With a great feat of strength, Victrix pries the ooze off of her, pushing it to arm's length. The alkali flask, magic missiles, and inflict spell all badly damage the creature, portions of its body burning away under the assault.
Undeterred, the creature wraps itself around Victrix again!
Victrix tries to wrench the slime off of her again!
...unfortunately, she's not as successful this time around.
"H-hang on, Vick!" Calamity shouts. She pulls another card and throws it; it sticks out the side of the ooze for a few seconds before flying back and shuffling itself back into the witch's deck.
Ema cast her spell again, this time augmenting it with some of her reservoir and shot a quintet of missiles at the ooze.
Kip conjures a spiritual rapier to stab at the ooze. As Victrix fails to pry it from her, the grippli hops forward and blasts it with a torrent of water, shoving it off of the barbarian. Then it gets bombarded by an alkali flask, a vampiric Harrow card, and a barrage of magic missiles. At last, it collapses into an inert puddle of acidic goo...
Oorka moves forward to tend to Victrix's injuries.
Victrix breathes a sigh of relief as the ooze is beaten to a puddle.
She gives Oorka a "Thank you!" in Azlanti and points at the ooze. "Okay. Didn't expect to be glommed on like that."
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"A mimic ooze? That is new. These islands seem to hold a host of creatures never seen anywhere else."
Looking over Victrix, he looks for evidence of acid damage. "Does your armor feel ok? Some oozes are capable of dissolving armor and weapons as well as organic material."
Simon will also look over the area where the ooze was waiting to see if anything might have been dropped by previous victims. Once that is complete, he will continue following the map to the Wheels of Heaven.
Victrix checks her armour.
Victrix's armor seems undamaged. This type of ooze only consumes flesh and personality. Simon doesn't find anything valuable lying around the area.
As the afternoon wears on, you find yourselves in the foothills of the of the low mountains. You clamber up the side of the mountain, finding a few footpaths to ease the journey. As evening approaches, you reach your destination. A 20-foot-tall building has been built into the slope near the summit of the island's tallest hill. The interior of the building is a machine consisting of thousands upon thousands of gears. A giant tube similar to a spyglass rises from the center of the contraption.
Despite its age and the events that struck this region, the gigantic clockwork mechanism has sustained only minor damage.
Victrix does so.
...or tries to, anyway.
Working together, you are able to get the device working once more. Twenty minutes of study and experimentation reveal that this massive analog clockwork mechanism is designed to calculate and display astronomical information, such as the positions of the sun, the moon, other planets, and a number of constellations.
A user can feed data into the clockwork mechanism by pointing the telescope at any celestial object. With just two data entries, it is possible to calculate a linear trajectory and the object’s speed, and by adding more data, the machine can calculate curved and elliptical paths while refining its initial calculations to be more accurate. Once a trajectory has been calculated, the user can set a dial to indicate any point in time in the past or future, and the mechanism calculates the object’s location at that moment, automatically rotating the telescope to point in that direction if the user so desires. These calculations are stored in a gem called an ioun memory node. The mechanism also has an output panel comprising thousands of metal pins mounted in a frame that allows them to slide up and down. The mechanism can display data about the objects being observed by moving the pins so that they form letters, numbers, or three-dimensional graphs; by pressing symbols formed from extended pins, the user can feed additional data to the device.
A series of parameters is already set in the device, likely from the last time it was used.
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Getting his journal out, Simon makes a rough sketch of the device and includes observations about the presumed function of the device and how to use the controls.
With his pen ready, he looks around to the rest of the team excitedly. "I can only assume that this device has not been used since the collapse. We are about to get a look at what was important to people 10,000 years ago, at the true height of human civilization.
This moment is historic. I am glad to be here sharing this with all of you."
With pen ready to make notes, Simon reaches out and activates the machine.
The device whirs and clanks as it processes the data. The pins rise up to reveal a large mass of objects. Runes form, indicating that the objects were traveling through space at a great speed on a trajectory to collide with Golarion. It can only have been Earthfall!
Suddenly, there is a bright flash. The ground rumbles, and a high-pitched whistling noise sounds from high above you...
Victrix's eyes widen. "Oh, for F$!+'S SAKE--"
She leaps back, trying to grab anyone next to her to get them out of the way.
Guided by Simon's directions, Kip reaches out with healing energies. He is able to just disrupt the haunt's manifestation. The rumbling ceases, and the eerie whistling noise fades away. It seems the threat has been neutralized, at least for now.
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Still bracing for something bad to happen, Simon looks around for a moment. "Is it safe?"
Starting to relax a bit, he walks back over to the machine. "It was triggered by activating the machine. But was the machine the key or the images of Earthfall?
The previous haunt was inside of an impact crater, so it was more obvious what needed to be done to put the spirits to rest. Here, though, there is no obvious damage. Could any people still in this structure have survived the impact? We should at least look around for old bodies.
But, first, I want to know a bit more about this machine. We already know that there was an impact that caused the calamity. But, was it simply a random event?"
Simon studies the machine further.
Each planet's location relative to Golarion at any given moment is stored in the mechanism. Curiously enough, much older data entries include two planets orbiting at a distance between Verces and Eox, and the panel displays the names Damiar and Iovo for these entries. Simon remembers seeing those planets represented in the observatory where you fought Helektherie--the Twins, as they were called, were destroyed in a separate calamity long before Earthfall, and their remains form the asteroid belt known as the Diaspora.
The trajectory shows a enormous asteroid came from the Diaspora on a collision course with Golarion. It impacted with the planet's moon, shattering the asteroid into thousands of pieces, but the fragments weren't slowed or deflected from its course. The fragments then rained down all across the planet's surface. Of course, you know one of the largest pieces created what is now known as the Inner Sea and was later raised by Aroden as the legendary Starstone.
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Simon stares in amazement at the machinery in front of them. "This machine may be one of the more important scientific and archaeological finds.... ever.
To actually be able to SEE the events that led to Earthfall. I want to be able to go back and see if there was some outside force that caused that asteroid to begin its collision course.
However, that is probably the work of months, with a team of researchers.
What we need to do is to secure this site and make it safe for others to work here. Let's see if we can do anything to put these spirits to rest."
Simon will begin looking through the structure to finds signs of any tragedy. He will then search outside the structure.
Victrix can't help but smile a little. "Betcha those Pathfinders never found something like THIS."
Because of the observatory's high elevation, this location is an excellent place to use a spyglass to scan the surrounding terrain. By spending 30 minutes of surveying your surroundings, you spy a tall pillar of stone jutting up several miles to the southwest. It's as clear a landmark as any.
Going through the data entries stored in the device indicates coordinates for that location. While you are studying this data entry, the metal pin panel shows the word "pillars" in Azlanti, and displays a three-dimensional representation of the location's topography. There are actually seven pillars of stone, each taller and thicker than the previous one, which stand in a spiral-shaped formation.
All of the data can be saved to the machine's ioun memory node, which can be removed.
Unfortunately, Simon is unable to find any remains or clues as to what might be done to put the haunt to rest...
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Simon smiles at Victrix's comment. "If they had found this site, they either would have repaired it or deconstructed it to sell off the component parts.
No, this find - especially when combined with the temple and it's construct keepers - is the kind of thing that could make our names legends. Without certain scientific circles, anyways.
Well, let's keep this memory module safe and go check out these pillars. Perhaps there is more information down there that will help us to understand the nature of the haunt."
Simon will save the data and do whatever is required to put the machine into standby/shutdown mode, then retrieve the memory node and put it into his haversack
Calamity winces as Victrix and Simon casually insult the Society. She mumbles protests, trying to reassure herself while also remaining small and unheard.
"This is, is immmportant. We w-w-would have documented it thoroughly and done our best to restore it."
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Hearing Calamity's soft statements, Simon stop short and turns to fix her with a glare. "You are a Pathfinder, too?"
Breathing deeply, he tries to remain calm. "...turn a new leaf, Simon. No more anger..."
Attempting to smooth his features into something more pleasant, he continues in a softer tone. "The Society may have written about it, before destroying it. Those writings would then be held in secret only for the eyes of a select few, not distributed freely to the benefit of all Golarion. I will believe otherwise once you can tell me the contents of the Fifth Chronicle."
Leaving the matter there, Simon turns and waits for the others to be ready to leave for the pillars.
As they found the observatory Ema found herself dumbfounded in awe at the place. It left her very quiet as she went about helping Simon repair the clockwork and get the mechanism in working order. While she was sure she'd never been there before much of the machinery seemed rather familiar, like she'd seen and worked with such things at some time long ago. It wasn't until the thing activated that she realized something was wrong.
It was a lucky thing that Kip was with them and his quick casting was able to neutralize what had just begun. Ema felt her heart pounding and she braced herself against the nearest stable surface as she shook. Something about that scene struck a chord in her as well though she didn't know why. She was left fairly oblivious to what had happened in the interim but hearing Simon's anger at the mention of the Pathfinders snapped her focus back to reality.
Before Ema could snap at Simon for his prejudice again she was rather shocked to see he backed off and at least tried to be more pleasant. Ema gave Simon a faint smile, still shaken by the haunt, and said, "I'm glad to see you trying to push past your preconceptions Simon. I do agree that this place needs to be studied more and I hope to get the chance." She looked up towards the area the haunt had begun to manifest in and said, "But we should try to deal with that first."
"Besides, we are the ones that found it, so we can do what we think is right. No need to get upset about what might have been. Unfortunately, when the spirits started manifesting I put them back to rest before we got much of a clue as to the source of their pain. Hopefully the pillars can shed some light?" Kip said quietly.
After resting overnight in the observatory, you make your way down the tall hill and southwest towards the pillars. After about 3 hours, you reach your destination.
Seven pillars of stone, each taller and thicker than the previous one, stand in a spiral-shaped formation. The pillars bear many intricately carved symbols inlaid with a silvery metal and lines of a crystalline material, and each pillar is fitted with a ring-shaped, metal dial with similar symbols carved onto it. The entire area seems unnaturally chilly and dim, as if a great shadow lay over the land.
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Simon approaches the pillars slowly, nervous about the odd shadowing. With no obvious traps and no monsters, he approaches the outermost pillar to begin studying it.
"A spiral pattern. I wonder if that has anything to do with Pharasma? Having already encountered evidence of Pharasmic influence on Azlanti culture, it certainly needs to be considered."
Studying the symbols on the dials, he confers with Ema. "I think these runes seem similar to symbols used in teleportation magic. Do you agree? Could this be a teleportation circle?
I wonder if it still works. I certainly wouldn't want to start playing with it without having some idea of where it was going to send us. If it was a means of transporting to other Azlanti structures, you might find yourself far underwater, buried under a mountain, or deep in a volcano."
Continuing his study, Simon can only scratch his head at the other symbols, being nothing like anything he has ever seen before.
After a few minutes of studying the pillars, a foul mist bubbles up atop two of the pillars as a pair of horrid creatures appear. These gaunt, long-limbed quadrupeds have huge, soulless eyes and a toothy maw. The lean creatures move with a predatory grace.
One of the snarls, and you feel as if the air grows heavy around you, causing your movements to be slow and sluggish. The second one seems to slip between the angles of reality, appearing at the base of the pillar beside Simon. It snaps at him, tearing the half-orc with its teeth.
Simon identifies the creatures as hounds of Tindalos! Hounds of Tindalos are otherworldly predators from beyond the bounds of known reality, usually appearing only when summoned by reckless spellcasters. Little is known about their nature outside of blood-spattered notes and deranged writings of the nearly insane survivors of their attacks. They enter the physical world on their own in pursuit of those who have trodden too much the netherways beyond time and reality—time travelers and creatures that teleport without regard to how this movement impacts subtle magical currents in the multiverse particularly draw their interest.
Simon knows they resist nonmagical weapons and are immune to mind-affecting effects.
Though Victrix is slowed down, she manages to tank one's harmful gaze without a blink.
She powers through it, moving slowly to get next to Simon while her eyes burn with anger.
As they prepared to leave the next morning Ema finished her preparations and then cast her normal defensive spells before they ventured out after eating breakfast. When they finally arrived at the she found herself fascinated by the way they stood and felt certain they were man made or at least sculpted.
Ema was far too distracted by everything she was seeing and assumed that Simon was right in his evaluations. It wasn't until the dreadful howling occurred that she knew something was wrong.
No sooner did Ema thinkThose must be Yeth Hounds than did she feel a wash of fear sweep through her. The stories tore through her mind of what they tended to do and she felt herself suddennnlyyy sloooowwww doowwwwnnnnn
Unnnwiillliinnggg too beee soooo ssslllooowww Emmmaaa casst a spelll tthhaat caused all of them to go back to normal or speed up drastically!
Being told not to look at the dogs, Calamity doesn't, making sure to keep her eyes tightly shut. She mumbles something and drops a card on accident and starts floating away!
With a yelp, she swims forth and stabilizes, out of the reach of the querulous hounds.
Kip keeps his eyes closed and casts a spell to bless the party.
As Ema counteracts the hound's slow spell, Oorka grants Victrix guidance. The aasimar rushes in to attack Simon's foe while the half-orc steps away to protect himself from further harm. Calamity lifts up into the air!
The wounded hound turns towards Victrix and attacks with teeth and claws. The second one slips through the angles of reality to appear in the shadow of the nearby pillar before stepping into a flanking position! Both monsters rip and tear at the aasimar's flesh, leaving bloody wounds behind.
Ema knew that she had to do something to help take these things down and fast. That in mind she tore open a gateway again, right behind the hound closest to her, and a lion leapt forth and tore into the hound. She was, of course careful not to look at the hound and quickly moved around behind the nearest stone as the celestial lion smote the hound and tore into it teeth and claws flashing.
Victrix howls in pain and turns her axe on the hound between her and Simon!
Calamity chances a peek when she hears Victrix's cry. Seeing her in trouble, she draws the Survivor and sends it flying to her aid. The card slices the skin and sends waves of positive energy into the barbarian.
Kip summons a spiritual rapier to stab at the hounds. Ema's conjured lion mauls the uninjured mnonster, grabbing a hold of it. Both Victrix and Simon connect with their attacks, further wounding the hound that initially attacked the half-orc. Calamity's card channels healing energy into Victrix.
Sickened by Simon's strike, the hound continues to attack Victrix, ripping at her with its teeth and claws. The one the lion is grabbing turns on the celestial beast and tears it to shreds! The great cat barely clings to life.
The lion meets the hound's gaze, and its body tears itself apart, banishing it back to the heavens!
Calamity continues throwing positive energy at Victrix, now even less willing to look the hounds' direction after watching the lion implode.
Victrix refuses to give up, still swinging at the Tindalos beast!