Oh, by the Pit, not her again... Olivius curses just a little to loudly to be counted as under his breath.
Oh she recognizes it alright. She doesn't say anything but Thirzin announces it for her.
The Aasimar's back ache unnaturally, the pain perceived completely through in her mind but still causing her discomfort. Asuriel eyes widen and she is sure her skin pales slightly. At least at is how she feels. Goosebumps appear on her arms as she shivers once and warps her arms around herself. She swallows hard and quickly retreats off the altar, taking a step backwards. She says in a meek voice, "R-right. Is it cold in here or just me?"
She looks to the door to the south and says, "Let's move on. Through that door then?"
Right.
Olivius moves to and opens the door before the altar can get any ideas.
Off we go!
"Wait a moment, you two. Might want one of us to take a listen, that way we're not walk in' into a trap." the dwarf pulls out his weapon with one hand and goes up to the door, looking it over and then also listening to see if there's likely anything on the other side.
Olivius stands aside for his cautious friend.
Thirzin finds no traps, and the room beyond is deathly quiet.
"Moving on sounds good. The sooner we get out of here, the sooner I can drink to forget it." Horatio tries to joke, but the statement is closer to truth than he's entirely comfortable with.
Olivius and his new weapon take point.
Asuriel places a hand on Olivius shoulder. "Wait, one moment."
She closes her eyes and takes a moment to establish links with both Olivius and Thirzin. As her body chills theirs warm slightly as if they were being bathed in sunlight on a clear day. Once the links are established she shakes her head, "I do not know why I did not do this sooner."
She readies her weapon behind Olivius and casts Detect Magic towards the south.
Saroune follows the others, examining her surroundings for other historical artifacts.
Olivius opens the door to a huge room looks like nothing more than an immense underground cathedral. Stone doors stand to either side of the main entrance, but beyond this, the walls are carved with strange, spiky runes. In the center of the room is a large pool, with a ring of polished human skulls balanced on stone spikes arranged in a circle around the deeper midsection. At the far end of the room, a pair of stone stairways leads up to a pulpit on which sits a second pool, this one triangular and filled with churning, bubbling water that looks almost like translucent lava. Yet while wisps of what look like heat and steam rise from the strange orange liquid, the room itself is deathly cold.
Olivius holds his Ranseur ready and steps in. He steps to the left toward the northern door while keeping a wary eye on that altar.
Thirzin will enter as well, giving others a good chance to get in, if they choose to. He keeps his weapon poised, as he looks around the room, trying to make out any other ways in or out.
"The decor isn't so bad once you get used to it," Horatio mutters, stepping in behind Thirzin. "Becoming awfully same-y, though. Oh, look, a pile of skulls. Yes, that will go so nicely with the ominous braziers and founts of evil gods." He isn't even entirely sure why he's still talking, considering everyone else appears to be pressing on in gloomy silence. His fingertips itch madly.
If I forget to remind you later, will you remember to remind me to remind you? he plays.
“I’m not sure. What were we talking about again?” she says, her deadpan delivery ruined by her twinkling eyes. I’d almost despaired of finding your funny-bone, Olivius.
“A few Qadiran carpets would do wonders to liven up the place,” Pavanna chips in, her tone dry but her voice a little unsteady. She knows exactly what drives Horatio’s bad joke: she may not feel the room’s unnatural chill quite the same way a human might, but that doesn’t mean this chapel(?) doesn’t make her skin creep. A working temple to the Mother of Monsters in a Thassilonian complex? Brrr! I hope it wasn’t part of the original installation.... “Then again, I don’t believe interior design is a large concern in Lamashtu’s teachings. Something of a doctrinal blind spot, really.”
As she moves, she keeps her sword and shield at the ready and her head swivelling, splitting her attention between the font at the far end of the room and watching for movement from the door to her immediate right. Come out, come out, whatever you are!
"I rather like it," Saroune adds. "They've really nailed the whole "demon cult" thing down." She pauses to look around the room, lingering on the jagged runes and the bubbling orange pool in the back.
"Anybody want to back me up? I'm going to go take a look at that."
Asuriel hesitates "Erm, Saroune, this is quite ominous. A lone bubbling pit all by itself surrounded by a runelord and Lamashtu signs? Perhaps our tough men should scout it out to clear it first?"
She shoots a glance to Pavanna, not wanting to intrude on the general. "That is, if you agree Pavanna? Your thoughts?"
Olivius volunteers himself. We need to clear it at least. The last thing we need is a threat at our back.
Ping is the last one through the door, nervously stepping past the threshold. Not even a moment after she'd cleared the doors, they slam shut.
"What fools enter the mother's sanctum?" A feminine voice booms from the emptiness.
Olivius doesn't even try to hide his truly Chelaxian curse this time, Ahh Hells...
Thirzin looks around in the darkness for the source of the feminine voice.
"Fools don't enter with our confidence." Thirzin grasps his weapon. "If ya're going to bait us, lass, you're wasting your time."
Looking to Olives, he shakes his head.
"Don't let her get to ya. Just stay calm."
Though Horatio makes no threatening movement, nor response to the voice, his hand moves slightly closer to his violin.
‘The Mother’s sanctum’? Another Lamashtan, then — perhaps even Nualia’s sponsor in that faith. No visible sign of her... I’d say we’ve found our quasit. And a devout servant of the Mother of Monsters, by her words. I think this expedition is about to get ‘interesting’....
“Keep the doors closed, if you can,” Pavanna murmurs to the others, adopting her crisp, certain ‘soldier’s bearing’ once more. Be perceived as confident, and others will take heart from your example, she remembers. “If we can’t get out, neither can she.” She keeps her eyes moving, her ears pricked up, sword and shield in guard positions, still searching for signs of the speaker.
Ahead of the voice Asuriel will announce her findings on detect magic, "The pool at the far end of the chamber glows strongly with necromantic magic. Be wary of it."
Asuriel's heartbeat quickens at the voice. She swallows hard and whispers, "Can we please dispatch of this threat with expediency, I am quite uncomfortable in this setting."
To Pavanna, "Do you see here? Is she physically in here?"
Asuriel readies her cold iron scimitar, preparing for the worst. Asuriel puts one arm on each of the backs of the companions next to her and raises her head to the ceiling. She says to her allies, "May the Dawnflower protect you from this demonic creature and guide your paths to delivering it into the light by any means necessary."
Saroune winces at the booming voice and snaps her will back into the protective enchantment she had cast earlier. "So much for curiosity." she mutters.
Ping flinches at the voice, her ears ringing from its power.
"Why can't they just politely ask us to leave?"
Thirzin can feel Sprig shaking in the hood of his cloak.
"W-w-what w-was that?"
"Yet fools you are! Surrender! Swear loyalty to the Mother, and I'll see fit to bestow her blessing on you! Refuse, and DIE!"
On this last word, a few ruby droplets fall through the air and into the roiling well at the back of the room. The light and froth both lessen substantially as two familiar forms burst from the surface and climb out of the pool. Above this appears a tiny, horned and winged woman with talons for hands and feet. The two monsters spring into action, rushing down the stairs to get at the party.
Meanwhile, a hideous, gurgling humanoid shape burst from the pool in the center of the room and strikes for Olivius. The wild strikes miss their mark, but distract him long enough for the Sinspawn to join the burgeoning fray.
One goes for Thirzin, attempting to clamp down on the dwarf with its horrific jaws. Overwhelming feeling of rage and bloodlust flood into his mind, spawning images of his hands being the ones to slaughter friends, family, innocents, and foes alike, as wickedly sharp teeth sink into his flesh.
The other makes for Noro, and tries to clamp down on the woman's arm. The tien woman proves lighter on her feet than Thirzin and manages to spin away before it could even brush its teeth against her skin.
Above the frothing pool, the quasit begins to cast a spell, pointing to Olivius as the words of power thrum in the air. A black bolt of lightning streaks towards the fighter, missing him only to slam into Ping's chest. The gnome looks weakened as the spell's energies ripple down her limbs, though it could have been worse for her.
The demon isn't pausing to gloat, however, and is busy casting another spell.
Erylium: 0
Dretch: 0
SS1 (SR 13): 0
SS2 (SR 13): 0
Noro: 28/28
Olivius wastes no time in striking at the spawn engaged with Thirzin, but the angle and the fire inside his reach make the strike... difficult.
The dwarf grimaces and grips his weapon tight in his hands, pulling back on the chain and swinging the weapon into the one Olivius is also attempting to harm.
"Get. Out. Of. MY HEAD!" the dwarf yells, as the heavy ball slams into the creature's core and definitely cracks bones.
The violin is in Horatio's hand even as the creatures charge down the stairs. For a moment, everything appears to him in slow motion, as if the world is just a show, and he's providing the score.
Then the bow touches the strings, and with the first few notes, the colour and ferocity come flooding back.
Erylium: 0
Dretch: 0
SS1 (SR 13): 8
SS2 (SR 13): 0
Noro: 28/28
For her part, Pavanna hisses in frustration: the quasit is their main concern, but she’s been smart enough to make her minions the primary threat. And the daughter of a paladin, herself another soldier of Iomedae, finds herself behind the front line in a fight against fiends and demons!
Then she shakes her head at her self-importance. You are at your post, Pavanna: attend to your duty. Your time to fight will come. Considering their situation closely, she makes the dutiful choice, not the warlike one: she shifts her grip on her shield and tosses her sword from right hand to left, then stands the weapon on the floor, point-down, with her shield-hand atop it to hold it upright. That should still give us light enough to fight by.
With her sword-hand free, she reaches into her belt for the wand Kyna gifted to her. Thirzin and Ping will need this, soon enough.
Ping staggers after getting hit by the ray of black lightning. Her body shakes as if she'd physically pushed herself too far past her limits. Her breathing seems weaker, more ragged, but the cold swirling inferno in her slit-pupiled eyes show only a building fury. The faint outlines of scales appear on her cheeks and brow.
"So, the little skank thinks she can cast some spells, fine by me," she growls as she slips past Asuriel and clears Noro.
"Noro! Cold snap coming in, stay back!" Blue-white flame dances in her hands as she shouts her warning. Then her voice thrums with arcane power as she whispers the words etched in her mind. With a last ringing shout, she throws her hands forward and blue-white fire born of a winter's fury blasts out to envelop the creature the attacked Noro.
Saroune reaches into her component pouch and produces a pinch of powdered iron. Working quickly, she begins her incantation. She didn't technically need the metal, but iron helped to make the arcane connection more solid. Once her calculations were finished, she tossed the pinch at Olivius and brought the bond between her will and the fighter's form together with an audible POP. It was a simple spell, and a clumsy one, since it would only work if he let it, but Saroune had been practicing her transmutation and was eager to see it in practice.
"Think big thoughts, Olivius!" Saroune shouts over the din.
The wound Thirzin takes from the sinspawn closes nearly a quick as it occurs. A fresh wound blossoms on Asuriel as she grinds her teeth against the path. Seeing an opening near the wizard, Asuriel makes her way around and swings her scimitar towards the sinspawn but misses.
Erylium: 0
Dretch: 0
SS1 (SR 13): 8
SS2 (SR 13): DEAD!
Demon Doggie of DOOM: 0
Noro: 29/32
Rage: 6/7 left
The flying demon finishes casting her spell and begins to cast another as a demonic-looking dog appears and proceeds to begin mauling Ping.
Meanwhile, the Dretch tries to disassemble Olivius and even manages to get past his formidable defenses. The sinspawn facing Thirzin smacks his lips and dives in, tooth and claw, for another taste of dwarf. The claws don't even warrant a batted eyelash. The teeth, however, well, it looks like the monster got that second taste.
Meanwhile, Noro faces off with another of the monsters. Again, the sinspawn only manages to bite down on its foe. Its eyes widen in shock and horror as Noro lets the rage take over and caves the beast's skull in with two punishing jabs.
The hardened dwarf grimaces as the beast takes another chunk out of him, amazed that the previous wound was gone and this one taking its place. The horror of the thing that he is exposed to from the bite do not deter him from fighting against this creature.
Although not as accurate as the previous time, Thirzin strikes with much more ferocity, the wounds crushing flesh of the spawned creature of sin.
Erylium: 0
Dretch: 0
SS1 (SR 13): 18
SS2 (SR 13): DEAD!
Demon Doggie of DOOM: 0
Noro: 29/32
Rage: 6/7 left
The monster reels from Thrizin's second blow, teetering on it's feet as it struggles to remain upright.
Olivius drops the huge weapon half on purpose and half by accident. It's length makes it useless in these tight quarters, but, as the weapon clatters to the floor, he is fighting off horrible memories he thought long gone. Blood and fire and darkness cloud his vision.
He draws his short spear. Taking it in two hands, he turns his back on the brute in front of him and attacks the summoned beast threatening Ping with a furious, bestial roar!
Juggling his violin into his left hand, Horatio draws his rapier and stabs at the creature menacing Thirzin. The music continues to bounce off the walls, a pleasing effect of the underground acoustics.