"In the next room? One is as good as another, in the absence of information. However, what of this room? All of these mechanisms are at least as complicated as the... energy relay... we encountered before. I think that is a power measurement device of some sort, for the rest I would defer to an expert" the android pauses abruptly and stares at Tabitha, perhaps expectantly.
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Tabitha stares on at all technological equipment in amazement. "Wow... I... I wonder what they all do..." She walks in and surveys the room. It is so dusty. It hasn't seen any life for a long time... I wonder... She thinks as she turns towards the doorway.
Seeing Triax staring, she snaps back to reality. "Oh, right. Um, lets see." She turns to check out the various equipment. Alright. Lets figure these out.
The golden panel seems to be glowing more brightly than the rest of the equipment in here.
Kadosh crosses him arms and looks around unhappily.
"Your friend isn't here, so we should probably move on," he suggests. "Those lights will try to hypnotize you!"
"It seems rather a leap in logic to claim that the light will hypnotize us. We can try and use this tools, and in trying learn - human fear, however, gets us nowhere."
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Tabitha sighs as she can't figure out what the equipment of the room does. Frowning, she begins to look for any labels upon each item to see if she can find out what they are that way. She makes her way around the room till she stops next to the glowing panel. "Hm, maybe this might be something interesting..." She looks it over, not trying to touch it to see if she can figure out what it does, or find a label upon it to see if she can read what it is.
"Look at her. It's like she can't look away..." Kadosh issues in a rejoinder to Triax, pointing toward Tabitha.
The golden panel is glowing brightly enough to illuminate a small inscription beneath it.
It reads: "Επαναφορά".
"Do not be dramatic Kadosh; of course she could look away. I have known several wizards in my existence. These wizards always have a certain look about them when they are working; it seems probable Mistress Tabitha shares the same look."
"Tabitha, if you believe the button might restore the Torch, then try. It is not our primary goal here, but still a worthy one."
As Tabitha presses the button, the room goes quiet and the many lit buttons dim.
A few seconds pass before the consoles in the room flare back to life with a loud *WHIRRING* noise. A large panel on the western wall starts to rise up with a tortured *groan*, revealing the desert the party traveled through...
...with a major difference.
The ceiling over the desert dunes sparks once, twice, and flickers for a moment before it takes the form of a clear blue sky, with the sun shining down on the room below. There is a howl of rage, and a great gust of wind billows throughout the room, sending dust flying every which way.
Motes of golden light rise from the desert sands, from the site of the party's battle with the skeletal kasathas. A bright mote of white light emerges from the room next to the room the party is in, and merges with the golden points of light in the centre of the desert expanse. In a flash, the lights depart.
The chill of the grave in these rooms has been lifted.
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When the lights go dim, Tabitha looks around, curious, and somewhat worried.
She jumps back from the panel as various consoles flare back to life, and can't help to snap her attention to the panel that rises up from from the equipment of the western wall. It flicks on and shows the desert cavern upon it.
She gazes on in wonder as the ceiling of the cavern sparks and flickers before it forms into a clear blue sky with a bright sun. "Oh wow..." She says in amazement.
But she shields her head when a howl of rage resonates through the area, and closes her eyes as dust swirl around the rooms.
When it ends, Tabitha opens her eyes once the event settles down. She looks around and gazes back at the panel of the desert. "Oh..." Her eyes widen as she recognize the motes of golden light float over where they fought the skeletons and a mote of white light shoot off over to them before disappearing before her eyes.
She turns back to the party in just stark amazement. "Tabitha thinks that wasn't what resets the Torch... But it did help somewhat... I think?"
"Huh. See. Light and nature solved that problem," Kadosh reasonably points out, gesturing to the bright sky, though his words contain a measure of doubt.
Triax returns to the science deck.
"There is blood on the floor there" it notes, pointing at the Northern door. "Although we should investigate, perhaps we could approach from an a different way, on the chance whatever caused the blood still waits within. I suggest this door." The android notes the large central double door.
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Tabitha snaps back to reality and follows the group along back to the room with the vinegar smell and the dried bloodstains upon the floor.
She cant help to try to cover her mouth and nose from the overpowering stench of the room. Looking around while following Triax, she tries to figure out everything in the room.
"Does one of the little colored square keys open this door?" the android inquires, and then proceeds to try both the brown and black keys, temporarily sheathing its sword.
The brown keycard slides into the box. A small *BEEP* is heard, and the doors slide open with a *whoosh*.
Another corridor lies beyond the doors, leading to two sets of double doors: one on the south wall and one at the eastern end of the corridor. They both have keycard locks next to them.
Triax immediately tries the southern door, wasting no time.
The doors slide open with a simple application of the keycard, revealing another corridor. A set of double doors is at the southern end, and a single door is on the southeastern wall.
The reek of mould and decay is particularly strong around the southern double doors.
"Faugh! Something smells dead around here," Kadosh notes. "I hope it's not your wizard friend."
With his morningstar out, he approaches cautiously, keeping a close eye out for threats.
"That would be unfortunate - but perhaps likely at this point, realistically."
The android opens the single door on the southeastern wall.
The southeastern door opens into yet ANOTHER corridor, this one leading to an intersection of sorts. A door is immediately on Triax's left, another door is twenty feet down the hall on the southern wall, and another set of double doors is right next to that door. The intersection leads to a set of double doors on the north end of the hallway, with an eastern corridor leading off of it to a dead end.
All the doors have keycard boxes next to them.
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Tabitha quickly retorts to Kadosh. "Tabitha certainly hopes not!" As she follows along with everyone.
Being alert, she tries to keep aware of her surroundings.
She may have heard footsteps, but most likely her own. And the only thing she smells is the rot stench that floats through the air.
She begins to go over what they encountered for the day and then frowns, realizing she doesn't have much to contribute later on. "Er.. Tabi-I don't have much magical reserves left." Tabitha states. "I have my cantrips that I can use often and being able to launch my weapon at a enemy. But I don't have much else to call upon."
"Well, just stay behind us and we'll keep you safe. You seem to know how this works, and that's enough!" Kadosh reassures the young woman, giving her a (slightly feral) grin.
"Pick a door," he adds. "One's as good as another here."
He looks them over with a shrug.
"Jasper, you OK? You've been quiet. I hope you're not moping over the girl. I'm sure she got out fine. Fierce, like I said!"
Jasper smiles and says That she definitely is. Sorry I was lost in my own thoughts for a bit.
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Tabitha gives Kadosh a stern look before resigning and agreeing with his assessment of the situation. He's right. I am no warrior, nor magus like person either.
She looks towards the double doors straight ahead. "Um... Lets try that one next, the double doors." She points ahead to them. "We might find something of interest within."
The double doors slide open silently.
The stench of mould & decay fills this open, dark chamber, no doubt created by the thick blanket of fungal matter coating the floor. Several chairs sit before work tables containing unusual tools & equipment, while a row of transparent glass doors line the curved southern wall.
A strange plant sits in the middle of the room: its head is a mix of yellow & orange triangular petals that sits atop a blue stem. Three whip-like tendrils come out from the plant's stem, resting on the floor.
"Careful!" Kadosh warns. "That thing's not Numerian, but I've heard of 'em. It's a weedwhip. If its tendrils hit you, poison'll make you spill your guts."
He looks around to see if there's any reason to enter the room.
"Doesn't look like there's anything else in there worth going in for."
Triax studies both the creature and the room carefully, looking for anything that might be important.
"What of the tools on the tables? Are they necessary to our further explorations?"
"There is an entity inside a cell, but atmospheric scattering is interfering with my hyperspectral imaging."
The android pauses, realizing its artificial programming temporarily superseded its own free will.
"I believe I saw something in a cell, but am uncertain.". It finishes.
"Well, that thing probably can't hurt you," Kadosh points out. "I'm sure it's safe for you to go in and see what's there."
"Yes, that seems rational." Triax immediately proceeds into the room, sword in hand.
As Triax enters the room, the plant shifts in his direction and rises up!
Kadosh stands idly by, secure in his belief that the plant isn't going to be able to do anything to a soulless machine.
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Tabitha looks on as they watch the plant creature lay there, unmoving. Listening to Kadosh's explanation of what the Weedwhip is, she thinks about if there are other tidbits of knowledge of what she might know.
Seeing that she hasn't even heard of one before, she sighs.
When Triax walks in, Tabitha watches with curiosity as the creature rises up to meet him.
She draws her dagger while moving up to the doorway and launches it towards the creature. It is a plant, right. It should be able to be trimmed easily enough. I hope. She wonders.
HP 12/15(NL0)
AC 16, touch 12, flat-footed 14
Fort +1, Ref +2, Will +3
CMB: +2, CMD: 14
Cantrips: acid splash, detect magic, light, prestidigitation
1st: air bubble[x], shield[x], shield[x]
Hand of the Apprentice: 3/7
Arcane Bond: 1/1
Current Effects: Mage Armor +4 AC
Tabitha's launched dagger slices off one of the plant's petals with ease.
Triax is entirely neutral - but it does throw Kadosh a calculated look before circling the current foe and lashing out with his sword.
vs flat footed
Triax finishes the job with a single strike, cutting the plant apart at the stem.
"See? I told you it couldn't hurt you," Kadosh says.
He continues to look around the room from the doorway.
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"To tell the truth, it didn't get a chance." Tabitha quietly states as she walks into the room
Looking around, she is amazed by the structure and layout of the complex. So.. Angular. Built sturdy and rigidly. Yet able to hold its structural integrity. I wonder what this room might have been used for? She goes about checking the room, and then tries to piece together what this room could have been used for.
She then goes to where Triax pointed out something before the pruning of that creature.
The cells are mostly empty, save for fungus-riddled corpses sitting against the far walls. Each of them appears to have been split open from neck to belly. Some of the corpses' personal effects appear to still be intact...
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Covering her mouth, Tabitha looks at the various fungus and mould that line the floors and walls. It might have been a laboratory. Yes that is it. She wonders. "This place was once a Laboratory. A place to examine live specimens."
She looks towards the corpses along the far walls in the cages, split from next to belly. Tabitha becomes a bit queasy at the sight. What poor creatures."
Recalling the corpse that they encountered before, she retches before regaining herself. "Ugh... They... They were infected by the same russet mould infection. And by the looks of it, their bodies... Spawned something, plant like." She frowns and looks towards the ground. Poor creatures. Such a way to go. To be rent asunder by a creature growing within you.
"Well, at least we know what to look out for now," Kadosh says.
"What did you find?" he asks Triax. "Anything worth going in there for?"
A closer look at the corpses reveals they still have the following items on them:
--3 masterwork light hammers
--4 silver holy symbols of Brigh (worth 25 GP each)
--1 suit of masterwork chainmail that hasn't yet been ruined by the mould
--1 ring with images of interlocking gears around the band
--3 fungus-encrusted vials of dark blue fluid in a belt pouch.
"Many things of utility. We should take what we can; these individuals have no use for them now."