Selja decides it might be a very good idea NOT to advance further into the room. She slips away and encourages Fenchurch to do the same before quietly describing what she sees.
"A dozen skeleton warriors in what looks like a throne room. Skeletons didn't move though. Maybe they're not alive, but the room was big, old, and creepy. Wanna try Moira's idea of pickin' another door first?"
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"Yeah, let's save the center of the pastry for dessert."
Selja and Fench tiptoe back into the hall, and opt for one of the doors to the south. Opening the door reveals that both doors lead into the same room. The room seems to be a locker room of sorts. Mostly empty shelves hold a few dust covered items, tattered sheets hang over some pieces of furniture, and a three stone coffers sit beneath stone benches.
"Hm, dead end it looks like." Selja searches the room for magic.
Oh yeah, there's magic in this room.
"Definitely some magic in 'ere . . . " notes Selja suspiciously. "Feel like we've met more 'n enough traps!" She tries to figure out what it might be.
There are three distinct magical auras in the room, the strongest being moderate potency. The three auras come from under the cloth covered furniture, from an object on one of the shelves, and from within one of the stone coffers.
Selja identifies an Scroll of Locate Creature (CL7), an Ominous Heavy Mace, and a Cassock of the Clergy.
Selja's facial expression shifts from worry to excitement. "Take it back, looks like some valuables in here!"
She takes a cursory look for anything else to worry about and then starts grabbing the stuff!
"Nice find!"
Assuming the item doesn't seem evil or otherwise blasphemous to the clergy of Shelyn, Selja will put on the Cassock of the Clergy!
"Guess we can't put off the skeleton hall much longer. But we could get our magics ready before we go in."
If the party is in agreement, Selja starts casting some spells before they advance:
*Bless (from the Cassock)
*Protection from Evil
*Divine Favor
"Sounds like a good idea. Shall I anchor the front line, or stay back and use my undead-smiting magic?"
Moira clears her throat for a song and checks that her sword has a fresh casting of Chill Touch loaded up. "I'll start singing as soon as we start swinging. I'll Inspire Courage until someone needs some special inspiration--if I see someone under pressure, I'll use a Saving Finale to try to pull you back."
Selja leads the way back into the large hall. Immediately to the left is a set of stairs leading onto a raised platform along the northern wall. Up on the platform stand three lifesize statues of serpentfolk. The nearest statue depicts a serpentfolk priestess with long spear (could very well be Metluithee the Lesser), the middle statue seems to be a serpentfolk high priestess, while the third is a magus wielding a scimitar.
The hall is long, with two rows of serpentine columns supporting a high vaulted ceiling. Tattered remnants of ancient tapestries hang along the walls, and standing guard along the walls of the room are 12 skeletal serpentfolk warrior sentries. Green flames burn within their empty eye sockets, and they are armed with spears. Whether or not they see you, they seem to not take notice and remain in their positions.
Directly across the hall from where Selja stands is another stone door. There are some other doorways and hallways leading off the grand hall further down, and a stone throne sits empty upon a raised dais at the far end.
"... huh. Wonder why they aren't moving."
"I bet they start moving pretty quick when we do something they don't like or step on the wrong spot or sit on the throne or who knows? Heh it'd be funny to send a Silent Image onto the throne, but probably suicidal. "
"Oh! Maybe they're just inanimate skeletons and not animated?" Selja feels rather embarrassed that she may have made that mistake. She cautiously begins to approach the nearest skeleton, looking for any sign of a reaction.
"The green flames in the eyes just being for decoration?"
"Er, maybe? I guess you have a point."
Selja stops her plan of approaching a skeleton, and starts to Detect Magic into the room instead.
Selja sweeps the immediate area for the presence of magic and detects none.
Moira walks up to the door and casts a Silent Image of a stone wall across the middle of the room, placing it so the two closest skeletons are on our side of the wall, but the rest are still inside. "If that doesn't get them moving, we should be able to investigate without the rest of them watching."
"But I bet that gets 'em moving," she mutters as she concentrates to keep the wall up.
"Oh, that's clever," agrees Selja as she watches a wall apparently materialize in the room.
Moira throws up a silent image of a wall that extends across the room and even reaches the ceiling. The tow closest skeletons turn their skulls and look up at the wall, brandishing their spears they approach the suddenly appearing wall and inspect it.
The two skeletons then turn their attention away from the wall and towards Moira. As they do, a third skeleton seems to materialize out of the wall, as it ignores the illusion.
"That woke 'em up! Can't keep up the wall and be useful, though.
She lets Silent Image lapse and instead Charges the nearest skeleton.
As her blade connects, she unleashes Chill Touch, hoping to panic the skelly.
As Moira drops the illusory wall, a 4th skeleton, who had fallen for the illusion, suddenly becomes aware of the combatants in the room.
Moira's blade barely chips the skeleton's bones, but her spell is loosed.
The skeletal serpentfolk warrior stands its ground. It immediately retaliates against the intruder!
The skeleton misses with spear and claw, but manages to get a vicious bite in.
The next skeleton over moves in and attacks!
Suddenly, Moira's not looking so hot.
The third skelly also moves in with spear in bony hand.
Moira is full of holes.
The elf princess manages to blast another ray of positive energy into one of the skeletons that lunged at Moira.
Seeing Moira in trouble, Selja conjures a Burst of Radiance at the cluster of skeletons threatening her friend!
She then moves up along the platform while drawing her morningstar, hoping to find cover behind a statue.
Túrante fires a ray at the nearest skeletal warrior and makes contact, disrupting the necromantic fabric holding it together.
Selja follows with a burst of holy light. The skeleton already damaged by Túrante crumbles, the others shield their eye sockets.
One begins fumbling around blindly. All seem badly damaged.
Moira’s gonna have to shield her eyes too.
She’s only dazzled, on top of being in a lot of pain.
Liamae moves behind Moira and channels some of her focus into the bard’s armor.
Fench hustles around the column to help Moira out.
She swings wildly.
The late skeleton moves in to stab Fench.
It too misses wildly.
Moira says, "OWWWW"
She Withdraws behind everyone else. "Go get 'em! I'll be able to help in a second..."
Moira’s survival instincts kick in and she withdraws. However, this leaves her companions exposed. Good thing the skellys are blinded and dazzled.
The first launches a full attack against poor vulnerable Liamae.
It manages to scratch her, but it probably doesn’t hurt as bad as it looks.
The blind Skelly senses warm live flesh nearby and lashes out in Fench’s general direction.
Fench easily deflects the blind onslaught.
Selja sidesteps from her high perch and then slashes at a skeleton with her glaive, wishing it had a blunt end.
;
Selja swings her glaive down on the nearest skeleton within her reach. Too bad it's not a blinded one. Her shot is blocked.
Liamae considers her options and telekinetically lifts a femur off the collapses skeleton and hurls it at the skeleton next to her.
She tries to cast defensively, but loses the spell. With a bit of sweat on her otherwise immaculate brow, she sidesteps to make some room for Túrante behind her.
Fench decides to aim for the one who can still see, posing the greater threat.
Her axe just gets past the skeleton's defenses, and she smashes it to pieces.
The princess keeps firing her magical bolts at the nearest skeleton.
Túrante zaps the skeleton around the corner and it collapse in a pile of bones.
Seeing that the squad is doing alright without her help, Moira casts Cure Light Wounds from her wand. It's down to just four charges!
Moira gets the most out of one use of her wand. Things may be looking up!
The last standing skeleton (out of the ones so moved to attack) continues to stab, scratch, and bite blindly at Fench.
Fenchurch gets stabbed and fights back!
Fench swings hard and obliterates the skeletal Serpentfolk warrior. Shards of bone smash against the wall and turn to dust. "I can’t stand these things," she says. Jeesh, Fench, save it for the boss.
No more skeleton warrior sentries seem alerted to your presence. The closest door is immediately across from where you just entered. Otherwise you will have to traverse the long hall and possibly alert more skellies.
Túrante says quietly, "C'mon, let's get to the next set of doors before anything else animates."
Leading the way, Princess Túrante rushes across the grand hall and pushes open the nearest stone door. She is met with a darkened room, but soon everyone lines up behind her, and Moira’s glowing hat sheds some light. Immediately visible across the way is another door, and a short set of stairs leading to some raised platform. The way seems safe, so everyone files in and Selja shuts the door behind her. The room is 15ft across and 45ft in length. A raised platform sits along the eastern wall, flanked by a door on either end. Three alcoves occupy the western wall, and the some shelving and racks of equipment it along the southern wall.
As everyone catches their collective breaths, a soft, miserable crying can be heard.
"Where's that sound coming from?" says Túrante, though she isn't aware of how much the early Pathfinder writers liked using the undead children trope. The princess carefully moves toward the alcoves on the western wall to see what's in them.
As Moira follows, she heals herself au naturale a couple times:
Then, she switches to the wand.
Feeling restored, if not pristine, she hustles along to keep up.
When she hears the sobbing, she feels wary and seconds Túrante's caution, having run into sad girls who murder people before.
The two cautiously inspect the alcoves. In the first they find an old wooden pole, darkened with ancient bloodstains. Rusted chains and manacles lie on the ground.
The second alcove is the same, but the third seems empty, at first, although Túrante could swear the crying sound was coming from this spot. Then, before her very eyes, an image seems to materialize out of the shadows. It is a young woman, human looking, wearing nothing but tattered rags, kneeling in the far corner of the alcove, quietly weeping to herself.
Selja channels healing to bring the party into better health.
She's wary of what seems to be a woman materializing from nothing. "A ghost?" she whispers quietly to her companions. She then calls out to the apparition. "Ho there! Who are you?"
Moira approaches, offering friendship and taking a careful look at the situation. "What's wrong? Maybe we can help?"
The faint apparition lefts her head to reveal the face of a gaunt and haggard woman. Selja gets a chill as she recalls the dream she had before entering this buried temple. The woman's clothes are mere tatters and darkened with blood, and a deep wound can be seen in her breast.
Mournful eyes meet yours as she speaks, her voice seeming mere echoes off the cold and damp chamber walls. "What is this? The living have returned to this place? After how many ages have I been alone here I can not tell. My name?" she pauses to remember, "ah yes I was once called Khumla, but that name was lost when I was taken from my home and enslaved here. Not even death could free me from that fate. I am cursed to this spot until my master is finally destroyed. Have you come here to destroy my master? Have you come to finally kill Lord Soma the Pale?"
Selja remembers her dream, and suddenly understands who this must be.
"I was granted a vision of your fate. Taken away from your child, chained and sacrificed durin' an eclipse of the sun, ages ago. A black-tongued serpentfolk behind it all. Is that Lord Soma the Pale?"
"Yes!" the spirit exclaims with a burst of passion, "He took my life, he took many lives, but he took me from my child. For this I swore revenge with my last breath, but his powers over life and death were too great. Our sacrifice fed the rituals that turned him to what he is today, an undead of immense power."
"Looks like we're not finished putting the dead to rest."
Selja feels great compassion for this undead's fate. She hoped she was not being suckered.
"Is there anything you can do to help us defeat him? What powers does he have? And more importantly, what weaknesses?"