This large chamber is partially flooded, with the south end just barely rising out of the stagnant water. A large wheel is set into the floor of the dry area, attached to chains that rise up into the ceiling. A thick layer of slick, black mold covers the carvings on the walls of this chamber.
He says to her quietly in her ear, "I think ye should keep it Priyya, it kinda matches yer eyes, 'n knowing how ta swim not be a bad t'ing either..."
Priyya is almost too distracted by his breath on her neck to listen. Goosebumps rise across her body, thankfully covered by her robes. Things that are best not perky become so. His words finally register. She laughs lightly. "Fel, my eyes are almond-colored. The gemstone is aquamarine, dear. They aren't even close." She rubs the beard stubble on his cheek affectionately, "But thank you for the gallant compliment. If no one minds I'll keep the ring... if only to remind me of your sweetness."
"Should we return 'n check up on Roldare?" He asks the others, a slight flush on his face, after talking to Priyya.
Priyya nods, "I love water but I don't fancy sleeping in this fetid pool all night... and I don't think we can secure any room down here as well as Roldare's room. Let's head back there..."
Alis leads the band quickly, and uneventfully, back to Roldare's room. Once they are safely secured inside, Alexis sets to work with her prestidigitation cantrip getting everyone's clothes dry and relatively clean. While this is happening, the troop inform Roldare of their adventures and, sadly, they have not found Dimira yet but they believe they are getting close.
She laughs lightly. "Fel, my eyes are almond-colored. The gemstone is aquamarine, dear. They aren't even close." She rubs the beard stubble on his cheek affectionately, "But thank you for the gallant compliment. If no one minds I'll keep the ring... if only to remind me of your sweetness."
Felmor gives an embarrassed chuckle, "Aye, I guess if'n I want ta be a fancy nobleman struttin' me stuff instead o' a plain sailor, I guess I'd need ta talk to th' Cap'n, he he."
She smiles, "Alis'd definitely put some polish on you... and I wouldn't like you near half as much. I want er like you as you are." Priyya quickly busies herself with setting up her 'bed' on the boxes she was on before, beating her pack into an acceptable pillow and dropping her armor and boots with a sigh of relief. She collapses on the boxes, leaning against her pack. She crosses her legs and notices that her big toe is sticking through a hole in her well worn socks. She frowns at it for a moment but does nothing about it.
Felmor notices she is looking at her hands, folded in her lap. He realises she is actually admiring the ring on her finger.
Felmor moves to his own 'bed' and takes off his hat, and his pack, stretching out his body, and hearing his back crack loudy, he gives the others an embarrassed chuckle. He watches Priyya, and for some reason, found it impossible to take his eyes off of her.
He reaches into his pack ,and pulls out a sock, thick wool, very useful for a sailor. He hands it to Priyya, and says softly, "'Ere ye go. Guess th' cleaning spell don't do mendin', he he." He notices her admiring the ring and says, "I like it, ye ain't no fashion expert, like the Cap'n there," pointing to alis and her sister, already falling asleep. "I like ye jes th' way ye are, too." he takes her hand in his, enjoying the warmth radiating from her.
Priyya accepts the socks with a smile, hikes her robe up to her knees exposing her brown, smooth-muscled calves, rolls off her thinner socks and happily rolls on his thicker ones. She wiggles her toes to test the new socks out. Only at this point does she realise her immodesty might cause him some distress. She glances at him to see if he noticed and quickly tosses her robe down to cover herself.
"These are wonderful socks, Fel. Thanks."
"I like ye jes th' way ye are, too." he takes her hand in his, enjoying the warmth radiating from her.
"Ah! Your hand is an icicle. That won't do." She sits up, facing him sternly and starts to rub his hands briskly as if to warm them. "You need some gloves to match those socks, sailor. Otherwise you'll catch cold."
She continues to rub his hands distractedly while looking around to see who appears awake. When she thinks they aren't being actively observed, her rubbing slows and almost stops. She presses one of his hands to her face then closes her eyes and rubs her cheek against his palm briefly. Then she flips his hands over and kisses their backs before releasing them. Her breathing is somewhat ragged. "Thank you for the socks, Fel. I don't sleep well in this cold crypt and the warmth will help."
"He he, jes I fergot ta bring 'em. Still jes make sure ye don't catch a cold." He notices her breathing hard, and asks with a concerned note, remembering the encounter with the diseased zombies earlier,"Ye OK, there?" he thinks it is due to the close proximity, since his breaths are starting to come faster as well. Just wanted to be sure.
Priyya isn't sure if Felmor is being clueless or purposefully trying to cool their ardor with the subject change... but either way it's probably a good idea. She smiles wanly, "I feel alright, Fel, given where we are. I'm going to check in the morning to see if I have any signs of infection... but I imagine I'd feel something by now if I was really sick."
"So... how are you feeling?"
Felmor leans in to talk quietly in her ear, enjoying her fragrance, it was certainly intoxicating to him. He gives her another hug, holding her close, "I guess I'm doin' OK, haven't felt any...sicker or anyt'ing like that. I jes don't wanna see ye git sick...I seen good men get diseasd, 'n it is not a pretty thing ta see. Course ye know that, bein' a priestess 'n all. Sometimes we dinnae have th' luxury o' stoppin' at port ta find a cleric ta heal one." After a moment of collecting his thoughts, he continues, "I be terrified o' gettin' sick. But I be tradin' places wit' ye in a 'eartbeat, if ye got sick, Priyya."
Felmor notes, while whispering, that he is giving Priyya goosebumps along the exposed parts of her neck and arms... and he's fairly certain they aren't a result of her being creeped out by the subject matter. In fact, she seems to be having difficulty focusing on what exactly he is saying.
"Don't worry, Fel." She returns his hug, "If any of us are sick, we can be cured. At sea, I imagine diseases must be frightening. You can't get away from sick crewmen there."
Priyya pulls away briefly to look at Felmor, realising he was smelling her. She gives him a quirky smile. "It's just soap and me, Fel. If you'd like a bar, I'll give you one." She smiles again and then pointedly moves her head back to its previous position, with his nose near her neck... almost as if to invite him to keep smelling her, if he wishes.
Felmor does not refuse the offer, leaning in close to inhale her deeply. Aye, she be smelling like an angel. I neveah be sayin' ye smelled bad, I kinda like ye smellin' this way. But i know ye want to smell clean, I understand that, he he. If'n ye eveah need help cleanin' ye back when ye is takin' a bath, jes let me know, 'n I kin make sure ye is clean. He is trying to maintain his composure but the smell of her is very distracting.
Priyya pulls away to regard him again. There is a look of slight surprise and great amusement on her face. "Well! Mr. Traker! That's the boldest thing you've said yet! And not two weeks ago, you wouldn't have said 'boo' to me. Well... Well... Why the next thing you know, you'll be offering to father my children." She holds his hands. It is clear she is pleased by his offer and his boldness but saying "Yes" at this moment would probably spiral them out of control.
Felmor says nothing at first, but when Priyya looks into his eyes, she can see it is all he can do to act on her sugesstion, Aye, not now...not now...NOT NOW! This georgeous, sexy woman was about to cause him to lose all control, and he WANTED to, oh by the gods, he WANTED to lose control of himself. Regrettably not choosing to rest in the fountain area, he reaches down and pulls out his waterskin, still filled with water, and takes a drink. "Thirsty?" He asks in a husky voice, filled with desire, as he offers it to her.
She takes the offered wineskin and gives him a head-shaking rye smirk which says this isn't easy for me either. She toasts him silently with the skin and takes a long pull. Then she takes a handful of the water and splashes her face with it. It helps a little. She hands the skin back to him then pats his other hand.
The cooling touch helps a little, and allows him to keep his desires from exploding free from his control. even her light touches on his body threaten to undo what the cooling water has done. Fer th' last time I am not a rutting canine! He says sternly to himself. Needless to say, it had no effect. Well, Priyya, we be best gettin' some shuteye. Me think tomorrow will be a busy day." He tried not to think about what would happen tomorrow going up against the evil force behind Dimria's captivity. He knew only one thing, he did not think he could live without her.
Before he heads off to his corner of the room, he asks quietly, Is thar anythin' else ye need, Priyya?" She can tell he wants to stay close to her all night, but respects her wishes in this manner.
Felmor almost sees her thoughts see-sawing... What she desires versus what she knows is wisest. It's almost as if she is speaking her thoughts aloud...
How much sleep would we really get if we lay here together?
How much temptation can we handle without doing something utterly stupid in the dark watches of the night?
He knows, before she says it, that she's going to do the smart thing though her heart says otherwise. "No, Fel. Thank you, for everything. You are a true Knight, Felmor Traker." He's about to turn away when she says, "But there is a small thing..." Before he knows it, she's in his arms and kissing him deeply. It lasts a long moment for her. When she breaks from him, she lets out a long exhale. "We never know what will happen tomorrow... and I wanted to know what that felt like, just in case. Good night, Fel. I hope you sleep well and I make it into your dreams." She leaves it altogether unstated what she thinks will comprise her dreams.
She settles on her 'bed' quickly, before they have a chance to get more stupid with each other in this haunted place.
Felmor sees she is going to refuse his offer about lying with him, and fights a wave of disappointment. He knows it would not be a good idea, but where she is concerned, his logical mind has completely deserted him.
When she kissed him, it was like you threw a parched man a tall glass of water. He drinks deeply of her, wanting to imprint this memory of her kiss, her touch, her soul on his own soul. After she breaks the kiss, he wanders back to his bed, in a daze and lays down. He glances at Morgaard, and the sleeping Kirmoon twins, and gives the veteran dwarf a thumbs up gesture. Morgaard returns the gesture, and gives him a wink.
Felmor lays down on the bed, and lies awake feeling a lonliness in his heart, but seeing Priyya laying there asleep, with a look of peace and contentment on her face, the first time he has seen her with that look, made him feel good about himself. The best he has ever felt in his life. For the first time in a long time, he offers a prayer, Saranae, keep watch over ye child, I...I love 'er. With that thought, he drops into slumber. His dreams are pleasant, and even Morgaard can see this, as he watches over the group.
Priyya dreams...
In her dream, Felmor stands atop a pyramid in sort of Sun God robes and a thousand naked women scream and throw little tiny pickles at him.
On your way back to the safety of Roldare's hideaway, you find that the arrows on the ground have all disappeared. Also, it appears that the west door will not open from the side. Fortunately, the east exit places you in the hallway just north of where he took shelter.
Many not-so-hussed words later, Priyya and Felmor finally doze off and Morgaard pops out the ear-plugs Alexis gave him and eventually nods off as well.
After several hours of rest, you each awaken refreshed, renewed, and ready to face the crypt's final challenges. During your breakfast, Roldare expounds to Alexis on some adjustments and modifications he was able to make to the 'sewing kit' including increasing its range and rate of fire while decreasing the recoil. Alis is able to follow perhaps about half the conversation while the rest of you just kind of smile and nod.
In the end she summarizes with a smile, "He fixed it!"
With assurances that you'll return soon with Dimira, the five of you retrace your steps thru the dungeon. The door from which you exited the room of 1000 arrows refuses to open forcing you to go the long way around. As before, shortly after opening the west door, the pillar of arrows spins-up and unleashes hell, but this time you are ready and wait patiently in the hallway behind a shield while it runs its course.
When you reach the inscription room again, Alis halts the party. "Alright, first objective is to get that gate open using the wheel down the flooded hallway. Alexis, go ahead and buff everyone your mage armor wand — hopefully this won't take more than an hour or two."
Alexis nods in agreement and starts casting.
"Priyya, I was saving that wand of cure light wounds for this. If we sustain any damage that can wait until combat is over, I'll do the patch-ups with the wand so you and I can conserve spells for whatever's waiting beyond that gate."
"Morgaard, Felmor, hold off on using the oils we found until we think we are getting close to the end of the crypt. Hopefully it's not much further than that portcullis."
"Any questions, concerns, or suggestions before we get started?"
"If we have time, just before hitting whatever is waiting, I'll try to use the Divine Favor wand on as many of you as possible. An extra spiritual nudge on the first few hits could be key. Also, if this is some sort of over-powered skeleton, blunt weapons are best and, Alis, I can use a spell to 'magic' your mace. It will only last for a couple of minutes so we have to do it just before the encounter or early in the battle."
Felmor nods, at peace with whatever will happen. "I don't see anything wrong wit' yer plans thar Priyya, 'n Cap'n. Jes need ta be cold, hwe knows we is comin fer 'im." A thought occurrs to him, and his face gets a clouded expression. "Cap'n, Priyya, what will we do if'n he holds her hostage? We gonna sacrifice 'er ta take 'im down?"
Priyya looks pained, "If the girl lives, we'll try to save her. But, as Surya-ka-Vahaak I cannot allow the source of this evil to live or escape, if it is in my power to stop it. There is more at stake here than a single girl's life. I'm sorry if that sounds heartless."
Priyya consults with Alexis and Alis about spells for a moment, trying to turn from the unpleasant subject. "I was thinking about casting a Shield of Faith around Morgaard or Felmor since they will likely be the front line. Will that work with your arcane armor? "
Felmor nods in understanding, it sounded like the old sailor's code. If a man goes overboard, every attempt would be made to save him, but not at the risk of the ship, or its crew. "No, Priyya, I understand where ye is comin' from." He lets the matter drop, sorry for doing that to her, but knowing what is why she is the Surya-ka-Vahaak. She was much stronger than him, in that regards. Aye, tis a hard path ye walk, he thinks to himself.
Perception Checks:
Stealth Checks:
With due caution, the five of you approach the room containing the mechanism that you believe opens the portcullis to Asar's lair. The stagnant water is about a foot deep here. As you enter, Alis holds up her arm in front of Morgaard and points to the floor (or rather lack thereof) in front of them.
Out in the hallway, Priyya and Felmor wince in discomfort at the electric discharges from the adjacent room cause their leg muscles to clench up involuntarily.
Carefully minding the footing, Alis begins to edge westward along the drop off, but when Priyya enters the room, she stumbles momentarily on her water-logged robe, her legs making a rushing noise in the water as she recovers her balance. As if in answer, the water around you explodes with activity. Half a dozen skeletons rise up from beneath the water, rusted swords held tight in their bony grasps.
INITIATIVE
, Alexis, Skeletons, (Felmor), Alis, (Morgaard)
MAP: Room 16 #01
"Bloody hell!" Priyya debates blasting these undead with Sarenrae's light to soften up this sizable crowd of undead versus saving it for later as was the original plan.
Alexis withholds casting a spell and looks to Priyya to see if she is going to unleash hell– er... heaven.
For the umpteenth time Priyya is glad that Sarenrae blessed her with the disfiguring birthmark on her hand which acts like Sarenrae's holy symbol... she aims her palm outward, the birthmark glowing like a star, and a wave of golden light bathes the room.
Will Saves
The golden-white burst of energy tears thru the ranks of the skeletons. All but the one on the far side of the room are instantly blown away, their swords sinking back into the murky water.
"Nice work, Priyya!"
Alexis readies in case any more skeletons come into view. She doesn't have to wait long as one hiding in the far corner of the room comes running out with a rusted scimitar raised murderously in the air.
As soon as she sees it, she punches at with her left hand...
...in the blink of an eye its ribcage is smashed to pieces as it impacts the far wall. What's left of it falls into the shallow water by the wheel and its sword skitters across the stone floor.
XP: +216 each
MAP: Room 16 #01b
Priyya claps with delight, like a schoolgirl, at the telekinetic blow. "That looked painful! Can you do that to anyone?"
"Hmmph..."
Morgaard gives an almost disappointed grunt.
"How am I supposed to get warmed up now?"
Priyya smiles at the dwarf "Want me to massage your axe-arm?"
"Maybe if I were 50 years younger, a foot taller, and this here lad didn't already have an eye for you. I'm sure I can manage."
Priyya's smile grows. She gives the dwarf a peck on the cheek, "You ol' charmer! Well, I can see you've won as many campaigns for women's hearts as battles on the field!" She laughs and gives him a hug.
"Daaaaw!" Alis beams a big smile at the unexpected camaraderie and announces, "Group hug!" She then wraps one arm around Priyya, another around Morgaard and gives them both a big squeeze.
Meanwhile Alexis looks up at Felmor with a doe-like look in her big blue-violet eyes, shrugs her shoulders and hesitantly gives him a hug.
Felmor hardly had time to reach for his weapons before the actions of Priyya and Alexis reduce the latest group of foes to dust. "Hmmm, seems ta me, this was th' welcomin' committee."
He looks on with a bemused look on his face as Priyya teases the old dwarf Morgaard. Aye, she wouldna 'ave done that couple o' weeks ago. He liked the change. He was debating whether to join the hug before Alexis took the decision out of his hands. He returns the hug, almost as reluctantly as she, but at least he remembered to let go at the appropriate time. Fighting a blushing face, he mutters, "Aye, uhh thankee, 'Lexis fer that."
At Felmor's thank you, Alexis remembers to let go. She blushes a bit, bites her lip and gives a slight curtsy.
"I feel a presence I have not felt since..."
Priyya, seemingly in a huggy mood, hugs Alexis and Felmor.
Suddenly feeling herself pinned up against Felmor by Priyya's ambush, the reserved princess blushes deeply and makes a point of daintily patting the sailor on the back. I hope that's his belaying pin...
"Right, well um... maybe we should go see what that big wheel over there does now, shall we?"
Without warning, Alis joins the fray!
"Sis sandwich!"
Felmor is suddenly keenly aware of the legendary squeezability of the Kirmoon sisters.
Priyya laughs, enjoying the feeling of being a puppy in the midst of a litter. "Where's Morgaard? He probably smoking a pipe right now."
The old dwarf shakes his head at the kids' antics and carefully walks across the underwater bridge to the far side where he begins turning the wheel.
"Damn, hands are slippery..."
Morgaard dries his hands on his shirt sleeves and tries again...
With three turns of the wheel, Morgaard turns the wheel as fair as it will go and you can hear the clanking of chains and movement of counterweights within the walls.
"There we go!"