Allegra is repulsed by the solid walls of the building. Even though Dervak stepped right through it just a moment ago.
The other infested draws a longbow and fires at Dervak, the arrow tumbles mid-flight, the fletching was damaged.
Round 2 There's No Place Like Home!
Theo smiles as his blue eyes roam about the most excellent of decors!
This place really should be featured on one of those HGTV reality programs!
He then points at the two remaining ugly sons of b&#&!es!
Enny, meeny, miney, moe. Catch a rabbit by it's toe.
The White Rabbit sticks his tongue out at Theo.
What?
Theo then Hexes Yelloow!
"Sun Strike You!" Ci Ci cries, pointing at the (YELLOW) fungus creature.
Mara could tell that Allegra needed help getting into the building. She told the woman, "I'm opening up a portal; get ready to go into combat!" She concentrated and shunted her through the wormhole.
Dervak moves up, activates Arcane Strike, and readies to strike the spellcaster if they try to cast again.
If the caster tries to 5' step back and cast, Dervak will use Pugnacious.
Theo curses one of the corrupted to reality TV hell. While Ci Ci rains down holy fire.
The stairs here ascend at inconsistent angles, sometimes climbing like ladders and other times descending several feet to weave underneath another staircase.
With a puff of yellow smoke Allegra is transported through space and time. She feels like her flesh is being pushed through a metal mesh and reformed on the other side. As she reappears reality flickers. Darkness, claustrophobic solitude, and every atom of her being crying out in pain for a split second, another second and the biting cold of the bottom of a unnaturally clear lake assaults her body, a dark form stirs nearby, a tangle of hairlike fungal filaments writhe with nauseating purpose, bones lie tangled in the wriggling mass arrayed around a central draconic skull, a final flicker and Allegra appears in the room, able to perceive it and the battle.
Dervak punishes the sorcerous fungus for daring to cast a spell.
"YeeeeaaaaaaAAAAAA
Allegra reforms in the area with an excrutiating scream. She takes a second to take it in, then with incredible haste she speeds up the nearby stairs to take a mighty swing at the fungal creature perching upon them. Along the way, she calls out to Torag to empower her axe.
Allegra’s axe chops a large chunk of spongy fungal flesh from the creature; any normal human would crumple and die, but it doesn’t seem to care. It fires at Allegra in a defensive posture that offers her no opening, three arrows clatter uselessly to the ground.
Dervak's Furious Falchion carves through the enemy caster.
If that drops his foe, he will end his Rage (3 rounds used, 6 rounds fatigued).
"Mirv Elarem Duo!" Ci Ci intones, sending two barrages of magicic missiles, one at each creature.
Theophilus stares with his mouth open.
Mara flew forward and gave the evil eye to the creature fighting Allegra.
Theo then Hexes Blue!
Retribution (Su) (Advanced Player's Guide pg. 68): A witch can place a retribution hex on a creature within 60 feet, causing terrible wounds to open across the target's flesh whenever it deals damage to another creature in melee. Immediately after the hexed creature deals damage in melee, it takes half that damage (round down). This damage bypasses any resistances, immunities, or damage reduction the creature possesses. This effect lasts for a number of rounds equal to the witch's Intelligence modifier. A Will save negates this effect.
He watches Dervak carefully....
The White Rabbit shakes his head.
The Witch whispers to him.
Perhaps, we start using a Fortune Hex on the enemies; then Retribution Hex afterwards...
Dervak cuts down the creature he was facing against right as Ci Ci's magic missiles destroy the one next to Allegra. They explode in putrid spores.
The man laying on the floor still breathes and is uninjured, but he's weak from starvation.
Mara checked the man lying on the floor. "He's alive, but infected. He's close to becoming a fungal creature!"
She healed him, and pondered how to save him from such a terrible fate.
Mara's healing hex has no effect.
”Let me see if I can help him,” Ci Ci offers. As she approaches the man, one of her hands becomes engulfed in shimmering flames. She places her burning hand on the man’s chest, and wills it into his skin.
Ci Ci tries to clear out the infection by directing her fire and light into his body. He writhes in pain as she does so and begins to yell, "Stop! Y-y-you're HURTING ME!" Mara is disheartened to see that it had no effect on the infection, something more powerful is needed to save the man. He lays back down afterwards mumbling over and over, "The Star Stelae. He opened the gate. The Star Stelae. He open opened the gate..."
"We cannot heal you. You will soon be become like the creatures in this chamber that nearly killed you. What are your wishes?" she asks the man in a somber tone.
Dervak looks on. Cerise is cold. Probably right, but cold.
He hefts his falchion and awaits instructions.
"If Lowls opened a gate, we're going to close it."
Mara asked the infected man, "Where is the gate that he opened? Are you saying that there are Star Stelae here?"
She felt terrible not being able to help him, but she didn't know what could save him. "Is there something I can do to make you more comfortable?"
The Mad Poet maintains a stocic facade as he appraises your offerings...
”I will tell you what I told Lowls, find Geir’s translation now held at a university of the occult called the Mysterium in the Qadiran city of Katheer. But heed my warning, Lowls is no longer what he seems, the Great Old One Xhamen-Dor, the Inmost Blot, has infected him. I surmise he intends to use the Star Stelae in Thrushmoor and Neruzavin to mark your world so that it can be brought into Carcosa. Doing so would fully wake Xhamen-Dor, and Lowls would become the Great Old One’s champion.”
"We know of his plans from the Mad Poet. Maybe we can reverse what he has done to the Star Stela here."
The White Rabbit whispers something into Theo's ear. Theo scratches his head.
We could turn him to stone to stop the process until we can find a cure?
"What a good idea, Theophilus!
I feel like that is something the Mad Poet said.
That is not dead which can eternal lie.
So if you turn this guy to stone, he could stay like that forever, but wouldn't die."
"I'm FINE. Just going to lay here. It's just upstairs, outside." The man reflects on some unknown memory and then begins to shake uncontrollably, fear clear in his eyes.
Theophilus stares hard at the wounded man, before clapping his hands together and smiling.
Just needed a bit of motivation, I see! Well done, Dervak. Our ruse worked! Now, let us go see a Lowls about an Ending the World As We Know It fiasco!
Theo will lead the way up those marvelous stairs; waiting for Dervak to proceed him, of course.
Allegra can try to add her knowledge to the question of healing.
"Mister Carter, would you see to this man's preservation before we leave?"
Mara flew forward slowly up the highest stair, checking carefully for magic auras and traps.
Theo will bow to the will of the group.
Dervak does think that petrifying the spore-infected guy is the best option for now... still might not work.
Once that is done, he will lead the way to the next room.
Mara finds no traps and no magical auras of note, which is itself unusual considering the nature of the tower.
Dervak leads the way up a set of stairs and sees an empty cylindrical room; he can’t see the ceiling. When he ventures inside he immediately starts falling upwards, face first to parts unknown.
Theo nods excitedly...errf...mournfully.
The Witch then immediately frowns as Dervak falls upwards.
I feel like he just missed a grand showing!
Ci Ci calls upon her power, and and an invisible barrier brings Dervak to a dead stop.
EDIT: Wall of Force isn't an immediate action spell. Dagnabbit.
Mara tried to grab Dervak as he started accelerating towards the ceiling, but she was too slow.
Ci Ci flies after Mara , and also makes a grab for Dervak, trying to slow his ascent.
Dervak is not quick enough... but he does have Feather Fall as a spell known, and that is an immediate action.
Dervak casts Feather Fall.
Dervak's ascent slows to a swift but safe speed up the cylinder.
The shaft end abruptly after 120ft. Gravity shifts again as you exit. A few bedrolls, a handful of spilled grain, and the ashen stain of a long-dead fire occupy the center of this nearly triangular room. At one end of the three vertices, a hole in the wall opens to the outdoors, well above the ground below.
Ci Ci's eyes glaze over a moment, and she shudders as if freeing. After a few moments, she snaps back to awareness.
"The spores! Eating them from the inside out..."
Mara came to her senses after the terrible vision of the fate awaiting the infected man, "That poor man knows what going to happen to him."
She flew towards the exit to the outdoors, "He said that the gate is outside — at least I think that's what he was referring to."
As Dervak senses a vision of the past, memories from the Mysterium come back to him.
"It might be a haunt again!"
He follows Mara, trying to get away from the possible haunt.
"Hey, uh... I did get hit by a Fireball back there. Can someone do something about these burns?"
Mara healed Dervak, "This should help."
Theophilus will activate his Flight Hex to follow behind the others.
He Healing Hex Dervak.
Allegra shakes off the vision with some discomfort. Responding to Dervak's comment with a smirk, she says "And hopefully we won't need to burn the rest."
Theo frowns.
Sorry excuse for a camp out! No songs, no marshmallows, no hotdogs!
The feeling right at home Witch continues to enjoy the experience!
From the ground outside, this building did not appear to have any windows, doors, or other external features, yet this is clearly a walkway that wraps around the tower like a balcony without any railing. When you attempt to fly off the ledge, even near it you are assaulted with an extreme vertigo and are unable to maintain your altitude.
As you walk you are treated to Neruzavin's skyline, an insane tangle of towers. Judging by the landmarks you know about you guess that you are looking east and heading north. As you round the corner to the northern face you are treated to brief vertigo. You don't know how but you've somehow managed to skip over the northern ledge and are facing west.
Continuing along the ledge rounding another corner and brief vertigo, you see the same view as when you started. It's impossible that you got turned around. The ledge leads you to another opening in the tower.