Tobar lands three good hits. Bolstered by Gideon’s spell, Terana strikes twice, and the draugr falls! The remaining one tries to punch her again but she parries the blow.
Feeling much better now one of the draugr has fallen Terana whirls on the other undead.
With only one foe left to fell, Gideon opts to draw his rapier and move into melee range with the second draugr, though he does so cautiously and more to provide Terana the same benefit of a flanking maneuver she was on the bad sideodd moments ago.
Terana slices the draugr twice while Tobar manages one good hit with a crossbow bolt. Gideon moves to flank but doesn't get through the draugr's armor. The undead continues to swing ineffectually on Terana.
Now that the tide is turning in their favor Terana swings with renewed vigor.
Arianda turns to the creature and points a finger at it from behind Terana. A loud burst of thunder erupts near it's head as she tries to rattle the creature further.
Knowing his own attacks will likely be ineffective in punching through the undead's armor and natural resistance, Gideon opts to go full defense, doing only enough to keep the draugr distracted from Terana.
Tobar keeps up his regular fussilade of fire, hoping that something will get through and stick.
Tobar and Terana each score two hits, and Arianda’s storm burst is enough to finally take the draugr down!
Looking around the shrine in the aftermath of the fight, you notice scratches and slashes in the walls, as well as old bloodstains, that imply a battle took place here some time ago. You also notice small carvings of seagulls have been added to the corners of the room.
The glowing chunk of yellow crystal that floats over the altar gives off an aura of malevolence. Behind it, stairs lead down into darkness.
"Definitely a shrine to Ylimancha...the seagull is the empyreal lord's symbol." he says aloud.
"I don't like the vibe those crystals are giving off...I wonder if it's possible to destroy them?" he muses aloud.
"I can try hitting it?" Terana offers, having switched back to her glaive. She is carrying both draugr axes in her scabbard and swinging the glaive with relish.
"Worth a shot... use one of those draugr axes, though. Don't wanna risk damaging your glaive in any way."
The crystal shatters as Terana strikes it, erupting into a searing fireball that engulfs the paladin!
Terana nods and produces one of the new axes. She waves the rest of the group back, takes a deep breath and swings, trying to hold her breath as she does so - just in case!
Holding her breath doesn't help much but Gideon's magic makes the difference as Terana manages to dodge the worst of the fire.
"Ow, ow, ow!" She yells, looking for the nearest water. "I. Hate. Fire!"
Gideon yelps and winced was the fire washes over Terana and looks relieved when she seems mostly unharmed. "Well...I suppose we should save those for the exit. We could probably use an arrow or bolt to detonate them from a safe distance, but let's finish seeing what's here before we cleanse this foul taint."
Arianda shakes her head at the needless violence. But ultimately she was glad to see an evil artifact destroyed. She tapped Terrana a couple times with a wand and asked ”May we proceed now?”
The stairs lead down into an underground chamber. A few inches of dank, briny water cover the floor in the western side of the room. Pillars carved to look like twining sea serpents stretch to the ceiling, their eyes glittering with blue gems. In the center of the room stands a massive stone slab in the form of a gaping serpent’s mouth. The slab in the center of the room is stained with dried blood and surrounded with the moldering remains of seagulls. The chamber smells like damp, decaying flesh.
Beyond this chamber, a tunnel slopes gently down.
Terana, who has learned her lesson by now, lets Gideon and Tobar go first to ensure that the room is not trapped. She keeps her weapons ready though, because someone has clearly made an organised attempt to defile this place.
Gideon frowns as he slowly enters the chamber, looking anxiously around him. " well, doesn't this place just look cheerful?" he asks.
Simon doesn't notice anything unusual as he searches the chamber.
"I don't notice anything unusual in here. Should be safe." he calls back to the others. Still, he advances toward the sloping tunnel cautiously and warily, the stench in the air setting him on edge.
Beyond the sacrificial chamber, a tunnel slopes gently down. It opens into a natural underground cavern filled with the strong smell of brine and fish. Fish skeletons, some with clumps of rotting flesh still attached, lie in heaps along the shore of a still pond.
The water stirs as a creature emerges. This great serpent's mulitcolored wings are dull and its scales are pitted and bear numerous scars. One of its eyes is missing, with old scar tissue sealing the socket. It moves as if in great agony as it prepares to attack!
"You poor creature." Terana whispers, meeting the beasts ruined gaze head on.
”Oh...you poor, poor magnificent creature...” Arianda echoes as she prepares to work some magic to protect the group...
Gideon's eyes widen as he lays eyes on the dull scales and once-bright wings, his mind knowing the creature before he meets its eyes.
Shaking off the effects of its gaze, which only further confirms its identity, Gideon immediately casts a spell of quickening on the group.
"It's been driven mad! Ware its spells and teeth!"
Tobar isn't sure what to do as people seem to have mixed reactions, but once Gideon shouts out that the critter is crazed, he stops hesitating, raises his crossbow and starts his usual fusillade.
Arianda, hearing Gideon’s warning, looks sadly at the thing before warding Terana with tree-like coating over her skin.
Arianda uses her magic to toughen Terana's skin while Gideon opens fire on the couatl. He scores two critical hits, his bolts sinking deep into the creature's body.
The creature groans and casts a spell, blanketing the group with greasy, unholy energy. Its wounds slowly begin to heal...
Terana shakes off much of the magic and closes with the creature.
"I am sorry." She says, calling on Shelyn to help her end the creatures pain.
Arianda clenches her teeth as the creature works dark magic on the group. She counters her own injury with a small bit of healing.
Tobar delicately holds his crossbow to one side, leans over, and barfs.
Gideon, too, is unable to handle the overwhelming sensation of black sickness that washes over him, doubling over and retching in the fetid water at his feet.
Even as wobbly on his feet as he is, though, he still manages to get a bow shot off against the creature.
Gideon misses with his bow, but Tobar scores two hits, and Terana lands a powerful smite! The couatl reaches out to touch Terana with its tail, inflicting her with the same agony that it feels!
Terana winces but resists the pain before taking a step back to bring her glaive to bear.
Refusing to give up, and now over the sick feeling, Gideon fires two more shots at the beast.
Tobar snarls a bit, angry that this thing is such a bother, as he redoubles his fire efforts.
Terana slashes the corrupted couatl twice, Gideon shoots it with two arrows, and Tobar shoots it with two more crossbow bolts. The creature has taken a large amount of punishment, but used to a life in constant pain, it refuses to fall!
Arianda sends a bolt of lightning at the poor creature, hoping it is enough to end its suffering.
The couatl dodges the worst of the lightning, resisting the remaining electrical damage. It swims back a few feet away from Terana and casts a spell, firing two rays of flame at her!
Being blasted with not one, but two fire jets, does away with a lot of Terana's sympathy for the couatl!
Terana's glaive tears deep rents in the couatl's body. It splashes back into the water, lying still, its blood staining the murky waters red!
At the bottom of the pond here lie three large treasure chests, each bound with rusted iron bands and locked with superior quality locks. Due to their time in the salt water, though, the locks have almost rusted away, making them relatively easy to destroy. The contents are as follows:
Chest 1: A necklace of silver chains encrusted with diamonds that cascade like a waterfall (worth 1,500 gp); 2,000 gold pieces, many of which are coins from lost civilizations; a platinum crown with two swept-back emerald wings on each side (worth 1,250 gp); a silver ring set with a leaping shark formed from dozens of tiny black star sapphires with a diamond fin (worth 800 gp); and a golden brooch shaped like a flower with a red diamond set at its center (worth 1,200 gp).
Chest 2: A golden ewer inscribed with swirling clouds (worth 500 gp); a matching golden basin (worth 500 gp); a set of six crystal goblets with platinum lips (worth 100 gp each); scraps of silk (the remains of a heavy silk rug, worn away by salt and time); a decorative buckler made of gold and set with a dragon hammered from rhodium (worth 1,600 gp); and a delicate silver bracelet with four nonagonal platinum charms (a bracelet of friends).
Chest 3: A dull, ordinary-looking shortsword (a sword of subtlety) and a shining heavy mace with a head carved to look like a ram’s (a lesser mace of smiting).
Tobar advances and stands over the body of the fallen coatl. Given what his friends said in the heat of battle, he feels a pang of regret for having to fight such a magnificent creature, tinged with the pragmatic realization that it was probably trapped in torment for eons. Still, he feels ambivalent about his part in this.
Terana retrieves the treasures from the pool with ease, exclaiming in delight over much of the jewellery. She doesn't bother with the crown or the ring but does try on the necklace, which covers the horrific scar across her throat and looks quite impressive against the blue of her armor.
Once the treasure has all been retrieved and identified she looks to Arianda. "Could you spare some hits from your wand? That last fire beam really smarts."
While Terana is diving for the treasures at the bottom of the pool, Gideon goes to the body of the coatl and lays his hand on the beast's scales, runs his fingers through the dun feathers, shaking his head sadly.
Moving to its head, he notes that its one good eye is still open, staring lifelessly, so he works to close the eye's lid. Once done, he says a silent prayer for it.
"Rest in peace, goodly creature. Your long suffering is ended." he says quietly.
Once you have divvied up the treasure and recovered from the recent battles, you make your way to Wavewalker's tomb. The boruta's directions lead you to the mountain at the center of the island. A rectangular frame of solid stone blocks has been built into the base of the peak. Each stone bears an inscription in graceful, flowing letters, but streaks of dried blood obscure much of the writing. A stone door fitted within the frame blocks entry to the tomb beyond. A symbol, three large ovals with tapered bases, like reversed raindrops, has been painted on the door in dried blood. Three ragged tents lean against the cliffside near a faintly smoking campfire.
A trio of men stand watch here. They are ragged and unkempt, with tangled hair and wild eyes. Jagged scars cover the sailors’ bodies and bright red runic symbols stain their skin. The moment they spot you, they cry out and draw their rapiers!