At Cerise's signal Pythia climbs down the rope and into the chamber. She mutters some gibberish quietly, causing her shield to glow then she looks around and creeps forward quietly.
Percival creeps forward slowly, staying near the front. He doesn't seem as eager for danger as before, and moves as quietly as he can. Looks like there's a split up ahead. I suggest we go towards the sound of buzzing, so long as we can. And Cerise, maybe we should lead the way, Percival looks at Kael, in case there are more slashers.
As you move up to the intersection, you can see in the room to your left, there are several stone slabs lined up and at the far end of the room, there is a massive red statue.
To your right, there looks to be some kind of basin at the back of the room spilling out some kind of hardened orange paste. The skittering of beetles emanates strongly from this room.
Up ahead, the corridor continues to a stairway that descends.
"That is fine with me. Just remember to get out of the way if the swarm shows itself."
From her new place at the back Pythia strains her neck around, trying desperately to catch a glimpse of where we're headed from her position.
"I hear chittering," she whispers.
As they approach the sound of skittering Chaetris fingers her new device, making sure it is wound and ready to go. "Those beetles yesterday, they seemed kind of acidic, Maybe that's what's been eating away at these statues."
The group takes a careful right turn, making a cautious approach toward the skittering sounds.
The north and south walls of this large chamber taper in somewhat, and in the nook of the far eastern wall rests a wide stone basin backed by a five-foot-tall shelf. A hardened orange paste spills out over the two-foot basin lip and covers much of the shelf. Thousands of tiny beetles with bright blue carapaces skitter and tunnel through the chalky substance. A keening insect chorus fills the room. A huge organic mass completely fills the room’s southwest corner. Judging by the beetles spilling from within, it appears to be an enormous nest.
On the north side of the room is a massive beetle with two glowing orange spots on its carapace. As you approach, a mass of beetles bursts forth from both the fountain and the nest.
All the beetles surge toward you.
"Everyone back up. Do not stand in front of me. Let them come to us."
Cerise backed up and waited for the bugs to cluster up.
"Yes, Ma'am." Not wanting to be food for bugs once more, Kael backs up carefully.
"Oh, a big one! I can help with that at least! Wonderful!" Pythia exclaims, apparently not worried that the beetle is really freaking big, and that this is clearly dangerous.
Still, she listens to Cerise, sure to stay back behind her.
With a sudden realization that he can move a bit further out of the way before the swarm reaches him, he draws out the last of his javelins and tosses it at the beetle
Percival steps, spear far out ahead of him. If the large beetle tries to come close, he'll do his best to fend it off. Cerise, are you going to be able to burn the nest too?
Chaetris falls back beside Percival. "I can help with the swarms." She pulls out a small device and activates it. It quickly unfolds, wrapping around her and begins to emit a faint warming glow.
Kael's javelin sticks into the Beetle's carapace and wobbles in the air as it hastens after the group's tactical withdrawal. The swarms surge after, hungry.
Chaetris takes a tube from the device wrapped around her and blows into it. A gout of flame bursts out of the device, its glow diminishing but not disappearing.
Kael takes another wild swing at the beetle!
As the large beetle closes with Cerise, Percival stabs at it with his spear.
He eyes the statue behind them, They can't go around corners too well, he says as he pulls his spear out of the beetle and stabs it again. Then he races back the way they came.
As beetles rush the group, Chaetris and Cerise let loose concurrent bursts of fire, leaving nothing but charred husks behind. The corridor is now piled with tiny blackened beetles and one giant blackened beetle, all motionless.
The nest and basin still have plenty of beetles digging through them, but not so many as to be an immediate threat.
Well, that's unsettling, Percival points at the large nest. Chaetris, will that device last a while? Can you burn the nest? He steps down the hallway but keeps his distance, worried that something will burst forth at any moment. He looks around.
I wonder if those lumps over there are people? Percival's voice falters slightly, and suddenly he walks forward, much less cautious than he was a moment ago. His right hand fumbles at his belt for a moment, and he tears his eyes away from the lumps to look down and draw his dagger. Frantically, he jogs faster, reaching the lumps and practically falling to the ground beside them. He scrapes at the sludge gently, trying to uncover what lies below.
He's holding his breath.
The first lump reveals itself to be the skeletonized remains of a long-dead human figure in soiled red leather armor. An eight-pointed star marks the left breast of the moldy armor.
Percival looks slightly relieved that the lump has been dead a long time, and moves on to the other two, working as fast as he can.
The remaining two lumps are much the same, red armor, eight pointed star, skeletal remains and all. In the moldy pouches of one, you find three small stoppered vials made of opaque steel, and on the other you find a small pearl.
Chaetris grins at their success. "Yeah, it's got one more blast. Spring'll be good for another minute or so."
"These people were crooks. That armor identifies them as members of the Seekers."
The half-orc surveys the scene, not really knowing much to add. "Grab everything that looks like it's survived the mold and goo, then move on?"
Pythia's eyes roll up into her head as her companions blast fire at the swarms, but by the time it passes and she's returned to normal, the battles over. She smiles.
"Well, that was a vast improvement! Well done!"
---
Pythia casts detect magic and looks around the room.
"Oh!" Pythia exclaims as Percival reveals the skeletal bodies. "I've seen that star before! In one of my dreams! What do they have... Oh! Lovely!"
She take the vials and pearl from Percival. "These are magical. But it will take me a moment to figure out why. Oh! And there's another magical aura over... there! Inside the nest." The she turns to the magical objects and sets about trying to figure them out, clearly expecting someone else to get the mysterious magical object from inside the nest.
Cerise leaned against the wall for a moment, surveying the scene, glad that her magic had been strong enough this time.
She eyed the enchantment auras over Pythia's shoulder.
Working it out between the two of them, Cerise and Pythia are able to determine that the potions are all Cure Light Wounds. It seems the magic has held up in the steel vials for all these years.
Kael raises a brow at the nest. "There's magic.. in there? Hopefully something in the nest and not the insects themselves?" The half-orc looks around for something to get into the nest without getting overrun, then looks at Percival's spear. "Think you could give a good shove into the nest and see what you can drag out? Or should Chaetris blast it?"
"Healing vials!" Pythia exclaims in excitement, waving them around. "Who would like to take some?"
She hands the pearl to Cerise. "And this is meant for you."
After uncovering the third corpse, Percival relaxes and moves at a more normal pace. Well that's relieving. Percival sighs. Although I don't like that I'm relieved that it's a corpse, he says with distaste, I'm glad that it's not my fault, I suppose. We should bury them before we go. Looking around, he takes the items from the corpses and hands them to Pythia, standing up and brushing off whatever slime sticks to him. He takes one back after she identifies it.
Moving to inspect the nest, he hefts his spear. That's a good idea, Kael, I'm going to let Chaetris breath on it first, to make sure it's safe.
Chaetris' device lets loose on the nest, charring beetles and creating a thick bank of acrid black smoke that fills the entire room. The group rushes out, coughing into the hallway as Chaetris' device falls apart in the smoky room.
After a minute or two, the smoke dissipates enough to reenter and you find the nest mostly gone. In its place, there is a charred, mummified human hand wearing a shiny ring.
Deciding not to dig any farther into the orange sludge-filled room, you decide to investigate the room across the hall. With many of the beetles dead, the whole area is eerily quiet.
Eight man-sized stone slabs, about four feet off the ground, are arranged in two long rows in this room. A long-dead corpse, possibly a human, lays sprawled upon one of these slabs, his red leather armor the only hint of color in the otherwise drab room. The north and south walls taper in somewhat, and the short west wall abuts a small stone stage. The red clay statue of a powerfully built warrior wielding a cylinder-headed great club stands upon the stage, looking across the room.
Cerise gladly took the small pearl. "Why thank you, dear. I always wanted on of these."
Cerise immediately started trying to use the pearl.
"I can perform proper funerary rites for these poor souls, but they will be fine for a while yet. The dead are patient. Once we are finished with our investigation of this cairn, we can gather the bodies and lay them all to rest."
"You're very welcome, Cerise." Pythia replies happily.
She turns her detect magic onto the nest. "Oh! Pass me the ring! That's it!"
---
Pythia follows the others toward the room across the hall, magically searching for auras along the way.
Pythia doesn't see any magical auras in the room. She happily shares this information with everyone.
Cerise tucked the pearl into her spell component pouch and waited for the scouts to do a safety check of the next room.
"I should have done this sort of thing years ago. Study and practice are useful, but I already feel like I have made more strides in my art though practical application than I ever did in a library."
The dead are patient indeed, Percival hands Pythia the ring, glancing once more at the skeletons before leaving.
Crossing the hall, he stands next to Kael, glad that the party has decided to wait for them to go first. He lowers his voice to a bare whisper, [smaller]As patient as the dead are, I can't help but be worried that one is waiting just for us. I'm inclined to say we rush in all at once with our weapons at it's throat, and see what happens.
Pythia smiles. "As you wish Percival!" She stops concentrating on her detect magic spell and draws her morningstar.
Chaetris gathers up the remains of her device as Percival retrieves the ring. "Healing is useful for whoever has it." I'm glad I had some, myself, when I needed it. Returning to the hall, Chaetris peers into the next room. "Honestly, I think I'm more worried about that statue than the ex-Seeker laying on that slab." She readies her bow and moves behind the others.
"Oh, I'm not worried about any of it." Pythia remarks happily. "Even if some of its dangerous, we'll be able to handle it. I can feel it! And besides... It's amazing down here!"
As you rush into the room, weapons ready, you immediately feel sluggish and tired. Despite the early hour, you could definitely go for a nap.
The skeleton and the statue both remain motionless, as well as a large beetle on the floor behind the slab closest to the statue. It's either sleeping, or dead.
There is no magic in the room.
Chaetris steps over to the Seeker's corpse and pokes it with the tip of the nocked arrow. If it stays still she will examine the body. "Sometimes the dead stay dead. I tend to think this is a good thing."
Kael slumps down a bit at the enervating feel of the room. He immediately moves back out of the room to see if he feels any different "That's... not normal. But not magic, right?" Let's take a stab at everything here to make sure it's not just asleep, then search the room, then clear out. I don't want to end up falling asleep here..."