybalt back a couple of steps before touching Thorn to the hem of the cloth.
Res follows the group into the building. He holds out his greatsword ready to strike if needed.
Stepping back, Tybalt has a small sip from his wineskin - with a feeling that he may need some alcohol soon, but the libation should loosen the tongue and sharpen the wit.
As you approach, you see that there is a stone staircase behind the altar which descends to a lower level. You could not see it from the entrance, as your line of sight was blocked.
Leandro uses the length of his polearm to carefully lift the cloth. The musty sheet rises slowly with the butt of his weapon, and takes some time to reveal its secrets. At length, you make out a small corner of what lies beneath, as a shaft of light from a broken windowpane reveals a withered and rotting finger, which ends in a foul, blackened claw.
The entire shape suddenly springs into motion, as the figure is uncovered in even a tiny amount. The mostly skeletal figure is hunched and gnarled. What remains of its flesh is blackened and withered. It tears forth from the sheet in fit of rage at the disturbance.
Tybalt starts backwards/
"Wow, that nearly made me spill my spirits." Tybalt quips dropping his wineskin.
The undead creature stumbles forward, but is not so quick in its reactions.
All PCs may post at will in any order, since you all go before your enemy.
Andrzej
Angalia
Res
Anuqa
Leandro
Eliva
Tybalt
Undead foe
"That is a wight. It drains life."
Andrzej summons a spell from his mind and produces a shimmering shield of magic between him and the undead beast. Then he steps forwards to attract the foulness.
Res cannot recognize what the creature it is, but fortunately, Andrzej can. Hearing that the creature is undead, recites an incantation to Gorum. Positive energy pulses out from his holy symbol harming all undead within 40 feet.
Eliva moves up 10 feet, while drawing her bow, to get within 30 feet of the creature. She then looses a standard arrow at the creature.
Anuqa will stay where he is and cast magic missile
Angalia will pull out her sword while double moving to square j9
"So if it touches you, it'll be quite a draining experience." Tybalt quips sotto voce, "As the vicar said to the actress." Trying to lighten the mood in the face of the horrific monstrosity, bolstering morale & ensuring victory against the creature.
His hand goes to his belt and he withdraws the barbed whip within.
Res's channeled energy, Anuqa's spell, and Eliva's arrow all strike at the foul creature. It shrieks at the assault.
Leandro attempts to let Thorn send his message to the wight.
Leandro fails to strike the wight. The decaying creature lifts a rusted old sword and swings it at Andzrej.
Andrzej
Angalia
Res
Anuqa
Leandro
Eliva
Tybalt
Wight
"See fiend that was the wrong way to attack someone, not the wight way." Tybalt flicks out with his glittering whip, maximising it's greater reach to try and trip up the undead creature.
"You really should get down, or we'll have a bone to pick with you."
Res moves up next to the wight. He takes a powerful swing with his magical greatsword. "Be gone you abomination"
,
Angalia attempts to flank the wight from square g7 which will require tumbling past square g8
then attacks the wight with her rapier
Anuqa will move 10 feet up and cast disrupt undead
Eliva will stay put and shoot the wight
Tybalt fails to trip the wight, while Res's sword fails to make contact. While the wight is fending off these attacks, it fails to pay attention to Angalia, who leaps into the fray and skewers the wight with her rapier, piercing it and then slicing open the undead foe. It collapses to the ground, raising a cloud of dust.
Andrzej keeps a tight smile, since all those attacks meant he could save a spell. He nods to all the attackers behind his dodges and feints. Then kicks the dust around a little to see if the body left anything of value.
"Well, fighting us, he was certainly boned." The harmonics of Tybalts mockery drift across the vaulted ceiling as the last notes fade away. He moves over to the door, to ensure it's locked since it's obvious that their invisibility to the creatures has worn off or been removed.
"Anything Andrzej?" He asks softly.
The only door is the one you came through. There is a staircase descending behind the altar; it simply goes down into the floor. Looking down, the stairs descend about 10 feet and then reach a landing where they switch direction. You cannot see past that point.
If you mean instead that you are locking the entrance behind you, that is a wise move.
Andrzej searches the body's dust and then begins to hunt round the chapel. But he knows that his talents are not so good at this, just that someone must try.
The only door is the one you came through. There is a staircase descending behind the altar; it simply goes down into the floor. Looking down, the stairs descend about 10 feet and then reach a landing where they switch direction. You cannot see past that point.
If you mean instead that you are locking the entrance behind you, that is a wise move.
Res grinds what remains of the wight into the floor. He then assists Andrzej with searching the room.
However the dust kicked up by the pulverized bones gets into his nose, mouth and eyes and obscures his vision. "Cough, Cough, Cough, Gad - remind me to cover my mouth the next time we destroy an undead creature."
"Regaining his composure, Res asks, do you see anything? If not, time to head down the stairs."
Andrzej shrugs with his hands out wide and silently follows downstairs, feeling he has missed something. Again.
Tybalt has a brief look around the church including to see to which deity the altar may have been consecrated and constructed for, before putting his hand on it reverentially. "Certainly, we should move on now." Tybalt starts to move downstairs with a last look at the dilapidated church.
Searching the chapel, Tybalt finds an amulet lying among the dusty scraps of cloth where the wight was hiding. Set into the amulet is a polished nugget of amber encasing a strange, prehistoric insect.
Beneath a loose stone in front of the altar, there is also a small rotting pouch which contains a handful of semi-precious stones worth about 500 gp.
You make your way down the narrow stairs. They descend to a landing, and then reverse direction to descend further. They end in a small dusty chamber. While some dim light filters through via the open staircase to the chapel, this small cellar is dark. Vague shapes occupy the darkness before you, looming in the eerie stillness of this dank cellar.
Eliva quietly: there's a bunch of boxes and junk, plenty of spaces for something to hide but nothing obviously of interest aside from a door to the south.
Searching about the dark room, Eliva can see that this is a disused storage room. There is nothing of interest.
Andrzej has no luck deciphering the magic in the strange amulet. He shakes his head and hands it back to Res.
"A storage cellar? In a swamp? Surely there is more here than meets the eye." Tybalt exclaims softly; "I suppose any laid to rest would have their ashes scattered to the four winds - if there is no mausoleum for them. But here there seems to be no obvious crypt."
Despite his better instincts the story-teller feels compelled to look for a hidden panel amongst the detritus. "Eliva, you've better vision than I, have you found aught?" he asks softly cutting through the eerie silence.
Elvia makes her way back to the party and reports, "nothing but boxes, still I share your unease."
"So shall we head back upstairs & investigate outside?" Tybalt asks having not got very far into his observations of the room.