Bashiel doesn’t detect evil from any of the prisoners. Even up close, none of the men and women show signs of blood veil and all are indeed Varisian.
The prisoners all look quite frightened even as Bashiel unlocks their cells. They remain quiet for a couple minutes after he finishes speaking, before the same man who spoke up before says, “I don’t know if you’re here to help or not, but I need to get back to my family. If I’m going to die, it might as well be now rather than later.”
The man signals for the other captives to follow him out of the cell block and one-by-one the others slowly emerge. After it becomes apparent that you aren’t about to strike them down or put them in chains, the man speaks again. “Most of us have been here for about a week, but we’ve seen many more come and go in that time. The Urgathoans are using us to conduct their horrible experiments. I overheard one of them saying something about us being immune to the plague. I don’t know what to make of that.
“They all seem to be taking orders from a beautiful woman who has passed through a few times, as well as a disturbing bald man with pale skin and pointy ears. The man kept berating the others for amateurish and dim-witted work. I don’t know anymore than that. I’m sorry I can’t be more helpful.”
Zamanda sighs in relief, glad she was just being paranoid. She goes with the group back to the elevators so that she can activate it with the button they found to send it up with the rescued prisoners to the main floor.
|
Ilsa lets the disturbing report sink in as they walk the poor souls to the elevator.
"It's over now," she says. "Or, at least this part."
When she hears of the ringleaders of this operation, she bristles with rage.
Once the Varisians have departed, she turns to the others. "The beautiful woman must be the priestess we are going to confront. I am still not sure about our deal with this 'disturbing bald man.' Evidently, he wants his former ally dead, but he could do great evil if we let him go. That said, my mind is taxed and I'm not sure how much more I can handle today," she says.
"Regardless, we should find the priestess now and figure out if we want to honor that deal later."
Bashiel helps escort the Varisians to the elevator and before he lets them go, he nods gratefully to the outspoken man. "Thank you. We'll deal with the woman and the pale man. You all get back to your families."
---
Once they're gone he furrows his brow, especially as Ilsa puts words to some of his thoughts. "We knew the 'elf' was as vile as the rest of them, but this only cements it. I don't doubt he could do a lot of evil... Depending on how we stand after confronting Andaisin, we may be able to fight him as well. Before he escapes from this place."
"You're right Ilsa, Andaisin first. The rest we'll deal with as it comes."
He heads to the eastern doors of the catwalk room and starts checking for traps on the doors.
The outspoken man manages a weak smile and nod to Bashiel before hurrying aboard the lift with the other former prisoners. The lift makes its way above before the group readies to venture deeper into the temple.
-----
Detect Magic
Open/Close
Zamanda yet again is confident that neither eastern door is trapped or locked. Bashiel shares her confidence. Neither door detects as magical.
Once everyone’s ready, Zamanda uses her spell to open the southern door and reveal the room beyond.
The reek of burning wax wafts through this morbid chamber, with several tall, misshapen candles being the apparent source. Workspaces strewn with tall beakers of foul-colored liquids, parchments covered with insidious symbols, and cages of whimpering rodents fill large alcoves in both the northern and southern walls. A pair of huge stone doors hang ajar to the east, revealing a long hallway leading further into the dark.
At the room’s center stand four large, cylindrical glass vats, each filled with a bubbling emerald fluid that tints the chamber’s light a noxious green. Within each suspension floats a malformed abomination - something part human, part angel, and part horse - things of half-formed muscle with dead, fleshless equine skulls. Three of the forms are motionless, but the fourth twitches now and then.
Standing amongst the room’s contents are eight cultists, including the green cultist who escaped before. None of them look pleased to see you and immediately move to strike with the scythes in their hands.
Zamanda, wishing she had another fireball, moves into the room while the cultists are still flat-footed, putting her back to the wall and firing an arrow into orange cultist's face.
Bashiel steps into the room, grim determination on his face as he takes in the cultists and the strange aberrations lying behind the glass. He swings twice at the nearest (yellow) cultist, longsword falling in heavy arcs to smash through the fellow's defenses.
Bashiel steps into the room, grim determination on his face as he takes in the cultists and the strange aberrations lying behind the glass. He swings twice at the nearest (yellow) cultist, longsword falling in heavy arcs to smash through the fellow's defenses. Even caught off guard, the first cultist’s armor manages to block the paladin’s first blow. Bashiel’s second strike hits home, dealing a nasty wound to the yellow cultist.
Zamanda, wishing she had another fireball, moves into the room while the cultists are still flat-footed, putting her back to the wall and firing an arrow into orange cultist's face. The arrow hits, finding its way through the cultist’s armor.
Red Cultist moves next to Bashiel and swings his scythe, but misses.
Yellow Cultist also swings at Bashiel. His attack is made with vitriol and rage, dealing Bashiel a severe blow.
Green Cultist moves to the side of the room and casts a spell at Bashiel. The paladin manages to resist the spell.
Orange Cultist steps forward and slashes at Zamanda. Davaulus’s chain shirt must have at least some protective qualities as the cultist can’t make it through the bard’s defenses.
Blue Cultist moves next to the green cultist, then casts a spell of his own. A floating scythe appears out of thin air next to Bashiel and slashes at him. The scythe misses.
Purple Cultist charges at Zamanda, swinging her scythe upon arrival. She manages to cut a gash in Zamanda’s left leg.
Pink Cultist moves south then casts a spell at Zamanda, but the bard resists the spell.
Gray Cultist moves forward and likewise casts a spell at Zamanda, which she also resists.
Kalem strode into the room. There were two cultists in front of him with scythes. Kalem decided to show them how to properly use one! He swung at the first, and readied a follow through to the second should he fall.
Zamanda reluctantly drops her bow and draws her cold iron morningstar. She intended to swing at Orange to finish what she started, but then she sees Kalem vaporize that guy, so she swings at Purple instead.
Bashiel staggers back as he takes a dreadful blow from the cultist. He quickly draws himself together and retaliates.
Kalem expertly dodges blows from three of the cultists as he makes his way into the room.
Ilsa raises her sap and tries to bring it down on top of red cultist’s head. Her blow misses, but she manages to reduce his abilities through her stare.
Kalem strode into the room. There were two cultists in front of him with scythes. Kalem decided to show them how to properly use one! He swung at the first. His blow proves to be lethal and the orange cultist falls to the ground dead.
Bashiel staggers back as he takes a dreadful blow from the cultist. He quickly draws himself together and retaliates. His first strike misses, but his second is made with holy fury and cuts down the yellow cultist. He also heals some of his own injuries.
Zamanda reluctantly drops her bow and draws her cold iron morningstar. She intended to swing at Orange to finish what she started, but then she sees Kalem vaporize that guy, so she swings at Purple instead. The cultist is still vulnerable from her charge, so Zamanda manages to find a chink in her armor, the bard’s morningstar smashing into the cultist’s arm.
Red Cultist slashes at Bashiel again, but misses.
Yellow Cultist is dead.
Green Cultist casts a spell and a floating scythe of his own appears where the yellow cultist fell. It slashes at Bashiel, but bounces off his armor.
Orange Cultist is dead.
Blue Cultist directs his own floating scythe to slash at Bashiel again, but it misses.
Purple Cultist glares at Zamanda and slashes at her. The cultist manages to hit this time.
Pink Cultist moves forward and also tries to strike Zamanda. The curvature of the room works against him, but he still manages to open a gash in the bard’s right arm.
Gray Cultist charges forward at Kalem, swinging his scythe as he goes. The bloodrager’s magical defenses keep him safe.
Hit and hurting, Zamanda remembers, belatedly, a new song she wrote for situations just like this and starts singing to inspire the group's courage... especially her own.
Then she swings again at purple.
One cultist dead. Two more in front of him. Kalem smiled as he went to work with his scythe. He had been worried when he picked the weapon up, as he used a hammer for so long. But this felt right. The blade sliced through the air, in rhythm with Zamanda’s music.
|
|
Ilsa strikes at the red-clad cultist again, still attacking around the corner of the door frame. To help her odds of striking, she calls on the mental trick she had implanted in herself, and an image of Ilsa appears behind the man and distracts him enough that she has an opening.
That's when she brings her sap down on his head.
Bashiel keeps up the attack, either against red or the two cultists further north if red is down.
Zamanda, hit and hurting, remembers, belatedly, a new song she wrote for situations just like this and starts singing to inspire the group's courage... especially her own. Then she swings again at purple. Her morningstar slams into the cultist, but he remains standing.
Ilsa strikes at the red-clad cultist again, still attacking around the corner of the door frame. To help her odds of striking, she calls on the mental trick she had implanted in herself, and an image of Ilsa appears behind the man and distracts him enough that she has an opening.
That's when she brings her sap down on his head. The cultist staggers back a step as Ilsa’s blow connects. He looks thoroughly shaken by her attack.
Kalem smiled as he went to work with his scythe. He had been worried when he picked the weapon up, as he used a hammer for so long. But this felt right. The blade sliced through the air, in rhythm with Zamanda’s music. His first slash badly injures the gray cultist, but it takes his second to actually end the man.
Bashiel keeps up the attack against red. His strike hits, injuring the Urgathoan, but the man is still upright. His second attack misses badly.
Red Cultist takes a step back and casts a spell at Bashiel. The paladin freezes in place, unable to move.
Green Cultist takes a step forward and touches the red cultist on the shoulder. He directs his floating scythe to slash at Bashiel again. Some of the red cultist’s wounds close, but the scythe misses.
Blue Cultist casts a spell at Kalem while his floating scythe continues to strike at Bashiel. Kalem freezes in place alongside Bashiel, but the cultist’s scythe misses.
Purple Cultist takes a step to the side and slashes at a paralyzed Kalem. The bloodrager’s defenses prove to be too great.
Pink Cultist steps to where purple cultist was a moment before. Now with a clear angle on Zamanda, he swings at her. The cultist opens another gash in the Aasimar, who’s definitely had better days.
Gray Cultist is dead.
Kalem felt his limbs freeze. His eyes stared in horror as his body stopped listening. Standing there with his scythe still raised above his head he could only watch as his enemies swarmed...
Zamanda is definitely taking a beating, but she continues to sing of heroic deeds and courage in the face of evil.
Then she glares back and swings at purple again, trying to hit her a third time.
Bashiel struggles against the magical bindings holding him in place, but despite his best efforts he's unable to move anything more than his eyes. He eyes the floating scythes. They look even sharper when you can't defend yourself.
Zamanda is definitely taking a beating, but she continues to sing of heroic deeds and courage in the face of evil. Then she glares back and swings at purple again, trying to hit her a third time. Her blow lands yet again. The purple cultist looks quite injured, but she’s still standing.
Ilsa watches in horror as her allies seize up. Hoping to keep Bashiel from being crushed by the onslaught from their top flank, she casts a spell to keep them from swamping him. The red cultist slips on the grease and falls prone.
Kalem felt his limbs freeze. His eyes stared in horror as his body stopped listening. Standing there with his scythe still raised above his head he could only watch as his enemies swarmed…
Bashiel struggles against the magical bindings holding him in place, but despite his best efforts he's unable to move anything more than his eyes. He eyes the floating scythes. They look even sharper when you can't defend yourself.
Red Cultist stands to his feet, then takes a step back out of the grease. He glares at Ilsa before casting a spell. A third floating scythe appears next to Bashiel and slashes at the paladin. It bounces harmlessly off his armor.
Green Cultist makes his way around the room to get in a better position to attack. His floating scythe swings again, but misses. The scythe then vanishes.
Blue Cultist touches red cultist and almost all of his remaining injuries disappear. The blue cultist’s floating scythe is no more, so the cultist starts moving around the room as well.
Purple Cultist slashes at Kalem again, but the tiefling’s armor is too strong.
Pink Cultist strikes at Zamanda again and hits once again. The bard looks badly injured. Bleeding from multiple places, she’s not likely to be fighting much longer unless the battle takes a significant turn.
With a force of will, Kalem shrugged off the paralysis. He had been fortunate to have looted the breastplate he wore off the enemy, for it had undoubtedly saved his life. Now he knew not to take these foes lightly.
Zamanda's voice gets an edge to it, and you can tell that she is struggling to continue, but she continues to sing.
She doesn't see a way out that doesn't get her killed anyway, so she decides to keep fighting.
She swings at Purple.
Unfortunately, her new wounds offer enough pain that she pulls up short on the swing, not damaging her at all. She stares at the woman, wondering what brought her to this day in which they were both likely to die.
Constitution Rerolls: A PC can spend a Harrow Point to reroll a Fortitude saving throw, stabilization check, or other Constitution-based check. She must abide by the new result (although if she has additional Harrow Points remaining, she can use them to attempt additional rerolls).
Damage Reduction: A PC can spend a Harrow Point to gain DR 3/—. This damage reduction persists for the duration of the encounter in which she spent the Harrow Point. A PC can’t spend multiple Harrow Points to increase this damage reduction.
Fast Hit Point Recovery: A PC can spend a Harrow Point after resting for 1 minute to recover from her recent ordeals. She regains a number of hit points equal to her character level and 1 point of ability damage each time she does so (this does not remove ability drain). She can spend a Harrow Point in this manner once after each encounter.
"Guh!" Bashiel struggles again against the magic that binds his limbs in place, this time managing to start moving them just a little. The critical condition Zamanda is in fills him with desperation.
Zamanda's voice gets an edge to it, and you can tell that she is struggling to continue, but she continues to sing.
She doesn't see a way out that doesn't get her killed anyway, so she decides to keep fighting. She swings at Purple.
Unfortunately, her new wounds offer enough pain that she pulls up short on the swing, not damaging her at all. She stares at the woman, wondering what brought her to this day in which they were both likely to die.
Ilsa, with the north flank looking more secure, jumps in front of Bashiel to assist her companions. Her eyes narrow and focus on the cultist in front of Kalem. Her debilitating stare is like an unseen weight upon him. She raises her sap and aims at his face. The blow hits hard and the man looks battered, bruised, and shaken.
Kalem, with a force of will, Kalem shrugged off the paralysis. He had been fortunate to have looted the breastplate he wore off the enemy, for it had undoubtedly saved his life. Now he knew not to take these foes lightly.
Bashiel says, "Guh!" as he struggles again against the magic that binds his limbs in place, this time managing to start moving them just a little. The critical condition Zamanda is in fills him with desperation.
Red Cultist starts making his way around the room. His floating scythe slashes at Bashiel again but misses.
Green Cultist moves forward and slashes at Ilsa around one of the glass vats. He manages to hit the mesmerist, opening a gash in her right arm.
Blue Cultist does likewise and opens a gash in her left arm.
Purple Cultist swings at Kalem again but misses.
Pink Cultist slashes at Zamanda again and connects. The bard falls unconscious from her injuries and drops to the ground, her bow clattering on the floor beside her.
Having shaken off the paralysis, Kalem fixed his gaze on the cultist with the purple trimmed robes. He put all of his strength into a blow which connected cleanly. Still, he wasn’t quite used to using a scythe, and had swung it like a hammer. If only it were a few inches higher, the man’s head would surely have come off.
Zamanda falls to the ground, bleeding and dying.
Bashiel advances carefully as Kalem brings down the purple cultist, prioritizing the evil Urgathoan cultist with the pink gloves. "Face me or die, you psychopaths!" He challenges the remaining cultists, hoping to somehow get them to focus on him and leave the vulnerable Zamanda alone for a while.
”Zamanda!” This was all going to shyt. Even before the head priestess came out. Inwardly he cursed the queen’s armored goon squad for their uselessness. He ripped his scythe free, hoping that she could last until they could get to her.
Zamanda falls to the ground, bleeding and dying.
Ilsa didn't like her position, but as she sees Zamanda fall she knew she had to be up front.
She tries to strike at one of the cultists that had injured her, but her sap strikes the vat instead. The vat’s glass cracks, but the creature inside doesn’t stir. The beast in the vat to the southeast stretches a clawed hand toward Ilsa.
Kalem, having shaken off the paralysis, fixed his gaze on the cultist with the purple trimmed robes. He put all of his strength into a blow which connected cleanly. Still, he wasn’t quite used to using a scythe, and had swung it like a hammer. If only it were a few inches higher, the man’s head would surely have come off. Though the man keeps his head, he doesn’t keep his life. He crumples to the ground from Kalem’s blow and lies still. The bloodrager’s second blow is off the mark.
Bashiel advances carefully as Kalem brings down the purple cultist, prioritizing the evil Urgathoan cultist with the pink gloves. "Face me or die, you psychopaths!" He challenges the remaining cultists, hoping to somehow get them to focus on him and leave the vulnerable Zamanda alone for a while. His first swing connects, injuring the pink cultist, but his second misses the cultist entirely.
Red Cultist finishes making his way around the room only to strike at Bashiel once again, but misses. His scythe floats forward and misses as well before vanishing.
Green Cultist swings at the paladin now in front of him, but misses.
Blue Cultist slashes at Ilsa again, but misses.
Purple Cultist is dead.
Pink Cultist smiles at Zamanda’s fallen form. He grins at the rest of you and says, “Soon all of you will follow her to the grave. Then we will raise you in Urgathoa’s name and add you to our gallery. Since you will not honor Urgathoa in life, you will do so in undeath!”
The cultist then swings at Bashiel, but misses.
While the cultist was monologueing, Kalem stepped up and...
...buried his scythe into the side of the man’s head.
Zamanda's body tries desperately to keep her alive:
But the damage is just too much. She continues to bleed out.
Having gained a little breathing room, Bashiel drops his longsword and warily crouches down - holding his shield ahead to cover against the remaining cultists. He reaches out blindly behind him and touches Zamanda's head. "Օսիրիս, օգնել նրան, խնդրեմ" He intones a quick prayer in ancient Osiriani, calling upon Osiris to heal his ally.
He straightens and draws his heavy mace rather than risk going for the longsword he dropped.
Zamanda's body tries desperately to keep her alive… but the damage is just too much. She continues to bleed out.
Ilsa continues engaging the blue cultist to the side of the vat. She swings again, trying to fend him off, but her attack misses.
Kalem, while the cultist was monologuing, stepped up and… buried his scythe into the side of the man’s head. The pink cultist abruptly stops talking, but the smile remains on his face, even in death, as he falls to the ground. The bloodrager is then able to take a step forward and badly injure the red cultist.
Bashiel, having gained a little breathing room, Bashiel drops his longsword and warily crouches down - holding his shield ahead to cover against the remaining cultists. He reaches out blindly behind him and touches Zamanda's head. "Օսիրիս, օգնել նրան, խնդրեմ" He intones a quick prayer in ancient Osiriani, calling upon Osiris to heal his ally. The paladin’s healing restores Zamanda to consciousness, though she’s still badly injured.
Red Cultist slashes at Kalem, but misses.
Green Cultist swings at Bashiel, but doesn't hit.
Blue Cultist targets Ilsa, but misses his mark.
Pink Cultist is dead.