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Cueta claps Prospero on the back, her shimmering form returning to normal. "Aye, Eh'm good, mate. Most of it went off mio armor. Something out there likes mio, yeah?"
---------------------------
Shrugging, Cueta nudges the bottom half of the sniper's corpse with her boot. "Was in a freeze for 75 years, yeah? Couldn't imagine going back in. These nutters, though..."
"Looks like the windshield of a desert loop-bike racer around here."
"Eww bleh!" Leila agrees that they probably doesn't have to go anywhere closer to confirm that the sniper is indeed dead. Nope! The sooner they could pick up the mule and Ralkawi the better!
It takes about twenty minutes to round up the robomule which wasn't very far away and Ralkawi. She is red faced with embarassment and expresses, quite colourfully, the desire that the Devourer come and disintegrate every last identical looking tree in Ukulum.
Astrianna is cleaning off a blood-covered credstick with some of the friendlier-looking leaves while Leila leads them through the jungle to find the robomule and Ralkawi. After a few minutes of furious scrubbing she can finally check the balance with a few clicks. "Wow, 1000 credits?"
There was a short pause, then her face screws up in confusion. "WHo carries 1000 credits into the jungle? It's not like the trees dispense Quick-E Noodles if you give them a credit."
Finding Rawlkawi fills Astrianna with about as much joy as seeing another tree, and immediately encourages the group to return to the statue to briefly rest before pushing on.
"Maybe it's stolen? Or, uh, if they didn't expect to come back all they got for selling all their stuff." Leila muses, mostly to keep her mind off how bothersome it felt to walk.
---
The halfling was relieved that they could find both Ralkawi and the mule. She didn't really want to lose either - not when she had dragged them along so far! And, also, they were kinda her companions now. Gee it's going to be hard to give the mule back ...
"Oh you shouldn't call for the Devourer all the time! Instead let's try ..." Leila spends the trip back to the statue listing all the curses she know or happened to invent on the spot. It was important to rehabilitate the poor ex-cultist and filling their vocabulary with less devourer-y curses could only help!
Cueta enjoys Leila's game, smiling as she sits against a tree and half-focuses on her benefactor, feeling its tingling - and quickly diminishing - presence close her wounds.
"The 9 has a long a varied language for curses. Poppycockhole. Sand s@~$s. Mugwuphumper. Son of a sand slug. Big Faundy's fondy fannie. Eh like the classics based around the word 'pukk' mioself, though."
I want the Devourer to destroy just the trees on this... Mugwuphumping continent, not the whole universe so... I'm getting better Ralkawi grumbles as they sit under a tree facing the statue and have lunch. Hey. she continues hesitantly Thanks for coming to find me. It's scary being alone.
***
The group sets off after lunch feeling refreshed and even invigorated by overcoming note one, but two formidable foes in the Skyfisher and the Sniper.
Soon enough they realize that, while in terms of distance the temple is not far, the trek is made slower than expected due to their trail growing steeper.
The jungle start to thin as the ground rises as the day passes, giving way to a stretch of verdant, rolling foothills crisscrossed by meandering creeks. The source of these waters in in the Singing Range, the range of mountains they have been travelling towards for more than a week. They are now in the foothills of those peaks.
The group rests, and on the eight day resume the journey. Soon enough they reach the ruins that Halkueem Zan called "The Forsaken City". Built in tiers right into the mountainside are hundreds of pyramids, ranging from half a metron and five metrons in height. The ones higher are more impressive than the ones lower but all of them have been worn down by the passage of time. It looks like an ascending graveyard of pyramids.
It would take decades of work to properly excavate such a rich ancient site. A quick survey seems to indicate that a large community of elves worked, lived, and worshiped here.
Even more impressive, however, is the massive structure perched about a hundred metrons above the village of pyramids.
The paths of the village themselves seem to guide the travellers to a narrow pathway leading up. Many pilgrims must have trod this ascending trail to the temple above and now it is the group's turn to do the same. It is early in the afternoon by the time they begin to do so.
"Yes, yes you are!" Leila grins at Ralkawi as she notes the new vocabulary. She'd have to put Cueta's new words to good use herself some time. "And don't worry, we won't leave you. That would be mean!"
---
Leila throws back her head and hat so she can properly look at it all. She lets out a whistle as she tries to take it all in. "Pyramid people indeed! Wow. It's going to suck to climb that high ..."
Astrianna whistles as she walks, slowly turning her head this way and that- obviously capturing oodles of 32k resolution footage of this pristine, previously unseen civilization that is going to make her famous! "I guess Zan was only partially crazy." She comments, briefly interrupting her whistling. "There were certainly pyramid peoples! Leila, do you think they wore those flashing neon pyramid hats like in the trids, though? I'm going to have to say that was an exageration, I haven't seen a single hat rack in any of these houses!"
As they ascend, Astrianna turns her Lifecorder system on and off in 5 minutes intervals every hour to conserve storage space. She's already filled up over half of her 1 zetabyte arcano-electric Hard Drive of Holding, and they haven't even reached the temple or started on their way back!
The group begins their ascent, making their way towards the temple of elegantly sculpted stone. Unlike the pyramids it has a single domed tower rising from its center. Expanses of the structure's weathered exterior bear scores of tall, glass-paned windows that cause the facade to shimmer in the sunlight.
The path up the mountain itself is marked routinely with carved stone pillars. These look like they had, once, messages carved into them but they have long since worn away, whatever wisdom they held, lost. Zan called these steep steps the "Stairs to Eternity".
Their Lungs start to burn a little from the strenuous exertion as well as the altitude. The elves who built the place were kind enough to carve the path into the mountain rather than on the side so at least there's no danger of falling off the heights.
The sky above is still terrifying dizzying for the members of the group used to artificial environments but the narrow passage up at least limits the field of view. It's a metron wide and the group trudges upwards single file.
The weather is also cool and pleasant as they get farther away from the muggy jungle below. The wind blows clean and fresh and whistles as it speeds down the narrow steps.
Finally they are right under the temple itself and the long ascent seems to be at an end. Right before they round what must be one of the final bends before they get to the temple itself Astrianna and Cueta hear a bestial sound. It sounds like something is... eating something.
Cueta, taking point, throws her arm up behind her - the universal sign for stop!
As she throws her arm back her hand touches Astri, and Cueta's thoughts flood into the celebrity. Well, not thoughts exactly - more like images and emotional sensations. Roughly, they say:
Looking to Astrianna, Cueta shrugs, and then tries the same thing on the others, reaching out and poking each of her companions with a finger, while giving them a shushing signal with her other hand.
Cueta advances to see a gruesome site. About 6 metrons away is what looks like a giant eel nose deep in the corpse of a Lashunta. So intent is the beast on its meal that it completely fails to notice Cueta.
Astrianna is busy deciding if she wants to be in a poor mood because of the strenuous climb, or a good mood because it's cool and they're under an ancient temple no one believe existed!
Her musing are interrupted by some strange noises picked up by her sensitive elven ears. She's about to say something, but Cueta throws out an arm and nearly knocks her left breast off the side of the mountain. "Ouch! Watch the goods!" Astrianna hisses while clutching her injured mammary.
A strange look passes over the trid star's face while Cueta sends images into her brain; eyebrows furrow and lips flattened in a skeptical facade, she assumes it's normal telepathy and thinks back at Cueta.What is with all this weird s!~& you keep doing? Did you get exposed to a bunch of cosmic rays in cyro and mutate into some kind of psychic freak?
Complaints unheard, Astrianna pulls out her laser pistol and holds it in two hands, waiting for their scout to report back on the strange noises.
Woah! The halfling perked up when poked. Now this was something new! You can do that?! Why haven't you told us?! Wait ... You can hear us right? Right? Blink if you do! ... Hmhmhph... Maybe if ... The halfling poked Cueta back just to see if that would get a better connection. But no, it didn't seem to. She is briefly disappointed for a second or so before she remembers that - Woah! - it's still pretty cool.
The halfling then readies her zap gun and softly tries to inch closer to whatever huge monster was ahead. She didn't trust her movements to be quiet enough to sneak ahead, not as far as Cueta did anyhow, but a little bit forward? Yeah! Then she waited for their pointwoman to take the first shot.
Leila recognizes the alien as being a mountain eel. The most memorable thing about them, from Liela's reading, is that the sight of the mountain eel's strange gaze causes the muscles of sighted creatures to freeze up. (Basically a chance of paralysis every round for people within 12 metrons).
Prospero-4 frowns, not used to hearing voices inside his head. But Cueta has already shown to possess some extraordinary abilities, so he is best to just get used to it.
The android holds his position, holding his rifle ready, and waits for Cueta’s plan of action.
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Goods? Cueta thinks, not entirely understanding the reference. I'd call them more Okays. That said, she knows better than to say anything aloud, and is soon enough distracted by her newfound power.
--------------------
Returning to the others, Cueta relates what she saw, nodding along as Leila identifies the creature. "So nostro stay clear of it then, yeah?" Unslinging her rifle, Cueta once again sneaks forward, and unleashes a laser at the beast.
Surprise Round
Astrianna quickly touch types a command on the holo-screen of her com and starts recording. "Mountain eel! Kill it!" She yells while jumping out from behind the corner. This wouldn't even have to be edited; it would look like she had discovered, identified, and ordered the attack on the beast herself!
Carefully aiming down the sights of her pistol, Astrianna pulls the trigger and sends a highly energetic bolt of photons at the mountain eel.
Leila carefully takes aim with both her arc pistol and her small holoprojector. At Cueta's signal she unleashes both turning for a moment into a tiny rave, complete with strobe and electric effects!
Prospero-4 sends a short acknowledgement via comms channel, and joins the barrage of team's energy weapons. His rig flips the Azimuth rifle into overdrive, and the android squeezes the trigger for a deadly opening blast.
Fail
Pass
Pass
Pass
Pass
Ralkawi moves up and gets into position to fire as well.
So intent is the beast on it's meal that it's completely unaware of and unable to dodge the barrage of laser fire that falls on it. It turns and locks eyes with Astrianna just as her hot pink pistol sears right through one of its compound eyes.
It makes for a great shot in both senses of the word but Astrianna feels her jaw slacken as what Leila warned the group about comes to be and she finds she cannot move under the gaze of its multifaceted eyes.
Everyone else feels the same odd freezing of the muscles but is able to fight through it.
It turns and rushes Cueta, it's jaws clamping down on the human's leg and almost puncturing through her armor.
Cueta screams, as the eel clamps onto her leg. For a second, the soldier is worried she's going to lose her leg, but her armor just holds up. Dropping her gun, Cueta draws her doshko and brings the butt-end down onto the eel. Swearing again through gritted teeth, Cueta's strike bounces off the creature's rubbery hide.
"Just keep shooting."
Prospero-4's tone is calm, and a bit eerie coming through his full helmet. The android stays put, trying to find clear line for a couple of snap shots.
Round 1
The world seems to get a whole lot scarier when Astrianna can't move, and she's lucky her gear is perfectly balanced on her body or she'd be laying on the ground being scared.
No one had to know that she was glad everyone else was there, pumping the mountain eel full of photons and generally making it unable to eat her like the lashunta.
In a weird way Leila almost missed being shot at by thugs and the like. At least then you could reasonably expect that they wouldn't try and eat your friends!
Deciding to think too much about that the halfling tries another tricksy shot at the eel. Snake. Something!
**
"Woops!" she quips as the creature turned out to be much more conductive then she expected. "Sorry!"
The barrage of fire and Cueta's doshko hit is enough to put down the eel. The flesh of the young animal smells half cooked as the charred corpse slumps over.
Astrianna quickly regains use of her muscles, flexing her fingers a few times to make the numb tingly feeling go away. "Whew! Nice work." She says while walking over to the charred creature, capturing a close-up. "Oh yeah, definitely a mountain eel." Is uttered with the confidence of someone that absolutely has no idea what a mountain eel is but certainly isn't going to admit it.
Next she moves to the half-eaten lashunta and pokes around in its pockets, seeing if there is anything useful. In the trids this is about the time when the heroes would find a datapad explaining exactly why their foes were here!
Most of the lashunta's equipment is utterly destroyed by the ravenous beast. All that can be salvaged is a half charged battery pack (17 charges) and a survival knife.
The group leaves the grisly scene on the little plateau behind.
Ralkawi looks away from the mutilated corpse. We don't.. I mean.. the cultists don't give a flying s!$# about what happens to their bodies but... she was one of the nicer ones is all she says.
The final flight of steps up to the temple are, if anything, a little steeper than the ones before. It seems the ancient elves really really wanted to make pilgrims work for their enlightenment.
They finally end in a roughly oval shaped plaza in front of the main entrance to the temple itself. A series of weathered pillars form an arc around the plaza making a sort of rough border.
Before the group can pass through they are stopped by a call.
Standing between two of the pillars is a tall and elegant elf. He is dressed in what seems like ancient ceremonial elven armor beautifully engraved in dull maroon highlighted with dark silver and gold etching. There is no evidence of age at all on the armor but the hide cape he is wearing is worn and tattered. There is also no evidence of age in the huge spear he is wielding that ends in a flaming multi pointed head that looks very impressive and very deadly.
The other evidence that something is not quite normal is the elf's skin, the high cheekbones and smooth skin of the elf is colored obsidian blue and underneath his sculpted eyebrows his eyes glow orange!
"Well I hope in the next life they find a nicer god to worship, one that will actually care if they get eaten by a mountain eel." Astrianna responds to Ralkawi's lamenting as she paws through the dead cultist's belongings. There really wasn't anything worth taking, so she just leaves it be.
The vlogger starts recording again as they finally make it up the last flight of stairs and the plaza before the temple. "Wow, look at this. I bet this was all done by hand or with ancient magic, no machines!" She says to add some appreciation for what her future viewers would be seeing.
Just as she is about to pass through one of the pillars, she nearly jumps at the sudden sound of Elvish cutting across the plaza. Momentarily stunned at the sight of the... bizzare elf, she finally comments to the rest of the group. "That.. is a weird elf. Wearing weird armor with a weird spear. He talks like my teacher in my Elven drama classes for some reason? Just... let me handle this."
Astrianna steps forward, hands on her hips. She sounds and looks very confident!
"We cast no shadows upon this place! Nay, we carry a flame most bright and hungry! Foresooth, this fire named curiosity is never sated, and when it is gorged with knowledge casts a light capable of banishing the ink-black abyss of ignorance quicker than a rising sun upon a starless night sky!"
Astrianna gestures dramatically as she speaks, and the rest of the group somehow gets the feeling they're getting front row seats to some kind of stage performance. Not the trashy kind on the streets of the Station about some robot gaining a soul because it saved a puppy or some s%$~, but the ones in big domed buildings with rich people dressed in fancy out of date clothes and the actors are all trying to recreate bits of a pre-gap performance by speaking a barely comprehensiable language and everyone is crying at the end even though they have no idea what's going on.
The blue skinned elf nods as he listens to Astiranna and smiles. He'd be quite handsome if it wasn't for the slightly desiccated look to his face.
Though your accent be strange your manner of speech is pleasing to mine ears. Far more than the other vagabonds and brigands that have come before me to defile my ancient home. I am Panelliar. Sun Spear of the Inscrutable. The last of my peoples. It is my honour and duty to protect the secrets of my heritage from those who would despoil or misuse them! Behind me lies the Temple of the Twelve, the last repository of my people's lore in this system. And where I stand is the Viel, beyond which terrestrial ignorance melts beneath the weight of cosmic enlightenment. This is a sacred place!
Cueta sidles up next to Astrianna as the vlogger speaks so, what's the word yeah - grandeloquently? Even though she didn't understand a word Astri was saying, Cueta still knew what she was saying: nice to meet you.
For her part, Cueta kept her eyes on the wicked blade the elf wielded, looking for any sort of movements that could be construed as an attack. A fight here would most certainly be dangerous.
*Sniff* The halfling carefully sniffs the air. Hmm. Smells almost like McBurger! She feels a brief pang of homesickness as she lowers her gun and take a second look at the dead eel. With a quick glance at the fallen lashunta she thinks - And if I squint a bit it kinda looks like friday night... With a shudder she tries to shake those thoughts.
When they leave the scene Leila tries to grab Ralkawi's hand and give her an encouraging squeeze. She didn't have anything to say, but maybe it would help a little bit?
---
"Pfffffffffffff!" Why did the stairs have to be elf-sized? Leila lamented the fact that this weird precursor civilization didn't seem to grasp that not everyone had legs like stilts. Maybe if she had been healthy and in a proper climate this would have been fun - now it was just a chore!
---
"Woah!" She tries her best to not stare too much at this glowing elf-like (and probably fails!). It wasn't every day they got to meet a real pyramid person. That's what this is right? Right. Clearly! What else would he be? Her mind races as she watches Astri and the other elf-like engage in some weird duet. She looks to Cueta, Prospero and Ralkawi to see if any of them understand what they are saying.
Astrianna isn't quite sure about this elf, but at least he's good-looking. Kind of. It's been weeks since anyone spooled up my Drift drive... Hmm, if his face didn't look like a raisin... I mean what if I just put a bag over... No, concentrate Astri, this is important!
She gives her head a little shake and looks to her companions. "Okay, I think he's friendly. Basically this is some kind of library, maybe? Though I don't know if any of it survived the Gap. He's... don't laugh... the last of his kind, and he used the word.. uh, basically planetary system, so there must be intergalactic aiudara involved here somehow. He says this is a sacred place and the a$&!#!&s we're following have been through here."
Clearing her throat, she returns to speaking Elven and gesturing dramatically. It was unnecessary but helped her get in character.
Panelliar nods graciously.
The vagabond I speak of was the child of Golarion that came centuries ago. I drove that miscreant off. Those who came just a day afore are the foul brigands. I did see a four armed refugee from a dying red giant with them. She reminded me of our scholars, long gone from this place. Is she your lost compatriot?
Then he sighs and shakes his head sadly and brandishes his spear pointing it right at Astrianna. The dancing flames of the point flicker and spark. The heat of it makes Astrianna sweat.
But I have failed my ancient charge. Most completely I fear. I beg you gentle half-breed. Take your retainers and leave this now defiled place. For I have been corrupted as well. The leader of the brigands has placed upon me a geas most foul! Not only was I not able to keep him and his Star Eater blasphemies away from this place devoted to Ibra and Desna. But now my undeathly existence is forced to keep others from interfering with his evil work rather than defend the temple from it. Turn back! Turn back! Or I will be compelled to further foul this heavenly place with your blood! I can give you this one warning before I slay all of you and weep over your corpses!
Child of... Golarian? The lost planet? How could anyone be a child of a planet that has been gone since the Gap? Could he have spoken to Zan?
She is about to reveal this possible revealation to the others when Panelliar suddenly points his spear at her, and it isn't the one she was thinking about earlier.
Throwing her hands up in a peaceful gesture, the half-elf's face holds a steady grimmace as he speaks. Half-breed?! That piece of... There is a brief flash of anger on her face before the threat of emanate skewering returns her thoughts tot he present.
Astrianna starts speaking rapid Elven, now lacking the flourishes and fobbery from before. The group can tell that despite the beads of sweat forming on her face, she's still trying to hash out some kind of peaceful option, and she glances at them with a look that says don't shoot... yet!.
Astrianna makes a noise that is aout as pleasant as listening to a Kaukiri getting beaten to death by a rock.
She whirls on her companions, face gloomy. "WELL. Not only did Tahomen beat us here by a day, but he put some kind of spell on this guy... er, his name is Panelliar, some kind of spell called a Geas. I don't know what that is but I'm going to guess it's some kind of curse, because why wouldn't this happen to us? So, tragically, he's been magically compelled to kill anyone that tries to cross this courtyard, called the Veil."
"We can't kill Panelliar! He's the last of his kind!" Astrianna exclaims in what could be mistaken as some kind of compassion for another sentient's life. "He's as an important a find as this temple! I HAVE to sit down and interview him, we'll be EVEN MORE famous!" And so went any false pretenses about saving his life for his own benefit.
She looks to Cueta expectedly, shrugging. "Can you... do something... about this Geas?" Cueta had been a constant source of weird s!*% lately, maybe she also has anti-curse powers too. "Otherwise we're going to have to find some loophole in the wording of the spell."
Turning back to the guardian, Astrianna pleads in Elven.
"Huh. That's a pickle..." Leila sits down to catch her breath and think on things. It doesn't take long for her to catch her breath and start sprouting words.
"You can't just ask him to close his eyes and we'll pinky swear to totally not wander around him?"
"Oh - and maybe we could just wander around the temple. There might be a window or something we can pry open. My jet pack is still charged ..."
"Hmm. This might be a bit dumb but - do you think 'prevent anyone else [aside from Speaker for the Star-Eater] from crossing the veil' include himself? If so we can just taze him from over here! But I'm not sure if that's a good question to ask about, he might take it the wrong way."
"Another idea! Is 'Speaker for the Star-Eater' generic enough that if we say something on behalf of it we could be allowed to pass? I mean Speaking is pretty easy, much easier then Agreeing or Believing!"
"Yes, we are facing a dilemma. Still, our priority is to go after Tahomen. But if possible, we should try and preserve this ancient being."
Prospero-4 stands silent for a moment, considering the options. "I do not understand the workings of magics, but perhaps there could be a way of pursuing Tahomen, without crossing the courtyard. Especially if the elf needs to follow just the letter of the command, and not the intent."
"And it might be possible to take the elf down without killing. But it might be difficult - we don't have particularly powerful weaponry for that." the android adds on the private channel.
While musing on the current problem, another issue comes up in the android's mind. "Cueta, how powerful is such magic we are witnessing here? Are we pursuing some particularly powerful master of magic?"
"Mm. Astri - could you ask him if he minded that we entered the temple if we did so without crossing the Veil?" It seemed as if Prospero had a similar idea. Would probably be the easiest way to resolve this too!
Cueta shrugs, unsure of an answer to Prospero's question. "Eh don't know much about magic, honestly. Eh can just do stuff, chinney?"
"Magic seems pretty powerful to mio though, what with the compelling this guy to murder himself tryin to murder us and all."
Reflexively, Cueta's hand goes to her doshko. If they had to kill this old guy, they'd do it quick.
Astrianna sighs, putting her hands on her hips. "Okay. Let's see if he'll let us go around him. If not... get ready to fight."
Turning back to the ancient elf, the half-elf seems resolute while she speaks.
Panelliar snorts and opens his hand to let go of his grasp of his spear hand. Instead of falling the spear's flaming blade spreads to cover the entire weapon and it contracts into a small brilliant mote of energy that whirls up in a spiral to float near his head.
Astrianna smiles and claps her hands together once.
Turning back to the group with an enthusiasic expression on her face. "Okay team, we have permission to enter the temple, and as long as we don't cross these stones that mark the Veil then the magic afflicting Panelilar shouldn't kick in."
She points at one of the nearby windows. "Do you think we could get in through there? Tie a cable to Leila and she uses her jump jets to get up to it? I don't know how much experience you have breaking and entering, but it can't be that hard to take out some glass, right?"
"Sure! If it's just glass. Can't be that hard can it?" Leila perks up. She rifles trough her bag really quickly to find her old gun. The bullet shooting one - hopefully much tougher then the glass!
"So should I just start shooting out one of the windows? Or do we think 'jetpack halfling surprise' is a better idea?"