Coen scratches the back of his head and laughs in embarrassment as Holg taps his chest and compliments him so loudly.
" Haha sorry about the lack of notice, but we didn't have a chance to use that spell before. I hope to do it as rarely as possible, but it helps in these narrow hallways we're always crawling through."
Viv touches down gently on the ground and says, "Well it all worked out quite nicely, so hurrah for that."
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"And hopefully we just happened to find the most crowded part of this place first. That was a lot of nastiness packed into only a little bit of space."
"Call me pessimistic in this instance, but I doubt it. We likely will see more of this nastiness until we find some sort of power source and disable it or something."
The western half of the manufacturing hall contains immense cylinders, bins, and furnaces covered with thick layers of dust. Evidence of an ancient battle remains here and there on the walls in the form of scorch marks and broken machinery. In particular, the heaped remains of a strange insectoid automaton lie in a ruined heap to the west, partially buried under fallen rocks.
Three humanoid robots with a single glass eye stand guard here--gearsmen, like the one you fought beneath Torch long ago! As they see you, they quickly raise their laser pistols and aim them in your direction. In a shrill voice, one speaks in Androffan: "Lower your weapons and submit the traitor Casandalee, and you shall be spared."
You obviously do not have Casandalee with you, so the robots hesitate only a moment before opening fire! One of pistols glows brightly as it consumes extra power, but it doesn't affect the gearsman aim. Three burning bolts strike Holg!
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"Hell! This is going to be painful boy!" Holg moves forward and makes a gesture with his left hand. From his wrist sheath springs a scroll he quickly unrolls and starts reading out aloud with ease thanks to the light spell in the area.
As he completes the spell a sudden obscuring mist starts forming around him completely concealing the group from the robots shots, so the group can avoid their dangerous aiming.
"A myrmidon! Those are flying robots that can patrol the skies. The League naturally covets them so they can spy on places from the air."
When confronted by the gearsmen, Fireday can only comprehend the name Casandalee, but given their hostile stance it's clear that a fight's in the offing regardless of what they say.
He advances forward to join Holg at the front and close the gap between them and the gearsmen.
"No such luck. Plenty more room for problems."
Kaska readies her falx and advances toward the machines. With the heavy mist making it hard to see, she decides to exercise some caution and doesn't go too far ahead of Holg and Fireday. She's had a day full of painful surprises so far, and she's not anxious for more.
Coen uses his magic to create another eldritch conduit between himself and Holg. Viv hurls a blast at the nearest gearsman , but it pings off its armored body. Holg conjures a cloud of mist as he, Fireday, and Kaska cautiously advance.
The gearsmen appear in the mist, now gripping spears that crackle with electricity. they move to surround Kaska, stabbing at her! One scores a good hit!
Viv snarls with frustration, winds up like a pitcher and hurls another bolt at the guardsman.
"Kaska! Are you ok?!" Understanding his spell is now more a nuisance to the party than a boon, Holg makes a dismissal sign and the mists disappears around just as it appeared.
The cleric steps forward and readies his sword "Step back chief! They are too many!"
"Not with me by her side!" Fireday replies advances to join Kaska at the front.
Then he lashes out at the robot in the front.
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Coming across the pack of gearsmen in the mist and discovering they also have spears shocks Kaska , she had been expecting to close on them and that they would only have the lasers.
She backs away from the mob, closer to Firedat and Holg. Her haphazard slash at the lead gearsman just bounces off it.
"I'm alright, just surprised they came at me."
"Yes Kaska! You can defeat them keep attacking!" Samuel smiles as both Fireday and Kaska go up and hold the line "On their toes Fireday!"
Kaska: 2nd Attack.
Coen summons an Aggressive Thundercloud to the rear of the robots and moves it into contact with the enemy in the rear, causing electricity to arc into its body.
Sparks fly from the rearmost gearsman as Coen's cloud electrocutes it. Viv's aim is true as she blasts another robot, but Fireday and Kaska fail to pierce their armor.
The rearmost gearsman touches the one Viv struck, flooding its metallic body with nanites that repair some of its damage. The other robots attack Fireday and Kaska, stabbing them with electrified spears!
Fireday jerks and screams as the spear electrocutes him.
"Iomedae give me strength!" he cries as he presses the attack on the one that wounded him!
"Gorum guide our swords!" Holg raises his holy symbol and blesses the party.
"Let me swap positions once you are too hurt!" the Kellid holds eager to join the fight.
Kaska manages to get one of her swings through the robot's shell before stepping back to make room for Holg. The gearsmen's spears are tearing her up very quickly, and she can still help out from range.
"You're up Holg!"
Floating up off the ground again, Viv launches another shard over Fireday's head and into the gearsman opposite him .
Coen moves the Thundercloud to again collide with the rearmost robot and then readies himself to cast a lightning bolt through the enemies after Holg steps up.
"BURN BEFORE THE TORCHBEARERS!" Fireday cries.
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The gearsman doesn't even seem to move out of the way of Coen's thundercloud as it electrocutes the robot again.
Kaska scores a powerful strike on the gearsman fighting Fireday before stepping back. Viv's blast tears through the robot, sending it sprawling to the ground!
Fireday lands a glancing strike on the next gearsman, and Holg blesses the group and steps up. That's when coen seizes his moment, channeling a lightning bolt through the cleric.
The rearmost gearsman collapses in a smoking heap, while the other is badly damaged. The last robot stabs Holg with its spear!
Coen moves his thundercloud over the final robot, and the electric discharge finishes it off!
"Waaaah!" Holg shouts at the gearsmen as the electricity bears from his chest finishing the robots.
"You saw that?! I did not even had to smash them with my sword!" the Kellid looks back enthusiastic at the party and Coen "I don't know what you gave me but these sparks are working like a charm!"
While others pick up the gear he starts to zap everyone injured
The man stretches as he recovers thanks to the magical wand "This preserves my magic so we can continue exploring. But if we have to face more adversaries like these... we will be forced to go back and rest if we want to keep us on the safe side"
Before the group moves forward, Holg uses his remaining pearl of power to recover surmount affliction.
Fireday takes one of the pistols as Holg heals him.
"I can probably figure out how to fix this and use it..." he muses.
"They were painful. Do you know how to use it?" Holg inspects the gun with Fireday.
"Do you think they show them how to shot these things or they do just learn by themselves?" the Kellid looks at Fireday as if he should know "I mean, is this something in your circuits you all have?"
Seeing no one is against, the man pushes the group forward, calmly chatting with Fireday while they inspect the area as they advance towards the next door.
If nothing else is found, Holg casts guidance on himself and opens the door when the others are ready.
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"It's tiring but I agree it's much better to have the lightning start at you and not arc through everyone."
After a short break Coen follows along from the rear.
"I'd probably have to learn how to shoot. It's shaped kind of like a hand-crossbow, but without the mechanical action..."
He follows after Holg and readies his battlestaff.
A line of runes is printed above the two doors on this room’s western walls. The Androffan characters above the first read "Canister Access," while the ones above the other door read "Nanotech Laboratory." Several tattered, strange suits of armor hang in shreds from hooks in a wide alcove between these doors.
Another gearsman stands in this room, this one holding a worn-down laser rifle. It rumbles to life and speaks shrilly in Androffan: "Primary objective complete. Fugitive exterminated but remains required per Unity directive one. Please submit traitor Casandalee or face immediate execution."
When you fail to provide what you cannot provide, the robot raises its gun--
--and fires upon Holg, burning him with a hail of laser fire!
" Exterminated? How do you know he is dead?" Holg question is muffed by his shouts of pain.
Barely able to move, he steps behind the door and heals himself.
Fireday takes Holg's place and advances into the room to attack the Gearsman.
After seeing what just happened to Holg, Kaska is determined to make herself as difficult a target as possible. She comes at the entrance from a very acute angle, using the doorway when she hits it to ricochet into the room almost opposite her original direction of travel. After a couple more steps she stops to hack at the machine on the side opposite Fireday's attacks.
Viv whips out another metal shard and hurls it wrapped in aetheric force, hoping to send this monstrosity to the ground before it can take another shot with its laser rifle.
After Viv fires her blast into the machine. Coen steps into the open space behind the door and evokes a torrent of electricity through the middle of the room along the same trajectory.
Viv's blast punches a hole in the gearsman's chest plate, badly damaging it. Holg steps back to heal himself, then Coen steps up and electrocutes the robot with a lightning bolt! Viv and Fireday move in to attack, but both of their strikes clang off its armored body.
The gearsman backs up and shifts its aim to Kaska. The barbarian luckily dodges the first blast, but the other two burn into her chest.
With enough energies to move normally once more, Holg gives himself to the battle with reckless abandon "There is no pain. Gorum give me strength and show me the path to this battle, make this robot kneel under your power or let my sword shatter it to dust!"
The Kellid moves through the door following Coen's lightning and falls himself over the robot like a thunder, jumping at the last meters to strike the construct gunner.
Kaska grits her teeth and hisses at the pain from the laser, but she presses her attack on the machine.
Holg and Kaska make quick work of the gearsman, shredding it to pieces!
"Once again, Kaska, Iomedae smiles on your relentless valor!" Fireday says, offering her a shoulder to lean on as the gearsman falls.
When they discover the filter masks, he smiles.
"Mind if I keep one of these? It'd be good for hiding my face without constantly wrapping bandages around it."
After the fight, Coen is tired after the remainder of the electrical charge dissipates into the metal in the room.
"In mind to keep you all up to date, that marks the last of my highest level magics. I have enough to continue on, but my spells will have less impact."
"I can of course continue fighting all day" Holg laughs with all his face and arms covered by the burns of the laser rifle "But if Coen needs it, I can pray to recover more blessings for tomorrow. And some of my spells are also running out of time..."
While he talks, Holg starts healing both himself...
...and Kaska.
With almost all his healing magic run out Holg stretches his muscles "Shall we retreat to the farm above and call the day? I am terribly hungry! I would eat a whole pork myself!"
"Yes, let's pick up the masks" the Kellid takes the riffle while talking with Fireday "Covering the face cause the style!"
"I'd be fine with retiring for the day. We've fought well, and I doubt we'll need to worry about attrition like we might have fighting the Lords of Rust."
Fireday dons the mask and shows it off to the others.
"How do I look?"
You retrace your steps out of the strange facility and climb up out of the well. You return to Iadenveigh and rest in your lodgings at the High Home, recovering from your recent battles. The next morning, you awake feeling refreshed and ready to finish exploring the dangerous ruin.
While in Iadenveigh, Holg takes the opportunity to use one of the kitchens to prepare cinnamon cookies. The Kellid secretly stores them in a small pot bellow his armor. You never know when you need some sweets.
"That place we are exploring seems extremely dangerous. Do you think they really killed Casandalee?" Holg converses while he performs his daily sword warm-up exercises "It's not that I care too much. Shattering all those robots is being a real challenge, and that is interest enough for me to come back there and finish our mission"
Before entering again into the ruins, Holg casts defending bone to protect himself.
"THIS time, we will be better prepared," Fireday replies. He punctuates this by praying over both himself and Kaska to empower them with Iomedae's strength and stamina.
"Kind of amazing that all these 'bots have stayed put instead of going out and ravaging the town," says Viv.
While the group walks back and comments he looks at Viv "Wow, you are amazingly right Viv! There shall be a reason for them not to do that. Do you think they have a robot leader? A god perhaps? I would love to measure my sword against another Hellion!"
When the party reaches once more their last position in the strange ruins, Holg also casts bull's strength and shield of faith on himself "You are totally right Fireday. We should be prepared this time"
Then, using the light of his greatsword as a torch, he pushes open the northern door to continue the exploration.
"Kind of amazing that all these 'bots have stayed put instead of going out and ravaging the town," says Viv.
"That stone was a pretty good door, it seems."
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The walls of this large room are lined with dark panels of glass, tiny buttons, and other mechanical devices. A set of metal tanks sit to the west, while a chair mounted on a swivel on a short platform sits to the northeast. To the northwest, a section of flooring has been ripped away to expose a tangle of metallic plates and coils of brightly colored cables. Two round tables sit in the room’s center.
As you look around the room, you hear a deep voice say, "Have you word from my master?"
You recognize the voice from the recording you watched earlier. You cannot see any source for the voice, though.