"I recall your company from the lottery. It seems your numbers have dwindled." His head turns at this toward Surubi, and, after catching her subtle gesture, he turns back to the two newcomers. "You may approach." His voice still rumbles down the alleyways as he abruptly turns, not waiting for a response, and makes for the stairs. His gait is staggered slightly, as the arrow wound in his thigh begins to make itself more known, but he still carries himself with an air of command.
As he arrives by Surubi to await the pair's final approach, he asks mutedly, "These Prospectors, what do you know of them, Surubi?"
"We may approach." Yodi says sardonically. He tugs the straps of his litter higher up his shoulder. "I trust their guarded caution more than I would a warm welcome. Shall we?" He sweeps his left arm forward, palm upward. Then he begins the march forward.
As the 'centaur' and man approach, it becomes clear that the man's chest wasn't large, only his breast plate was. The armor hangs on him awkwardly. A veil covers the lower half of his face. Between it and his hood, the skin surrounding his left eye is pepper with white dandruff-like flakes. There is a small oozing wound or sore between his right eye and nostrils. The litter he drags behind him holds a variety of mundane grave opening tools.
The lone enemy Brennan addresses removes his hands from shading his eyes, nods slowly as requested, before rolling back over to his side to keep the arrow wound off the ground. His expression darkens in undisguised aggravation, but his actions are compliant.
Surubi lowers her bow, but keeps the arrow nocked, just in case. "This one knows nothing more than you would. They are one of many groups of adventurers here to profit from exploring the Necropolis. Though it is certain that several groups have already disintegrated due to infighting, or death, or even treachery, the specifics of the Grim Prospectors troubles are not well known." Surubi says in low tones as the figures approach.
Ciyradyl begins moving forward, staying to the left of Yodi. She speaks softly so that only Yodi can hear."It's also better than them attacking us. Hopefully we can just move on through with little interruption."
As Ciyradyl moves closer, it is apparent that her headband is made of twigs, vines, and small leaves. Her gaze is constantly moving between the strangers, looking for a sign of suddenly hostility.
Ciyradyl calls out to the strangers, mainly to the one that seems to be in charge of their group,"What happened here? Were you all attacked by thieves?"
Omen glances over his shoulder at Brennan and the remaining cretin his violent cohort was busy interrogating. Turning back to the approaching pair, he nods, "A fair summation. There were many displeased with the Pharasmin's lottery and the results, as favorable as they were for our party. Some, it seems, were both angry and foolish enough to try and wrest our rightful claim by trickery and by force."
His gaze drifts down to the body lying still by Surubi. "And, they succeeded in some small measure, it seems. Our numbers too have dwindled."
He turns his masked face back up to the pair as they come within arms length, and he nods respectfully. "I am Omenhotep, though those here simply call me Omen. I am told it is not uncommon for groups such as ours to adjust membership within the Necropolis, dangerous as the grounds here are. For the pair of you to have survived while the remainder of your Prospectors did not speaks much of your resourcefulness and capabilities."
His face tilts again back down to the form of Chephren upon the ground. "Chephren was a man who showed great respect, and earned it in return. We are admittedly lesser without him." Looking back to the centaur and her wasting companion, he nods sternly. "If you would be agreeable and willing to help, leave the title of Prospectors behind and join instead with us." His tone shifts slightly at this, still hopeful and earnest but with an air of seriousness, as he holds up one hand in warning, "I do not sense duplicity within either of you, but if I am wrong and you chose to betray us, know that we will not be as kind to you as we were to these dogs littered about in the dirt and dust. Accompany us honorably, however, and the glory and spoils will be yours to share."
Ciyradyl glances at the remains of Omens fallen friend. She understands the pain of losing someone in such a tragic way.
"I am Ciyradyl, but you all may call me Ciyra. This is my friend Yodi", she motions towards her companion, "It would be foolish to refuse your offer. There are far too many threats within the Necropolis to attempt to make it on our own. I will accept as long as Yodi agrees. We have been on this journey together for some time and I will not part ways with him." .
Ciyradyl looks at Yodi to see what his decision will be. She has no doubt that he will agree to team up with these strangers. If they try to survive on their own it could be a death sentence. They could have been the ones that ran into these thugs if they would have been here sooner. She felt a shiver run through her with the thought of Yodi and her struggling to survive and making it out of this place.
Yodi looks at Ciyradyl and nods before speaking softly, "We could use allies and who knows if we would find better."
[
The androgynous one says "This one thinks we should take these bodies and this one" a finger points to the conscious one with an arrow in him "to the Pharasmans to be dealt with. With some haste, we could arrive at the destination while it is still light out. That would also show the Pharasmans our dedication to the rules of respecting the necropolis. On the way, you--you cur--can tell us about why you ambushed us and if you're working with anyone else."
"I fear we would lose too much daylight hauling more than a half dozen bodies back to the Pharasmins, Surubi. Question this one, then leave him to tend to his fallen companions. Such is the weight of folly. Let him bear it."
Yodi says quietly, "We've got some new partners, but we'd better watch each other's backs a while longer. I'll see if I can do anything for their friend Chephren."
Yodi plunges forward against the traces of his litter. As he approaches he announces, "I know a little about healing. Maybe I can help your friend, if he's not truly gone."
Up close, Yodi is an unpleasant sight, even veiled. In addition to his flawed skin, he exudes an unhealthy aura, a vague feeling of sickness and mortality.
"If you think there is something you can do for the dead, then go ahead. but I think it would be wasted."
"It can't hurt to look. If he has a spark of life left, I might be able to fan it to a flame."
The gaunt man drops the traces of his litter and lays the spear on top of it. He steps up and kneels beside Chephren's body. His hands touch the fallen at wrist and neck. He lays his ear over the dead man's mouth. Then he grasps Chephren's head in both hands and works open his jaw, then his eyelids.
"Unfortunately, I think you're right. He is beyond my care."
"You're seriously going to just invite a pair of strangers to join us, after this? Are you out of your sand-beaten minds? I mean, sure, we got lucky with Chephren, and he certainly all that and more, but what abou this one, Surubi?" Brennan jerked his thumb at Omenhotep. "Are you sure we're better off with him around than we were before? And now you want to add more to the mix?"
"Look, I know the three of us aren't likely to survive another tomb like the last one. Not without someone with healing abilities like Cheph's. And so, grudgingly, I'll go along with it. Just know that a hearty I told you so is coming, when these two turn on us."
"Fine! One bigger happy family. Let's strip the dead of their valuables and get the interrogation started before more of them show up. Or beat us to the tomb everyone seems to want so badly."
He moved over to the downed man and held his dagger menacingly in front of the man's left eye.
"We don't have a lot of time, neighbor, and I'm not one for bluffing. I can't pull it off, you see. I'm terrible at it. So I'm just going to tell you what I am going to do to you if I don't think you're telling me the truth. I'm going to cut chunks of you off and leave you here to fend for yourself. I think I saw a red ant mound back there in that building. If they find you here, bleeding and unable to move, they'll likely send the whole colony out for some fresh meat. So here's what we are going to do. You're going to tell us everything you know about the ambush attempt, who set it up, and why. You're going to be specific, and you aren't going to waste my time with blubbering or pleas for mercy. It's getting late in the morning, and I want to be robbing our next tomb...excuse me, performing our next archaeological excursion within the hour. If I'm not happy with the words coming out of your mouth, or with the speed at which you talk, I'm going to cut the tendons in your ankles and wrists, and then lead the ants this way. maybe cut a few slices out of your belly to give them some starting point."
"We clear? Then talk!"
Yodi's eyes swivel from Brennan to Surubi to Omenhotep.
"Well met, then."
Yodi stands and lurches backward a step when his armor shifts from front to back. He trudges back to Ciyradyl and observes, "They sound like hardened survivors. "
The man raises his hands as best he can in warding, flinching for the pain on his right side, "Okay! Okay! This one gets it, this one will talk. We were hired by some lady to ambush anyone approaching some old temple down the way, and stop anyone from entering the site. This one knows not why, nor does this one care."
Ciyradyl keeps her eyes focused towards the interrogation. "As are we. Do not forget what we have survived Yodi." She moves slightly ahead of Yodi.
She raises her voice towards the man on the ground, "What does this woman look like?"
The dirty street thug looks at the newcomer, a little uncertain, looking back at Brennan for confirmation. He sheepishly complies, "She was attractive woman, about average height, and very full of herself. She had on a silly outfit, and a ridiculous purple hat, with an overlarge feather hanging from it."
"Does she have a name?"
"It's that b*%#$, Velriana, and her Scorched Hand. Not that we couldn't have guessed based on their insistence on getting the ruin that we were given. There's something there that they want badly. badly enough to kill us all for. And that means I want it. If for no other reason that to show it to Velriana and tell her about Chephren's death before I plant a pair of daggers in her eyes and send her to Pharasma's clutching hand."
"That settles it. Let's move. The Taldan b&*!~ thought to buy us, then kill us. I suggest we don't let her get ahead of us."
Ciyradyl looks at the strangers with an empathetic expression, "What do you all want to do with your friend? Surely you do not want to just leave him like this."
She gives a small sigh before continuing, "Are we going to do anything with the other bodies? Search them? Or just leave that worry to their only survivor?"
Surubi looks pained at the suggestion of leaving Chephren's body, but nods at Brennan. "Though guilt fills this one at the thought of leaving our former companion, Brennan is right--we must hurry or Velriana will likely be looting the ruin. We will come back by and bring him out with us as we leave. You," clearly still angry, Surubi addresses the injured thug, "may go with your life, and consider yourself lucky to have it. If you want to spend your energy dragging your fellows, you may, but do not desecrate Mister Chephren any further. And as I promised, I will aid you so that you do not die."
Yodi says quietly to Ciyradyl, "Their friend, their prisoner, their spoils. We should follow their lead in this."
[dice= Know local, untrained to recognize "Velriana"] 1d20 + 1 [/dice]
The man lingers only briefly enough for Surubi to remove her arrow before he makes his escape while the getting is still good. He doesn't bother to stop and check on any one of his companions, just disappearing into the sand-blown streets.
Yodi waits to see what transpires.
Ciyradyl chuckles to Yodi in a slight whisper, "Well he sure got outta here quickly."
She then looks to the others for their next move. "Are we heading out or...?" Her voice trails off, unknowing how to handle their situation with the strangers' dead friend.
"Apparently the words 'strip them of their valuables' and 'let's get going' weren't clear enough. So why don't we strip them of their valuables and get going?"
Brennan moved to Chephren's side and grabbed the man under the armpits. "Suru, help me here and grab his ankles. I don't care about the rest of this lot, but Cheph was a friend. We can at least treat his body with some respect. But we really do not have a lot of time to spend here."
Brennan carried Chephren to a niche where the body would be out of the main road and most of the sun. Then, he proceeded to strip the arms and armor from Chephren's body, leaving only the holy symbol and text of Anubis, and the heavy items behind. Brennan placed the holy symbol prevalently on Cheph's chest, and folded the man's hands over the holy text before he left.
He bundled the shield and armor together and tied them onto the pack before going through the ambushers' clothing and pouches. Here he took only items that had immediate value, like coins, gems, and such. He also asked the others to look them over for magical items, though he didn't expect to find any. Once that was done, a task of only a few minutes, he started off towards where the Temple of the Erudite Eye had been located.
Yodi obliges by detecting magic on the various corpses while he helps search them. He scrupulously hands everything he finds over to the Architects and reports any magic he finds.
Surubi quickly assists Brennan with moving Chephren's body, then gathers up the mundane items into a pile. "Does anyone want any of this? If not, this one will put it into the sack with the rest of the extra things."
Once finished packing up the items, Surubi follows Brennan toward the Temple.
"Not me. Those are your spoils." Yodi replies.
When the Architects depart, he struggles back into his litter and looks at Ciyradyl. "Adventure awaits."
He trudges in the wake of the Architects.
Gathering the arrows from the unconscious thugs left behind, Surubi notices that she managed to get a full quiver's worth. However, when she gets to the task of grabbing everything else, she appears to be woefully bogged down with the inclusion of Chephren's stuff as well as whatever she chose to collect from the attackers.
Ciyradyl walks alongside Yodi, "I just love adventures."
She calls up to Surubi, "I can carry some of that for you, unless you are as stubborn as Yodi. He never lets me carry anything for him." She nudges Yodi with her elbow to teasing him and lets out a soft laugh.
Surubi, huffing with the exertion, replies "Thank you, Mistress Ciyradyl. That would be most appreciated." Surubi separates one of the sacks out and hands it over to Ciyradyl.
Despite Brennan's eagerness to get a move on, Surubi spends some time prying the padded armor off of each of the fallen men, and collecting up all their weapons. Returning to Chephren, she also begins to collect all the different components of his equipment beyond what Brennan had specifically chosen to leave behind.
At first, the slight woman was near buried with armloads of weighty gear. After Ciyradyl's offer, Surubi handed a hefty chunk off to her, but it still left her bogged down to the point that she could barely walk a few short steps at a time. With a moment to try and readjust, she donned Chephren's backpack of masterwork quality, and the effective balance of weight and load allowed her to carry the rest slightly smoother. It's almost enough to make someone wonder why she never picked one up for herself before.
Even with the readjustment, she is still piled up with all the gear, but now she has slightly more mobility, and enough to at least stop Brennan's aggravated huffing and puffing of both impatience and irritation.
Eventually, the group manages to find themselves at the location marked on their map. Although the Sanctum’s central doorway is symmetrical, the rest of the structure does not conform to traditional architecture, with wings and extensions on both sides that, except for the uniformity of the stonework, appear to have been haphazard additions. A large dome over the apse tops the roof at the north end of the temple. The Sanctum is windowless, and the temple’s exterior walls are carved with likenesses of celestial figures.
No doors block the grand entrance to this building—a wide flight of steps leads directly up into the temple’s interior. Two humanoid statues flank the stairs, wearing black-and-white masks and holding quarterstaves. Just visible inside the entry from the sunlight streaming in through the opening, two rows of columns lead toward an archway in the north wall.
Omen regards the structure silently for a few moments before remarking, "This is curious construction, not what I expected from the sanctum.Though, regardless of the additions here, the building seems to have aged remarkably well." He glances to the other buildings in the near by area, noting the weathering and wear they all display which the Sanctum lacks.
"Perhaps what we see here are all recent additions and the true Sanctum, the original construction, lies somewhere within." He turns his gaze to his gathered companions and regards each in turn for a moment or two, waiting to hear any thoughts or observations they themselves might have.
"Yes, this place looks odd, but it's in remarkably good condition. Especially when compared to that last place we were at. Maybe a god sign that the stuff inside is in good condition too. Let me and Suri go first and scout for traps before you guys come up behind."
Brennan moved cautiously up the stairs towards the entrance, scanning every footfall for signs of traps. He also watched the statues, as the constructs in the Pentharu place put him on edge. He was pretty sure one of them twitched...didn't it?
Perception:
Knowledge religion:
"The building looks absolutely amazing! Look at how well it has aged. It's truly remarkable. The statues of Nethys are just breathtaking!" Ciyradyl was more interested in the building and statues than the possibility of traps. Her eyes were darting all across the building and statues. She wanted to memorize every detail vividly.
The large front hall of the building is covered in a deep layer of sand that has blown in from the lack of doors to block the entryway. The sunlight shining in is enough to show the room, though still masking it in shadow, and the light from Omen's encircling stone doesn't reach quite far enough in to make it any brighter. Laying among the small dunes are the skeletal remains of a fair number of four-legged animals of some sort.
As with the previous sites, Surubi looks around inside a bit, then once out of the sun sets down several sacks. This time, however, even those not carrying the load feel a little more at ease--looking at the figure hauling as much as it could carry was drawing everyone's attention and pity.
Yodi staggers forward to line up his travois beside Surubi's sacks, and slips out of the traces. He looks Surubi in the eyes. If there is pity in his expression, it is not for her. He leans on his spear.
"We should have an idea of what we all can do if there's trouble. Looks like you two are scouts and muscle. I'll guess Omenhotep is a spell caster. Ciyradyl is pretty good in a fight, and she can cast a few spells. I'm not much good in a straight up fight anymore, but I can help you and if anyone gets hurt, I might be able to heal your wounds."
"I'm out of torches. So I'll stick with Omenhotep. That way I'll be able to see, and watch his back."
"Sound good?"
Ciyradyl walks over to the equipment and sets some of hers down as well.
"Sounds good to me! I can follow behind Surubi and Brennan." Ciyradyl is clearly still enchanted by the beauty of the structure. "Let's go and see what awaits us in this place. Hopefully treasure and not death," she states in a somewhat cheerful manner.
As Brennan stands in the doorway, Surubi moves just inside to set down some of the increased load she's been carrying. As she hauls one of the large sacks off her shoulder, her eyes adapt to the change in light well enough for her to see that they are in fact not just animal skeletons, but animated animal skeletons. The things all rise from the floor and fix their gaze in her direction.
Six distinct skeletons rise from the piles of sand, not buried, but instead looking fairly well put together for skeletal remains. The forms look like that of maybe an average-sized dog of some sort. Maybe a hyena, jackal, or other more locally representative species. As the pull themselves up from the floor, they all rush toward Surubi, teeth naturally bared for lack of flesh for them to be concealed behind.
Surubi catches the movement of the skeletons just as she sets the first bag down inside the monument; as the undead rush at her she flings her other sack to the floor and takes a defensive posture. "Enemies! Beware!" she shouts.
As Surubi is suddenly beset upon by the mass of bony jaws, she quickly tries to unload more of her haul. Despite her attempt, the weight of all the gear is still far too much for her to truly be her most effective in battle. Nonetheless, she takes on an entirely defensive posture, expecting the worst.
Omen gestures toward the scrabbling collections of bone as they rattle and hiss and swarm Surubi. "These bleached bones will not stop us!" Calling to the distant void, Omen sends a pair of shimmering shards lancing from his outstretched palm into the press of bone and flesh.
HP: 8/16
AC: 12 (11 T / 11 FF)
CMD: 10
F/R/W: +3/+2/+5 (+2 vs death effects)
Resist 7: acid, cold, fire, electricity
Omens used (swift demoralize): 0/1
Black Motes used: 3/8
Shield charges remaining: 14
Spell Slots Used
Level 1: 4/7
Ongoing Effects
Omen calmly declares his intentions to rid the group of the obstacle of the skeletal hounds, and follows up his statement with a blast of his typical cold, dark energy. The first missle blasts the creature, but it isn't enough to cease its movement. Only after the second missle shatters what remains does the thing crumble to the ground in pieces.
Ciyradyl throws her arms downwards, dropping the armor and other gear that she had been carrying like firewood. The gear made a solid thud sound as it met the ground, but it was drowned out by Omen's words. She steps to the right of Surubi, flexes her fingers, and strikes the skeleton in front of her with her right claw. She can feel the bone as her claw scrape against it. As she follows through with her left hand, she has a slight moment of hesitation due to the first blow not hurting the skeleton.
"What the..."
Ciyradyl's unceremonious dropping of the stuff Surubi gave her causes it to clatter awkwardly down a few stairs. Disregarding the stuff, she steps into the breach, her arms up somewhat protectively, before lashing out at the undead animal before her. Her claw rakes ineffectively across the thin bony frame of the creature, and it's her lack of effect that disrupts her follow-on swing to sail harmlessly over the thing.