"Is it magical?" Aldelenna asks, having seen a decent number of magical weapons on the adventurers that traipsed through the Seven Silvers over the years. "That might explain why it wasn't harmed by the fire?"
With the danger gone, Finlogan sheaths his sword and stows his shield. He shifts the bodies and coals in the fire to clear the flue, so the smoke can escape the room.
"Glad you're here with us Venssa." He appreciates while he searches the room a bit more, when the smoke clears.
The little gnome woman blushes and stammers at the praise from Finlogan.
"Umm...thanks Fin..I'm glad your here too!"
She turns swiftly and in her mind berates her school-girl like response.
Nice reply...what are you, like 12! Ugh, now he probably thinks I am some silly girl! I have to get over this...and soon.
After the smoke clears you can search the room a little more thoroughly. It appears two bodies were burned here, recently. With a shudder you realize that means they were almost certainly villagers from Kassen—neighbors. Most likely friends of the Mayor, as the others have appeared to be, though there isn't enough left to tell.
Men set this fire. Most likely the villagers themselves. You can only hope that they were actually dead when they were forced into the fire.
What little the villagers had on them didn't survive the fire. It looks like one of them carried a cudgel, but it is warped and cracked by the heat. Burst shards of ceramic and glass speak of other things they may have been carrying, belt buckles, and the buckles from their shoes.
The dagger indeed, given its survival within the fire and the speed with which it cooled might well be magical.
On a stone outside the ring of the fire, and apparently ignored by whatever forced the villagers into the flames, is a single key that Venssa had first noticed just before the shadow attacked.
”What did that guy say about a key?” Fin asks after searching the room.
Searching the room you find no other exits. It's beginning to look like you might need to retrace your steps.
There was that strange stair passage in the room with the spider webs, though it's mostly blocked by giant spider corpse (and Rankev, I think, had said something about wanting to be sure this level was clear and safe first, especially with half mad Roldare bolted up in that room, and his servants still at the entrance).
There was a one way door you hadn't been able to find a way to force open. You might be able to bust it down, but that would definitely take a lot of resources.
And there was the western door in the entry chamber.
"Well this looks like a dead end... Let's clear that massive arachnid corpse away from the stairs and the other room and see where that goes, eh?" Aldelenna says as she moves back that direction.
Venssa goes along to help and examines the giant spider while they are moving it.
Nature (Just because Venssa is curious):
Cole joins in moving the giant spider that he had a hand in killing. He searches the area for an alternate path.
The stair goes up and there is a narrow passage. It is old and disused, and filled with sticky webbing, but it seems to go for a short distance and then descend. Your best guess is that this passage, because it wasn't really used, is where the spider actually laired, which explains why the villagers were comfortable enough going through the room to light the fire where you fought the shadow.
"Venssa, should we burn away all this webbing? Or just cut our way to do the top?" Finlogan asks while ready to take point with Cole injured.
"I would not burn it...remember that last room and all the smoke? There is not vent here and it could make the area more dangerous. I do not see any young, and the poor thing was trapped here most likely, so no mate."
The gnome seems a little sad at the end of the spider, but still, her companions were what came first, and perhaps killing the spider was a mercy...rather than it slowly starving.
Finlogan nods at his wise tutor and leads the way up the stairs cutting his way through the webbing with his sword.
Cole follows behind Fin.
"All things considered, the reality of adventuring has seriously diminished my enthusiasm for it." Aldelenna says as she uses her rapier to help Cole and Fin clear away the webbing on the stairwell.
Venssa takes Aldelenna's hand and pats it sympathy.
"You are just out of your normal element my dear. I would be as lost in that town of yours, where you would feel right at home. Your contribution is no less just because you are unfamiliar with all that is around you. You have been a boon so far, do not think you haven't. Your bravery in the face of all this unknown horror is a shining example to us all."
She smiles warmly to the young woman, knowing somewhat how she feels, for she herself feels the same whenever she must go to the town or interact with unfamiliar people.
Aldelenna, for once, is lost for words. She squeezes Venssa's hand warmly, and can only stammer out: "Th-thank you Venssa."
|
"Indeed, be not dour, Alde. I had never thought that this would be like stories we were told as children, like knights, covered in finest armor we would be fearlessly charging dragons and slaying whole nests of lizard-like creatures. Having run part of Father's farms, I have seen that even the top of the pyramid is mostly dull, and life is not so much the tactics of the moment as it is the logistics of the papers on the table. I see this as merely another thing that must be done.
But look at the good we are doing! Even if I elevated a dozen servants out of poverty, never had I thought that I would be saving lives from a further danger of death from a giant spider, or a vengeful spirit! Think of what other manifestations of evil we might come across and vanquish!
Ha! And they thought to line our way with pillows. Pillows! And here we have not only avenged deaths but prevented more!
My only regret is that I am not powerful enough to rid the whole world of such threats. Think of how many lives could be saved if I could slay every blood-thirsty giant or, even every dragon! THAT would be a tale worth telling!"
Power winds down, taking care to light the way for others so they need not light a fire and encourage more of the smoke that Venssa warned against.
The stairs go up a short ways and then a narrow passage leads west. The webbing is thick here, and you fear you may be some time before you rid your clothing of it, much less the arms with which you push the webbing aside.
The passage is short and narrow to house the great monstrosity you fought earlier, and Venssa cannot help but feel a little pity for the creature so trapped in these passages. Soon the passage descends another narrow stair, and you find yourselves in a large room in two massive tiers.
The room is about 30 feet wide by 35 feet long. The first ten feet is an upper tier, then, on either side of the room, a stair descends to a lower tier to the south, where you can see dimly by the light Rankev has provided a dias. A wooden statue of Kassen stands upon it, holding a massive shield in each hand.
Just past it, along the south wall, is a door. A passage way leads north from the far side of the northern wall.
Finlogan cautiously advances to let his companions into the large room. He peers at the extent of his darkvision.
"Do you think that is one of the shields that we need?" Fin asks everyone.
Mayhap, we do need that shield?
Cole advances cautiously behind Fin and towards the statue, as he scans the room.
"Hmmmmm... Maybe that is a shield we need, let me investigate the statue first. I wouldn't want anyone to fall into a pit of pillows." Aldelenna says, winking, and then sends her dancing lights into a square position to light the room as best as possible.
Aldelenna smiles coyly at Rankev's subtlely lewd suggestion.
"Baaawh! Enough with the flirting...we got work to do!", the gnome says gruffly, however the smile on her face shows her enjoyment of the back and forth between Alselenna and Rankev.
Blushing, Venessa waves her hand at the sorcerer.
"Enough of your daydreaming and let's get back to the business at hand."
She chuckles at what she had said, and blushes a deeper red, but refuses to look at Rankov..or anyone else for that matter.
Instead, she walks over to the shields and examines the statue and tries to see if the shields are attached, or can just come off.
Perception:
Finlogan ignores the banter and surveys the room.
Venssa: The shields are subtly inscribed. One bears the word "home" the other the word "family"
Rankev, Finlogan and Aldelenna: It's clear the statue is intended to represent Kassen, the original founder of your town.
Cole and Fin: As Venssa studies the statue, you are sure you see it move.
Fin casually puts his hand on Venssa's shoulder and slowly pulls her away from the statue.
When he gets her clear of melee, he asks Rankev, "hey Rankev, can you hit that statue with one of your fire bolts to clean it off."
Cole stands his ground before thd statue and draws his axe.
C'mon then, I see ya movin'.
Venssa looks a little confused until she hears Cole say he saw the statue moving. She gives Fin a grateful smile, then turns her attention back to the "statue".
The statue shifts the positioning of its shields as Rankev tosses the bolt, causing it to flare harmlessly against the surface. At first the movements are slow, as if from long disuse, But even as Fin is shepherding Venssa away, its movements grow smoother.
And the statue, of course:
And because the monsters seem to have horrible luck... (I mean really? twice in a row?)
Group 1: Venssa, Cole, Aldelenna, Finlogan, Rankev
Group 2: Statue
It is round 1. Current turn Group 1.
Waiting on: Venssa, Cole, Aldelenna, Finlogan, Rankev
Fin moves up with sword and shield and slashes at the statue. "It's a magic statue! Who has the magic dagger?"
Cole moves tothe statue and lays into it with his axe.
Aldelenna sings a quick magical melody, sending a surge of magically enhanced luck into her friend Rankev. Then she aims and fires her crossbow at the statue, unsure if the bolts will do any good against its hard exterior.
Enchanting her staff, Venssa strikes at the now animated statue, fighting beside Fin.
Attack:
Damage:
Finlogan and Cole both chop into strange statue. Both deliver solid hits, chopping and hewing at the creature, and yet it seems not to flounder, reacting more when hit by a solid crossbow bolt to the shoulder from Aldelenna. It staggers for a moment, but lumbers back towards the two melee fighters.
Rankev's blast of fire seems to affect it most, hitting it solidly and flaring before leaving a blackened mark in the creature's smooth wooden surface. Venssa makes a brave effort to hit the statue with her magically enhanced staff, but a swing of the creature's shield casts her blow aside.
The statue surges toward Cole and Fin, trying to slam each of them with its shields.
and
but neither strike manages to get past the defenses of the brave warriors.
Group 1: Venssa, Cole, Aldelenna, Finlogan, Rankev
Group 2: Statue
It is Round 2. Current turn Group 1
Waiting on: Venssa, Cole, Aldelenna, Finlogan, Rankev
Fin backslashes the statue. "Think we should make that magic dagger available for combat, if we live through this fight."
I hear ya.
Cole sees the bolt damage, steps back and fires his longbow.
Finlogan lashes out at the statue, but his sword clangs harmlessly off one of the shields.
Seeing that her crossbow was actually effective, Aldelenna reloads and fires again.
Unfortunately, in her excitement that she was actually contributing in a meaningful way, she gets overzealous and fires the bolt way over the animated statue's head.
"Damnit!" She mutters under her breath.