The weight of your armor weighs you down as you fight against the magnetic pull issuing from the stairs, but you are able to make it to the top steps. However, the battle against magnetism takes its toll and you become fatigued.
You are at the top of the metal spiral staircase, facing the closed trap door that leads to the ziggurat room.
Someone is going to a lot of trouble to guard this place.
Open the door.
fatigued
The ziggurat largely remains as before; the primary difference being that most of it is now softly back-lit by the lapis lazuli symbols you had observed previously. As well, small columns of water and flame rise from the offering bowls at the altars on the first level. At the peak of the structure you see the statue moving around an ungeometric pillar made of green gem stone. It appears to be conducting some type of ritual or magic.
Does the box that held the stones still appear to be there?
Move up the ziggurat.
You realize that the box that held the stones now appears to be the base of the pillar that the lobster statue is moving about.
You take the same path that you did previously; instead of a strange tingle as you take your first few steps you feel a deep throb of energy pulse through you. The pulse of energy is echoed in a flash of light from the sigils and artwork laid out on the path and it quickly courses up to the top of the ziggurat, illuminating the entire structure before diminishing and beginning to pulse with every footstep you take on the path.
As you reach the foot of the stairs leading up you notice that the columns of water and flame in the altar bowls have grown larger and more kinetic.
Move up the ziggurat.
Blue lights radiate and pulse from the structure with each step you take up the stairs. You reach the first level and note the obsidian offering bowl has become starkly black, almost completely devoid of light; the lapis lazuli bowl glows brightly with blue light. Enormous twin columns of fire and water flow out of each bowl, blocking sight of the pair of stairs beyond. The heat from the massive fire elemental radiates all the way to the edge of the steps where you are and you can see a fierce storm cloud between the two towers of elemental force caused bye the great friction between the heat and the water.
Move past and up the stairs if possible.
As you move towards the stairs that lead to the second level of the ziggurat, the massive elementals flare and surge, blocking your path forward. They are clearly going to block you from ascending although they do not otherwise appear interested in conflict.
Use divine bond to add +1 to weapon. Attack fire elemental.
You lay a mighty smash on the fire elemental and the intense heat from the creature scorches you for your efforts .
It tries to envelop you in its firey grip while the water elemental watches on.
-47
-23
You drive the fire elemental back to whatever firey plane it calls home and the altar bowl that represented crumbles into dust.
-4
Can Ang move up now or is the other elemental blocking?
The water elemental appears to make no effort to block the path to the top that lies behind the fire elemental altar.
Move on up.
I wish I understood the things going on in this place better.
You move up the steps behind the fire altar and the while the water elemental watches you it makes no move to prevent your ascent. Lost in thought, tired, and a mind still processing the continued strangeness of the place you ascend to the top tier of the ziggurat.
The strange green pillar rises from the center of the top level and blue light pulses from the base into the pillar, arcing through various chains of symbols and lettering etched into the floor.
The one clawed lobster statue stands in between you and the pillar. It appears to only be watching you for the time being.
The lobster clawed statue is made of the green substance too, right?
"What are you doing creature?"
The statue is indeed made from the green gem-like substance.
A strange sibilant voice issues from the statue-Ahhhh, it knows the art of speech. Jopa'arg said as much, but he has proven much less reliable than I remember him to be.
What am I doing? Truly that is none of your business and it is like the flea asking a wolf the same question, but time beyond count has passed and I have missed the minds of things not my own so I will indulge you for now.
I am reaching out beyond in hopes that some of my children may still hear my voice. So far the responses I have receive have been less than encouraging.
An answer for an answer, is that not still the way things are done?
What are YOU doing...'creature'?
"Fair enough, I am here because an undead plague afflicts the surface and I seek an end to it. Can you assist in this endeavor?"
Keeping an eye out.
They suffer from a curse in retribution for stealing my children. Return my children to me and I will release your world from my curse.
"Who or what are your children?"
The statue motions to the odd box at the base of the green-stone pillar-The stones, the stones they stole from me. They are my children and never should have left their resting place.
Once, long ago, I sent a few of my children into the world in hopes that they would prosper, but they have all come to unpleasant ends; some I sense by your hand.
Others have more recently been taken by force and deceit and thus my curse. I would have them returned to me here so I can return to my dreams with them.
"How many were stolen and do you know where to find them?"
Seven I sent out into the beyond during times past; none returned or prospered. Recently, or so I judge time, a group of surfacers defiled this place and foully used sacred rights to deceive me. Many were slain or cursed, but some few escaped my wrath and sealed this place preventing my vengeance.
Servants of the cursed devil Mammon.
Now they are beyond my sight, far above on the surface, using my three children to fuel their plots and schemes.
Does Ang remember seeing any signs of Mammon in the town above?
"Is there any means to track your children or these servants of Mammon? The surface is a large place."
Ang does not recall seeing any recent signs of Mammon outside of the tabard he found in the tower during his earlier exploration.
I will give you one of my children to carry. As long as you carry it, you will feel the call of the others upon the surface. I will provide you with the ritual required to return my children to me once you locate them.
I must warn you, the carrying of my children comes with a price, and it will not be pleasant.
"What do you mean by price? I have carried them before without ill effect. And why the ritual, can't I just carry them to this place?"
In order to sense where my lost children are, you will have to carry the one I give you close to your heart. Given your nature, I deem that contact with my child will not be pleasant for you.
As for the ritual, indeed you may return here to unite them with the others, but I had assumed you would not wish to do such a thing and as you have seen this place is not the most safe for anyone much less creatures of weal.
Do you have other questions?
The statue is fairly inscrutable, but you don't sense any out-and-out deception. You gauge that whatever the effects of carry the stone are must be fairly nasty if it was to mention them and that further builds your belief in the statue's words. Why would it bother to warn you if it didn't want you to succeed?
"And when your children are returned the plague will end?"
The statue nods-Yes, I will lift my curse.
“Then let’s get on with it, the sooner this is done the better.”
The statue stares at you for a moment, processing. Finally-Put your hammer on the ground and place both hands on the pillar. I will bond one of my children to you.
If he doesn’t sense a trick, Ang will do as the creature says.
Sensing no trick, Ang places his hands on the pillar and an unpleasant chill runs up his arms and into his chest. Your breathing becomes labored and you find it difficult to hold your head up. The statue begins to chant and your hands slowly sink into the the pillar.
From the base of the pillar, where the box forms the foundation, a small gem-like insect skitters up the base of the pillar towards you. It crawls up your left arm as you suppress nausea and affixes itself around your neck, the legs growing outward and becoming a green stone necklace. You can feel an odd strange pulse from the stone, almost like an irregular heartbeat.
You fall to your knees and a small trickle of blood flows from your mouth.
The statue's voice rolls over you, each syllable echoing in your mind-Do you still live, creature?
"Aye, I live. Any further words of advice before I set out?"
If nothing further, head back to the surface. I'm assuming he already told Ang how to send the children back.
The statue shows you the short ceremony that requires you to touch your stone to any that you find and how that will return the found stone. When you recover the last one the ceremony will return both of the stones here and I will lift my curse. Be careful; the people that took the stones from me are quite powerful and equally versed in dark magics.
You descend the tower and walk through the small group of trolls that have continued their search for you. While you can sense their agitation and hostility, they let you pass without incident and you make your way into the maze of the city, heading towards where you think the causeway was that leads to the shore.
The further you move from the tower, bile starts to rise in the back of your throat and you feel a slight sheen of sweat break out on your forehead.
Make a DC 30 FORT save or gain the sickened condition. Make a survival check to see if you make it to the causeway.
sickened
I pray this is worth the cost.
You do your best to find your way back to the causeway but between the distraction of the gem and the strange layout of the streets your are unable to make it there. Towards the end of the day you find yourself in an unfamiliar district, somewhat close to the building that looked to you like some sort of temple.
You are uneasy, and sense an underlying malign energy in the area. As you look for a safe place to hole up for the night you spy a humanoid creature with long, sharp teeth, and pallid flesh stretched tightly over its starved frame. It stands tall and proud, grey flesh robust and muscled, sharp talons stained black, and clothing strangely well kept. Its flickering red eyes have an intelligent, malicious gleam. The creature looks over in a calculating appraisal while licking each gore-coated talon on one hand with the tip of its long tongue.
Divine bond add +1 to hammer.
Attack!
The creature lets out a shrill cry as you smash it once with your hammer. You get the feeling it is not alone.
-22
Any individual hit requires DC 15 FORT save or be paralyzed for 1 round (not cumulative).
The creatures foul scent fills your nostrils but you are already sickened from the taint to the stone.
You hit again, but miss badly with your second strike. The creature comes at you undeterred.
-44
Any individual hit requires DC 15 FORT save or be paralyzed for 1 round (not cumulative).
Not sure why I saved last round!
-7
With your third blow you are able to mash the nasty thing to the ground. Another pair quickly scamper towards your position from the temple building; something larger is following behind them. You have 2 rounds till the pair reach you.
Cast divine favor +1 luck bonus for hit/dam. Then attack when they arrive.
You cast your spell and land a hit with your second swing as the creatures scramble through the ruins in an effort to taste your blood. In the distance you can see a massive fiendish figure, complete with bat wings, claws, a fanged bull’s head, and cloven feet. Seeing you smash its minions, it bellows a roar of challenge and takes flight towards you.
Creature 1 -21
Creature 2
Any individual hit requires DC 15 FORT save or be paralyzed for 1 round (not cumulative).
This place is infested, time for a little cleansing.
You smash down creature one as creature 2 keeps up the attack. The flying fiend will be upon you next round!
Creature 2
Any individual hit requires DC 15 FORT save or be paralyzed for 1 round (not cumulative).