"High quality lock, reinforced with magic. Don't think I can do this the easy way. Acid? Battering ram? Really big axe?"
Khaz set to breaking the door down. The question for him wasn’t if he could do it, but rather how long it would take.
Khaz eventually beats the door off its hinges, kicking the final bit in Khaz steps into the room. P15. Scrying Chamber (CR 4) The southern portion of this room holds a wide alabaster basin filled with bloody entrails. The outside of the basin is carved with images of warriors around a raised sun, holding longswords aloft. A flight of stairs ascends to the west.
Jocasta is always just a few steps behind Khaz, ready to guard him if enemies attack from behind or to step up if foes boil out in front.
When he finally smashes open the door to the scrying room, she is quick to accompany him inside.
Spotting the bowl full of entrails, she wrinkles her nose into a face of displeasure.
"I'm going to take this outside and dump it," she says. "The carvings on this basin - they're crusaders. This shouldn't be defiled like this."
She is quick to do so, hurrying back because she doesn't want to be split up from the team.
"How tall was this building? How many stories? It could fly, right?" He shudders as he asks that last question.
Then he moves up to inspect the stairs.
Jocasta dumps the bloody entrails bowl outside, using a strip of cloth she finds along the way to wipe it out as well. Terry looks at the stairs, finding no traps he can hear something up the winding steps but cannot make out what it is exactly.
"This is... too easy..." Firinn says quietly. "They must have concentrated their forces..." He goes with Jocasta to empty the bowl and, now the building is mostly clear, he beckons Rio in to join him. The cramped quarters are somewhat difficult for the butterfly, but it manages to rejoin the group in the defiled chamber.
As Jocasta returns the bowl Firinn nods approvingly. "That's good. So... does anyone have a mirror to check the stairs? They trapped the last ones, there must be something here too."
”Aye. This’ll likely be a fight. I got nothin’ to check though. ‘Ain’t my specialty.”
Jocasta dumps the bloody entrails bowl outside, using a strip of cloth she finds along the way to wipe it out as well. Terry looks at the stairs, finding no traps he can hear something up the winding steps but cannot make out what it is exactly.
Jocasta finishes wiping down the bowl, chants a quick spell to remove any lingering stains, replaces it on its stand and fills it with holy water.
"That's better," she says.
"The stairs are clear and clean. You mean to look around the door frame? I expect the door to swing into a wall. We're close to the outside of the building, so there should be only one real angle of threat. I don't expect a mirror will help much, but they should push to keep us stuck at the bottleneck I just described. Let me check the door . . .."
Jocasta replaces the water in the bowl, as she does the water becomes still all by itself. A image starts to form in the water, a large creature stands at alone on a landing that isn't to much bigger than itself.
This is a Fiendish Minotaur
The water then dims and goes back to clear
"That's... that's odd. Did anyone else see that? Like a... like a vision, in the water. Some kind of creature... large, with reddish skin, hooves, and horns... almost like a caricature of a devil," says Jocasta as she backs away from the bowl, unsettled.
"Yes, I saw it. A fiendish minotaur. Baphomet's followers. We should be ready to fight them." Lorena grips her spear nervously as Terry checks out the stairs and door.
The Stair lead up there is no door, the only door was to get into this room.
How do you wish to proceed?
Firinn retrieves a small mirror from his pack and begins jurying rigging it to the end of his bow. He then approaches the corner of the stairs very quietly and slowly slides the mirror out, angling it until he can catch a glimpse of the top of the stairs.
Firinn takes a few steps up the stairs and positions his mirror, he sees the two bodies of the Tieflings that let the other day and went into this room first. The stairs crest and that is as far as Firinn can see.
Firinn lifts the mirror higher, hoping to see over the crest of the stairs.
Firinn just cannot get enough of an angle to see how bit the landing is, the Picture in the bowl didn't show that much information either.
”See anything? If not let’s push forward.”
"Nothing useful. Be ready. They should be. Had to hear us knocking."
"Two bodies - the tieflings that fled this way yesterday. If there is a minotaur at the top of the stairs then its a real grumpy one." Firinn warns. "Stay low, the stairs might give you some cover."
Everyone looks at each other, the room covered in gore and dismantled. Feeling fresh from a nights rest you must be close to the end of this horrible place.
Before going up the stairs, Khaz prayed to Bolka, and a halo of light manifested around his head, bathing the group with protective energy.
"So, let's do this . . .." Based on how things in this building have gone, Terry has his rapier ready as they begin moving.
Firinn, seeing that there is no other option, leans around the corner, fires an arrow upwards and retreats down the stairs - hoping to provoke the ambush he is certain awaits into jumping the gun.
Firinn's arrow clatters off of a stony surface from what he can hear before he retreats, the sounds of hoofs shuffling around can be heard but no pursuit.
"It's definitely at the top of stairs." He hisses. "Could someone create an image or something like that?"
Lorena just shrugs while holding her spear ready to poke anyone coming down the stairs.
"I don't know about anybody else, but I figured we would follow the wall up the stairs. Probably him," pointing at Khaz, of course, "then you," pointing to Lorena, "Then the two of us," indicating Jocasta and himself, but quickly flicking back and forth between them, "followed by everybody else."
”Aye. Let’s do it.” Khaz began walking, putting the plan into motion.
Jocasta nods, sword in hand, and preps to head up the stairs.
Again you can hear shuffling as you make you way up the stairs, Khaz's heavy boots a solid reminder that he is the centre of your group and his determination. Khaz gets to the top of the stairs taking a deep breath he....
Firinn Holds till Khaz is ready to go up the stairs no other noise can be heard from upstairs.
Khaz marches in, mace held at the ready.
Khaz Turns the corner of the Stairs seeing the Largest Minotuar before him that he has ever seen. The Creatures horns scrape the ceiling of this chamber which is not wide at all, the red matted fur on the Minotaur betrays the demonic heritage that must course through it.
Khaz swings his mace almost on reflex, a very large battle axe swings at him as he steps in.
The Schir demon who still looks wounded steps down from north as well.
Even as he was hit, his wounds began to heal. Glaring up at the monstrosity, Khaz spat in defiance. ”Let’s dance.”
It is only 5' wide, Khaz will have to back down or Kill the Demon then move
Everyone else?
I can't shooot around corners... this is going to be a bad fight for Finn