Nahia begins moving towards the statue, the wand in her hand dancing, the ruby light shimmering in the air. Finally, she touching the tip of it to Kitara, filling the woman with even more gentle warmth. The witch softly adds "There, honey, a some burn burn to counteract the bad."
Nahia continues to move into position, her wand never stopping its dance, as she touches it to Gumblejack. She places a hand on the spreading warmth of his skin and whispers "Now now, I'm not hungry yet... So bash that things head in Big'un."
Nahia turns towards Rose, swaying her upper body as she slowly chants ”Weak flesh, hear my words: Look inward at your intense spirit and taste of its grandeur.”
With a final motion, Nahia draws forth a handful of iron powder, holds it in her upturned palm, leans forward, and blows the dust towards Rose with a grin. Suddenly, she shines with a pale golden light. A silhouette of her form begins to radiate outward, at first twice her size, and then her body begins grow, continuing until it fills her own great projection.
Nahia places a hand on Hound and begins to chant softly "Success comes through focus, focus is the measure of desire, desire comes from within..."
Continuing her chant, Nahia places a hand on Rose "Success comes through focus, focus is the measure of desire, desire comes from within..."
"Woah." Rose said as she started to get taller. She looked at herself and then scanned the room from her new perspective. "I kinda like this."
She looked over her shoulder at the ogre who was now only slightly larger than she was. "I've heard ogres can be pretty brutal in the romance department. I might say yes."
After fleeing for 5 rounds, the elemental arrives at the sanctum again, aiming to attack Rose.
"Welcome back, Sparky." Rose said swinging her axe as the elemental rushed in.
HP 65/76 (77/88 when raging)
AC 18/12/18 (17/11/17 when raging)
Saves F10/R5(7traps)/Will 5 (F12/R5(7traps)/W7 When raging add +3 against spells, spell-like abilities and supernatural abilities. Cannot be a willing receiver of spells even from allies)
Base BaB +6/+1
Weapons in hand:MW Lucerne hammer
Rage 4/17
Current effects:Rage,Enlarge(+1 Damage,-1 Attack,-2 AC,Damage increased 1 step for weapons)
Solana works her hands, speaking under her breath as she fans a small flame that hovers over her hand.
Solana gets into position and simply waits, preparing herself to strike out at the assailant.
As the creature gets back into range, Kitara fires off a burst of flame from her hand, the flames reforming a few moments later.
Ongoing effects:
Produce Flame - 45 rounds remaining
An enraged and enlarged Hound attacks with savage fury as the elemental arrives, but all the rage seems to have clouded his mind, and the blow is somewhat off.
The big girl Rose moves with vengeance and swing her axe at the monster. The blow hits, but it’s somewhat deflected by the monster.
Pew Pew eyes do as told, and shoots against the elemental as soon it’s near the ray’s range.
Kitara uses her affinity with flame, to call down punishment on her foe, but afraid to hit her companions, the ray of fire is unable to hit her foe.
Grumblejack, listening to all the talk just keep grinning at the jokes tossed around.
Don’t worry Black Un’, Grumblejack will be gentle… he says at the same time he swings his earthbreaker at the returning elemental.
and with a sickening noise, the foe crumbles under the ogre weapon ...Just as Grumblejack is with this dead fellow. he says to the remains of a dead elemental.
"Oh, 'Jack." Rose swooned. "You say the sweetest things."
She eyed the elemental for only a moment, watching the sparks die and it's energy dissipating, then turned to face the statue at the top of the landing.
"Alright" She said to the statue of the demon lord. "Lets see if you have any other tricks up your sleeves. You certainly have enough of them."
Hound is somewhat miffed at the expenditure of potions for such a brief fight and comes down out of his fury.
I have to find an alchemist for a steady supply.
Nahia leaps a shouts as Grumblejacks hammer connects She is grinning like an idiot in her excitement as she runs over to the body of the thing, grabbing a flask from her bag and falling to her knees before the sparking corpse.
A hand goes over the the dimming thing as she starts to mutter incoherently, her eyes closed. Sparks begin to rise from the body of the creature, gathering into a shifting ball of arcing electricity, and then flowing into the flask. With a loud squeak, a stopper is shoved into the flask. The lightning continues to arc and spark within the glass, and as Nahai continues to hold the container her hair starts to rise and stand on end.
She places the flask in her bag and attempts to flatten her hair.
The altar seems to glow with evil energy, that’s being contained by the silver chains around it.
The only other feature in the place other than the altar room, is the balcony. This open balcony overlooks the surrounding countryside. From here you can see the other strange jagged hills that rise around the Horn. The hills seem almost to be bowing as if each of these ancient stone giants recognize they are lesser than the grand and magnificent spectacle that is the Horn of Abaddon.
If someone were to fall from this place, he would be in trouble indeed.
As soon the battle is finished, Grumblejack open his pack and remove a large waterskin, drinking it entirely. He looks around somewhat lost as he says to Nahia
"Grumblejack is thirsty."
The green stone of the altar is stained black in many places, doubtless from the countless victims who met their end upon its block. There is a reservoir at the base of the statue and any water placed there is instantly polluted and transformed into unholy water. The statue radiates evil.
"I'm going to take a look around the corners here." Rose said "C'mon Hound."
Pyre drifted after her.
Hound follows. This has horrible security from that balcony, we need to seal this up.
"Maybe we can put those two idiot Daemons on guard duty up here until we figure out what to do with it. If we're lucky something might push them off."
Looking behind the walls in the sanctum reveals nothing new or interesting. The same decoration continues in the entire place.
Nahia steps over, examining the altar with the others. She sniffs at the air, smelling the corruption. Grinning, she adds "Well, everyone, it looks like we have our own little hell-spring."
Well let us examine the second floor.
"Strange little alcoves." Rose said taking a look around the sanctum's architecture. "Maybe we can knock these side walls out and use them to seal up this balcony. That would open the space up a lot."
Then she moved back to the stairs to check out the other floors.
Solana sighs, resting her mind after the very anticlimactic fight. I really could do with some resting. I've burned through a good portion of my energy, though they seem to want to go on.
"So how much more of this place do you have to check? I could do with a little time to rest, revitalize my connection to nature."
After mentioning that she falls back in, her eyes open as the others start searching the tower.
"One more floor. It wasn't accessible from below. We're going to have to climb down." Rose said looking over the edge of the balcony. "I think we're going to want a safety line." she said kicking a rock off the edge and watching it tumble hundreds of feet down.
Are there any further areas we can search for hidden doors or stairs?
"Good idea." Rose nodded. "Pyre, do that. Come back if you run into anything dangerous. Try not to get killed before you can report in."
The little archon went out off the edge of the balcony and floated downward.
Solana sighs and slumps up against the wall. "Sissy, you know..., you haven't even asked me if I can help. That kind of hurts all things considered you know?" Solana puts on her best pouty face and round puppy like eyes as she looks over at Rose.
She sighs and continues. "That said, I've expended a good portion of my magics. But if you give me some time to rest, I should be able to weave an enchantment that will give us the ability to climb like spiders. I could get..., I think half a dozen. You, me, Nahia, Fire Eyes, Hound, and one more. I don't think I could stretch the spell any further. But it would not matter what surface we are dealing with, you could walk on it like it was solid ground. If you give me the time to rejuvinate myself."
She smiles weakly and just sighs, finding a not quite so stone solid part of the wall to rest up against, while the others decide what they are doing.
Rose took off her helmet and looked a little sad. "Sorry. I'm not used to having you around yet. When we get going we're like a well oiled machine at this point. We've been through a lot together."
"If you can help or have an idea, speak up. Right now thats the only way we have to know what you bring to the table."
"That climbing trick sounds great. Definitely safer than the other things we were considering. Let's set up camp here. Should be pretty safe with the Daemons guarding the only real entrance. Pyre can scout things out and we can take a break for a while."
She looks around at the others "Any objections?"
None.
With no other clever solution in mind, and the only viable option being climb the external face of the horn, the group decides to rest and trust the newcomers magic and skills, to allow them walk the walls.
Resting in the sanctum, as they first planned proved impossible even for wicked souls such as themselves. The constant conflict between the Silver Seal and the malevolent presence in the alter don’t allow them to rest in the place. With that in mind, they move all the way back, to the first second floor, where they’ll have to climb 50ft up to get to the third floor. Finding a empty room is easy, and resting even tho isn’t pleasant, offer no complication.
Nahia nods at the new girl. That sounds like a plan to me. Though Seren can take my spider climb, as I have my own way of getting up there. Besides, that way you should to cover everyone, including Big'un over here. Nahia smiles wide at the ogre and runs a hand down the side of his arm.
- - - - -
Nahia stares at the silver seal for a bit before they leave, shuddering slightly.
I'm still not so sure about this whole releasing a plague demon thing, but d@$% if I'm not going to feel better when that blessed thing is gone.
As the group reaches one of the more easily defended rooms, she finds a nice corner and begins to pull things from her satchel: an iron cauldron, a long metal pipe, a bag of tobacco, a bottle, and a couple of small glasses. And with the items laid out, she reaches up to her neck, letting the little serpent there coil around her wrist, before bringing it down to let it slither into her lap.
Turning to Seren, she smiles and asks "Can I get a little water here? Might as well make a little dinner." She pours some whiskey in the glasses, offering one to Seren as the cauldron begins to fill.
Nahia waves a hand over the cauldron and mutters something deep but soft as little embers begins to float through the air around the cauldron before fading into the iron itself. Little waves of heat rise from it as the witch takes a sip of her drink and begins to scatter in a few herbs from her pack and the little serpent coils near the warmth, letting out a hiss that sounds like a sigh of pleasure.
While the water heats she takes the time to pack some tobacco into the bowl of the pipe. Placing the stem in her mouth, she flicks the fingers of her empty hands together causing another ember to rise through the air and land in the bowl. Taking a long draw, she slowly lets the smoke drift from her mouth and haze about her before taking another sip of her drink.
- - - - -
After dinner, Nahia gets some help from Seren to wash out the cauldron and to get one last round of water into it. This time, as the water heats, she reaches into a pouch on her belt and pulls out an iridescent blue stone. Gripping the stone tightly, it seems to glow for a moment and then dulls, as the same iridescence briefly flashes through the witches eyes. She opens her palm again to reveal the stone now a translucent blue, and places it back into her pouch.
She then closes her eyes and whispers "Spirits of fortune, gather your precious light, be my armor to protect me..." As she speaks her words a thin haze of blue light surrounds her and coalesces upon, concentrating as it draws nearer, before disappearing suddenly with the faint tink of a glass bell.
Taking to her cauldron again, she pulls a cloth from her satchel and dips it in the warm water, before beginning to run the moist cloth along her skin. Leaving her battle worn clothes still on, she does her best to wipe away the soot and mud and grime of their trek through the forest, through the muck ridden caves, and through this dusty, web infested ruin.
It's not a real bath, and sure, I could just use some magic, but it is still nice to feel the water running over my skin... especially after all of the electrical burns today. Kind of soothing, really... I wonder how long we'll have to stay here, how long this task will take? Should we start looking to make this place a home, however temporary?
She closes her eyes as she continues dipping, wringing, and running the cloth along herself, remembering her dream of this place as a temple to Asmodeus, remembering herself sitting on a throne, the religious iconography surrounding her, of the servants bearing wine and sweet fruits...
A pleasant warmth fills her as her daydreaming continues, but soon enough the bath is over and it is time to prepare for bed. She wrings the cloth out one last time before bringing the cauldron closer, a source of warmth for the night, and leaning against the wall.
Reaching into her satchel, she pulls forth a small, cheap book with a cliché title, "Repealing the Royalty: Rapaciousness Repaid", reading quietly until her drooping eyes drive her to sleep.
After eating Rose stripped out of her armor and took a "bath" in the cookfire. Then she pushed Hound down against a wall, sat down and leaned back into him like he was a lounge chair and enjoyed watching Nahia's bath.
"This place really isn't so bad."
Hound fulfills his role as footrest.
Backrest.
|
Mysty watches nahia and then rises go through their ritual, er, cleaning. Then she also washes with water and a bit of magic. She listens to nahia's cast, recognising the spell form, but not the language.
what language is that, Nahia? When I cast it is in ignen, Mysty says a few words in ignen, but I don't recognize yours. Some sort of witch tongue? Sounds sort of familiar
Nahia smiles at Mysty and replies "It's the language of the more... spiritual side of nature. It has several names, but I the common tongue name for it is Aklo. I'd be willing to teach you, if you're interested. Maybe in return for a primer on Halfing?"
Solana looks about, sighing, watching the others. She breathes gently for a few moments...
...shifting back into her natural form, the golden fire haired mirror to her sister. She reaches into her pack, pulling out a pot, and with a few soft words, it fills with water. She starts to wash, taking her time to meticulously clean and scrub her body out.
She tugs at her wrists when she is finished, slipping out of her armor, and a silken red sundress covers her body as she relaxes against the stones of the room. She starts to focus on the stones, on the people in the room, the fire, the cauldron. Her eyes rest individually on Mysty, then Hound, then Rose, then Grumble, then Seren, and finally Nahia. Her gaze almost meditative at this point.
Patience. Now is not the time to play. They trust you because of your sister. You would not wish to spoil the fun now, would you? Solana sighs, the familiar voice ringing in her mind. I know. I know. revenge will come. I will exact my price in blood and fire on the Mitrans. But..., Can I not enjoy the company I have? She seems to be staring at Nahia for now, a soft and warm smile spreading on her face.
She sighs, leaning against the wall, resting herself and preparing her mind to reattune to the pathways of nature.
The day dawns, prayers are chanted, spells cast and the knot moves to the third floor.
No stairs rise to this grand archway. Instead, to enter here you must either fly or climb. To climb is no simple feat. This entranceway rises more than two hundred feet above the cavernous entry (C1) far below. The easiest way is to climb from the entrance to level 2 – the right eye (2-1). This still involves a ninety foot angled ascent (adequate handholds, DC 15 Climb skill check). It is far easier to fly or levitate to the entrance.
The landing platform is baroquely adorned with every surface decorated with countless daemons tormenting and triumphing over mortals foolish enough to oppose them. Prominent among these decorations to the left of archway is a bas relief of Vetra-Kali sitting cross-legged.
There's a large archway that leads inside the third floor.
"Well, Sis, let's try out your plan." Rose said with a smile on her face.