While Warren and Anwel decipher the symbols on the wall with Stellan, a bat-like creature with the wingspan of at least two humans dives down out of the darkness and lets loose with an ear-piercing screech that rattles you all to your very bones.
Udoeak immediately brings his hands to his ears at the screech of the bat-like thing. "What the hell was that? That was far bigger than any bat I've ever seen!"
Anwel's stomach lurches at the sound, and his first instinct is to grab at the wall again to steady himself. A fraction of a second before he starts, though, he remembers that the portion of wall in front of which he is standing will move itself, so he digs the balls of his feet into the ground instead. His brow furrows as he tries to maintain his concentration on the candle. As long as it does not go out, the others will be able to see Imon's giant bat more easily - and either befriend it, drive it off, or take it down.
Warren sends his recently summoned eagle and eagle friends to attack the large bat.
Holding his crossbow, he looks for a target.
Andrei readies his shield, sword already in hand as he moves towards the bat.
"Ettdyn returns to Aeaea, where he buries Verhon and spends one last night with Nycha. She describes the obstacles that he will face on his voyage home and tells him how to negotiate them. As he sets sail, Ettdyn passes Nycha’s counsel on to his men. They approach the island of the lovely Sirens, and Ettdyn, as instructed by Nycha, plugs his men’s ears with beeswax and has them bind him to the mast of the ship. He alone hears their song flowing forth from the island, promising to reveal the future. The Sirens’ song is so seductive that Ettdyn begs to be released from his fetters, but his faithful men only bind him tighter."
Stellan takes his spear, readying it and holds in a defensive position.
Vinur, lacking a place to hide, stands next to Stellan, giving a low growl at the swooping bat.
Imon gritted his teeth through the bat's shriek, wondering if he'd ever hear like he had before this moment. As soon as he'd regained composure, he searched the air for the slightest hint of a slightly blacker silhouette of the creature above them. As he aimed, he couldn't help but offer a quiet chuckle, "So that's what 'unbelievably large' means? I believe I owe that man a b- a silver or two." Imon said, amending himself so as not to set off the man who seemed offended by the very concept of alcohol.
Imon fired on the first movement he noticed (if any), grabbing another arrow in record time and sending it forward along with the first.
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From his position against the wall, Gorax is surprised by the black screech which reaches into the pit of his stomach, wrenching it around and causing him to squirm. He squirms as he gets his shortbow off his back. His eyes close with pain, as he finds it difficult to set his arrow ready to shoot. "Where did that come from." he croaks as the dangerous creature appeared from nowhere.
After delivering its ear-shattering screech the giant bat disappears back into the darkness, but not before one of Imon's arrows strikes true and buries itself deep in the creatures flesh causing another screech, but this time one of pain rather than attack.
At about the same moment there are a series of rapdi clicks and a small opening appears chest high on the wall just to the left of Warren, Anwel, and the calendar device they were studying. The opening is about two feet by two feet and seems similar to the one where you discovered the cup and platter.
Warren sends his summoned eagle to chase the giant bat.
Still staggered from the bat, Warren reaches slowly into the alcove. He is blindly trusting the alcove to be free of traps and creatures.
"I don't think this should be trapped. Hopefully this is what we came for!"
Anwel unslings his bow, but finds himself unable to concentrate both on keeping the candle aloft - and lit in the wind caused by the bat's wingbeats - and lining up the shot. He prioritizes the candle for now. "Indeed," he says to Warren, trying to be as encouraging as he can given everything else demanding his attention.
If in range Stellan will cast a Ray of Frost at the Big Bat.
"It's coming back for another parse stand ready friends." Andrei says raising his sword. He leaps forward and swings the sword at the beat as it sweeps past.
Udoeak steps closer to the edge and draws his sword, readying an action to slash at the beast as it comes back around, swinging with both hands.
Like Gorax, Imon just watched and waited, lining up the shot against the last place he'd seen the beast.
The bat swoops out of the darkness and passes over the party. Its large, tooth-filled jaws snap at Anwel as the creature passes overhead, but it bits nothing and actually screeches in surprise as it miscalculates how close the elf is to the cavern wall. It quickly jukes back out over the cavern and then darts back into the darkness, but not before everyone manages to get a good enough look at the creature to aim a strike of their own. Stellan manages to hit one of its wings with a thin ray of frost causing even more trouble as it tries to right itself. Andrei just barely miss times his swing and catches nothing but air. The creature's wild gyrations also throw off Udo's attack while Gorak and Imon all send arrows streaking in the large bat's direction.
Warren manipulates the base of the nook as his now trio of eagles attack the bat. He looks for multiple ways to manipulate the exposed aperture to discover its secrets.
The attack is uncoordinated and mostly ineffective. The graceful flyers seem out of their element hunting the large bat.
Udoeak steps in front of Anwel, drinking an extract of Enlarge Person. "Step back, it's easier to protect you that way," he says, readying for the next pass.
Udo tries to hit the beast once more as it approaches, hopefully dealing damage and stepping in front of Anwel, pushing him back slightly. "Step back, it's easier to protect you that way," he says, readying for the next pass.
Imon fired again, hoping the beast would go down before any others of its like were alerted. The last thing they needed was to fight a legion of bats on a ledge like this.
Stellan notes his hit and tries again when it makes another pass.
To hit. Bonus from Andrei, I think it works on Ray attacks.
Andrei tries to keep his eye on the bat as it circles around.
As he does so he movces towards Udoeak "Everyone come together, that way if it comes after any of us it'll get into the range us all to attack."
Sure the the others have downing the creature well in hand, Anwel sets himself to maintaining his mental hold on the candle. He grits his teeth and ducks as the bat dives at him out of the darkness, but what almost disrupts his hold is Udo pushing him back against the wall and shielding him with his body. Anwel has learned not to be surprised at such things in general, but the sensation of being grabbed and thrown from danger is disconcerting nonetheless.
The bat circles back around and then dives again. With an enraged screech it ducks and weaves past Warren's eagles avoiding only the face a nasty barrage from Imon who sinks two shafts into the creatures torso. Maddened by the pain from the arrows the creature lashes out at the nearest target which happens to be Thad. The paladin screams out in pain as the creatures teeth tear into his shoulder and arm.
However, moments later Udo steps forward, his now massive body filling up a portion of the ledge as he shoves Anwel back against the wall. His oversized fist lands squarely across the bat's head, shattering bone and brain. With a final startled squeak the creature tumbles off into the darkness. A few seconds later its body is heard splashing into the body of water below.
"Good work, everyone," says Anwel somewhat sheepishly, embarrassed that he hadn't been able to contribute much himself. The candle hangs in space, the sputtering flame beginning to stabilize now that the bat's flight no longer disturbs it. "What have you found, Warren?" he asks, anticipating a way to get across the underground lake.
Stellan tries to relax following the abrupt end of the threat, but continues to look for trouble.
"That was quick. Good, I'm curious as well, Warren. Can we get what we came for?"
"Who is wounded, Thad, Anwel did it get you?" Andrei asks. Looking closer he sees the blood on Thad's armour he put hand on him and says "Reh Tegote Moch Self"
Warren continues to manipulate the alcove around the flexible bottom.
Warren tries to fit the divine cup in the circle and push down on it.
Stellan shrugs at Gorax's question, "This land is strongly influenced by, well, magic, or fae, or spirits, whatever you want to call it or them. So creature will sometimes have strange abilities, nature will find-or make a balance. Wonder what it hunts? Or worse what may hunt it?"
Stellan waits for the results of Warren's efforts.
Udoeak continues standing, out slightly on the ledge, waiting for his extract to end. Surely, a helluva thought, Stellan. One I'm not particularly interested in finding out.
While the rest of the party watches for more creatures, Warren reaches into his pack, pulls out Erastil's cup and places it in the alcove.
A few heartbeats after Warren places the cup in the alcove, the symbols on the wall and surrounding the opening all begin to glow with a soft, dim, silvery light.
"Given its reaction to us, we might be its prey or something similar. Stun its prey with that screech then kill it before it can recover. The stratagy would work much better against one target so it might fly out at night looking single targets and hunting them. On second thoughts it would work even better on birds, the stunning might knock them out fo the sky and kill them and all it would have to do is collect the corpse. Or it might eat fruit and that was just a method of defence." Andrei says "Lucky not everything is hunted by something else, but I suspect that Griffon would turn down chance at it if it got the chance."
"I'm not so concerned about what something like that would eat, so much as if there are more of them. Keep watching, if there are more around here, that screech would surely have alerted them. Imon made good on his orders, his eyes scanning all around them, especially upward.
Warren points to the strange Varisian words.
"Anyone read Varisoan?"
"Yes, many of there epics are far better in the original Varisian. What have you found?" Andrei says moving towards the writing Warren is pointing out. "Roughly it says 'Holy is he who sacrifices the water of life.'"
Stellan looks over the writing, "Yep, now what is meant by water of life, in most rituals I know of that is a euphemism for blood. However that is not a usual practice of the Erastilian faith. Could mean holy water is suppose, I fear my knowledge of religious rituals is lacking. Also, why in Varisian? Not a common language around here, they are renowned travellers but never in numbers this far east. They mostly worship the Wandering Goddess as far as I know. Wouldn't an worshipper of Erastil use Kellish or maybe the secret writings of the Druids instead? Puzzling, there is a mystery here. Any insights Thad? You are far closer to the Forest Father than I."
Stellan seems very uncertain and wary.
Warren urinates in the cup.
"My thoughts are much simpler."
Still recovering from the bat's attack, Thad overhears Stellan and Andrei as they discuss the Varisian writing. He looks over,nods at Stellan, and then points to his blood stained shirt and armor "Yes, I've plenty of the..."
His eyes widen as he realizes how Warren interpreted the words. Too late to stop the rash action he shouts, "Oh Holy Father, what have you done!"
Before Thad even finishes his shout, the light on the symbols suddenly turns a deep red. At the same moment a huge block of stone slams down across the only exit and eliminates any way to retreat from the ledge.
As the echoes of the stone crashing down reverberate through the cavern, it is easy to hear several startled, angry, squaks from high up in the darkness.
Imon turned to see what Warren was talking about, and then turned away in disgust. "Ugh, I don't think I've ever heard of that regarded as 'water of life'.
Warren cleans out the cup and cuts his hand with his scimitar and drips some into the cup.
I wouldn't doubt that it's too late for that, Udoeak says as Warren drips blood into the cup. He re-readies his longsword, still massive as he looks up into the darkness for the source of the screeches. I suggest we get ready...
"I have, Imon" says Anwel, "under the rationale that urine contains chemicals normally only found in living beings. It was a clever idea. Shame it did not work," he continues lightly. With the red light of the symbols illuminating the cavern, it seems there is no longer a need for an additional light source, so Anwel releases his magic and the candle drops down toward the underground lake. He readies his bow, wary of the sounds coming from the ceiling.