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Dale looks up from his chemicals and alchemical recipes as Monty mentions the flail is speaking to him "Well.. can you be more specific? Its probably speaking cyclops, or azlanti... maybe it speaks Thassilonian? Or Draconic? Lemme give it a chat!" He shutters a bit as he picks it up and greets it in both languages to see if that helps.
"Hello there, ancient cyclops weapon of serpent destruction! We're on the same team here I think.. Trying to keep this big bad snake thing locked up!"
If it communicates with him, Dale smiles through the uncomfortable feelings of holding the heavy flail and translates for the others. He does ask what the flail can do, or if it knows what the other items can do.
As Dale picks it up, it clearly does not want to be in his possession, though he grits his teeth and hangs on anyway.
He starts talking to it, in some of the languages he knows, which makes for an odd sight... though not so odd for Dale, in retrospect.
After a moment he stops, with an odd look on his face, then hands it to Monty.
Wait... you hadn't intended to do that!
But... somehow, it made you. Fascinating! Through sheer force of will it appears to have overpowered your own and the next thing you knew, you were handing it to Monty!
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Monty raises an eyebrow and looks at the flail.
When we get back to civilization, I'm gonna spend some time figuring out whatever language you speak.
Deciding that the flail seems to be on their side, he stashes his staff on his back and palms the heavy flail.
Welp.... let's see if you can't help us out with this nonsense won't you?
The measures decided he looks back towards the crack and frowns.
Still haven't resolved how we're getting back past that... unless we're just risking and hoping. I don't know how much dust was left if any of us get whammied...
The pendant is designed to protect the wearer from harm, helping them break free of harmful effects... and can even help stave off imminent death!
Though Faliana seemed to think there was more to it than that back when you encountered the haunt... but you can detect none of what she's referring to... so whatever she senses was probably more spiritual than magical.
The mask is harder to divine. Although its power appears to have faded greatly, it seems to be drawing some from the surrounding ruins.
It is designed to protect the wearer from gaze attacks, but has gained some additional powers to protect from such attacks from its connection to Starwatcher Tor. You're not sure it would maintain all of its powers once taken from here.
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One by one, Dale begins looking at each of the three items, his eyes with a weird blue glow and his face lit up in a smile. "Well this one here, its a wand of bull's strength. Its got 16 uses left." He sets it down, picking up the necklace next.
"This is nice too! An aegis of recovery! It helps protect you from lasting things like poison or mind control type stuff.. sorta. I can help keep death away from wounds too, but only once." He holds it up and lets it swing back and forth as he looks around the group, wondering who's eyes will linger on it the longest.
Finally he picks up the mask and eyes it for a few moments as well "This... neat mask." He says, putting it on over his head. "Is actually... CURSED!" He cackles loudly and jumps up from his seated position before laughing, taking it off. "Nah, it helps you fight off bad things that come from looking at things like medusas and gorgons!" He fails to explain what those creatures are however, assuming you all know about them already.
An aegis of recovery grants its wearer a +2 resistance bonus on all saving throws made to recover from a continuing effect, such as ongoing poison damage, daily saving throws against a disease, a hold person spell, or lingering damage from an attack. This bonus does not help against initial saving throws against such effects. Should the wearer ever drop below 0 hit points, the aegis heals the wearer for 2d8+3 points of damage and then crumbles to dust.
Not exactly this but close.
n addition to hiding the face, this fine lace veil protects the wearer against gaze attacks. The wearer has a 50% chance to avoid making a saving throw against a gaze attack even when not averting her eyes. If the wearer averts her eyes, she rolls twice (once for the veil, once for averting her eyes) and uses the more favorable result.
Against patterns, visual figments, and other vision-based effects and attacks that cannot affect blind creatures, the veil grants the wearer a +4 circumstance bonus on saving throws. The veil does not otherwise impede the wearer's vision in any way.
After his jaunt into the world of magical enlightenment, Dale works with the others on his plan for the crack. "Well I was thinking, if we are just trying to get people past the crack, maybe someone can put that mask on then roll that giant busted up shield in front of it so it can't see us go past... bam! Instant crack be gone!"
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Dale flips his head back, throwing the hair out from his eyes as he looks at Thad "Did you look in there? Not friendly!" He starts to connect any available dots on what he's seen Tad do lately, and drinking from the fountain is one.
"Faliana, what sort of magics where you seeing on Tad before we fought these two headed, no tailed snakes?" He eyes up the frog man suspiciously.
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A very strained grimace takes the place of Faliana's usual small smile. In a syrupy sweet voice she gently asks, "... Taaaaaadd, did you go near the craaaaack, DID you?" ...of course he did, dearie, I knew he was going to betray you, the slimy ones always do!
When the grippli's answers make it clear he is being influenced, Fali's left eye starts twitching as she stomps over to the small man. She almost makes to grab the man and give him a good shake. before stopping short, her face a mask of fury and arms shaking, seemingly, for once, at war with herself. After a second, she violently turns away and answers Dale's question instead.
"There were two different spells on him is all I can say. I've never really trained myself to recognize magical auras, I just know how to alter my sight to see them... But, I think we can safely say what ONE of them was, now."
Decidedly NOT looking at Tad, Faliana moves over to the shield and tries to lift it off the shelf, grabbing a handful of the dust as she goes. She hands the dust to Monty, with a pointed look and proceeds to start rolling the shield out of the room.
=)
With a little effort, you are able to roll/carry the large damaged shield down the hallway, though everyone but Tad starts to get a little edgy as you near the crack in the wall. The little grippli mostly looks puzzled why you're going through all the trouble for no reason.
The size and orientation of the break in the wall means you can't just lean it up there, and ignore it, someone has to hold it in place, while the rest hurry by, giving both as wide a berth as possible.
After you do so, you leave the shield leaning there against the wall, covering at least half of the exposed crack, before quickly backing away!
Everyone looks at everyone else, trying to see if anyone starts acting any more unusual then normal... other then Tad of course, who still seems unconcerned with all the caution.
The pounding of metal on stone continues to reverberate down the hallway, and you know you're almost out of time. Through the doorway, you see all the archaeologists continuing their work, apparently not the least bit perturbed, barely even glancing your way.
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Monty goes over and takes a drink from the fountain, wondering if maybe the flail would approve... it seems to be on the side of helping him out.
Well, here's to hoping this doesn't kill me... but all this stuff seems to be setup to help with whatever is behind that door, so I'm willing to work with what I can find.
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After his brilliant plan to use the shield, but before they put it into action, Dale takes one last look around at the murals in the rooms in this area to make sure he's gleaned all he can.
Before passing the crack Dale will don the one eyed mask as a bit of an experiment, or a fashion statement, one can never be quite sure. Afterwards he joins Monty at the fountain for a drink. "Quite the day we're having here. Hope that flail is friendlier to you than it was to me. Wonder what the issue was?" He ponders through the single eye holed mask. His long hair filling most of it.
Neither Monty, nor Dale, experience any immediate negative effects from drinking. It is just clear, cool water, as far as either of them can tell.
Both of them will show indications of a faint magical effect, similar to the one Tad gained when he drank.
Although the flail does occasionally say something to Monty with a somewhat urgent tone (as much as one can tell tone from telepathic communication) ... it does not appear to do so in reaction to the fountain in any noticeable way.
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Brady will join Dale in the sips from the fountain, but then he hurries the others to return to the monolith. "We don't know how much time is left.... we need to be ready when it opens the door."
As they are walking back, he falls back to walk next to Faliana and Dale, if possible.
"Monty and I used the last of the dust from the sphere. Unless we can come up with another way... we're going to have to deal with him under the spell of that creature."
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Faliana, having lugged the shield in front of the snake pit and testily done with unknown damnable magics being tossed around stays back from the fountain and drinks from her own water skin, still giving their cleric the sub-zero shoulder.
When Brady starts talking to her she shoots the man a testy glance before taking a deep breath and in a more relaxed manner responds.
The way back to the ritual room is easy enough, and you can make your way there without incident.
It is immediately obvious to Brady and Tad that the door is going to buckle any minute. Though the rest can see nothing through the darkness emanating from the disc you recovered from the storeroom, even to those who can't see it, you can tell the door can't last much longer... if only by the sound. Though the golem's rythmic pounding has not changed, its instrument feels like it is finally buckling beneath the beat.
Both discs are where you left them, the darkness one still inserted into the second panel on the wall, the other leaning on the floor nearby.
Arletta is not here, it would seem she retreated back to the tents, not wanting to be alone in the room, while you were gone.
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Monty starts to walk forward and stops for a moment. He seems to think intensely for a while before he turns and before she can react plants a kiss on Fali. As he pulls back the old monkey grins.
For good luck. I promise there is another one after we survive this... so be ready for me Fali! I'd be rather upset if I couldn't.
The implicit statement is pretty obvious to all. This was going to be dangerous... more dangerous than anything they'd gotten up to yet. He waits a moment, almost hesitant to leave her side now before loping over to the big door as the golemn slams his fist into it again, putting his back against the wall on one side to make sure he's out of the way of whatever might come bursting out of it.
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Faliana walks into the darkness with mixed feelings. On the one hand not being able to see where she is going or what the hell she is doing is the worst, but on the other not having to worry about breaking into a crying mess over seeing the poor, innocent Tad and being reminded that he's being controlled. Curse that damn snake thing!
She makes sure to grab Brady's hand before going into the darkness, not wanting to bruise herself on a wall or unexpected things again.
As she stands in the darkness, Faliana thinks about how to handle an opponent that she can't see at all, what she could do to try keep from getting hit and do to strike back.
Faliana distracted by her own thoughts is completely blindsided by Monty's kiss. She tenses for a second not sure what is happening, before realizing what is going on and relaxing. She still ends up gaping like a fish after he finishes and starts explaining, before she reaches out and grabs the vanaran pulling him in for another kiss. After a few seconds she lets him go saying, "And here's one for you! Don't you dare keep me waiting!"
She (watches/listens?) to him lope of with some tears in her eyes before drawing her longspear and starting to focus herself again.
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Brady will have a hard time putting a blanket on the wall and having it stay. With nothing to hang it on, the vibrations from the golem pounding on the door shake it loose relatively quickly, every time.
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As the time grows near, Dale will drink down his last extract, providing himself with an extra measure of protection. Then, he takes the mithril wand they found and goes around to the rest of the group and taps each of them, bolstering their strength for the.. unpleasantness that lies ahead. Handing Brady an antitoxin "Drink this, in case you get poisoned!"
"Someone needs to put on that necklace! We also need to get in and get those discs and get out to place them into the wall holes. I would say Monty might be the best choice for that job? Maybe he should wear the necklace." Dale shakes his head nervously, keeping himself closer to the door than not.
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The final few minutes seem like they take an eternity... you can almost feel the constant pounding in your bones, like your very heartbeats have synchronized with the Monolith's fists smashing against the door.
It is even worse for those who can not see... just sounds emanating from the darkness... waiting to break through and release something even worse... that you can only hope you'll be able to stop!
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For millennia it had been confined. Its entire existence defined by four walls barely large enough to contain its might. When the one-eyed giants had trapped it here, they thought themselves clever. They thought their mortal magic could contain something eternal.
The Gol-Gan had been so sure of their strength, that they failed to see their weakness. Their pride... their arrogance... their mortality.
Even back then, it could sense their mistake. They failed to immediately finish their ritual once they sealed the gate. They thought four walls would be enough. The warding stones remained unplaced.
And time passed... and passed... Until there was no longer anyone left to place them. No one to remember the prison or what it contained.
It new it would be free then. As its captors faded from existence, and from memory. There would be no one left to stop it.
It had taken all of that time since for it to breach the barrier. To smash a whole in the wall so small, it could barely see through. But a hole was all it needed. Just the smallest of breaches in their inescapable prison was enough for its senses to reach out. To find those it could corrupt to his cause.
First those that slithered on the ground, blood as cold as their thoughts. Simple creatures, little more than vermin. Eventually though, more warm-blooded prey. Walking upright on limbs as weak as their minds. Easily subverted and turned to its aid.
And then had come the construct... a legacy of another long dead mortal civilization. It could not co-opt the construct, but it did not need to. It did not know why, but the creature was trying to get in, as badly as it was trying to get out.
Its time had finally come. Freedom was to finally be withing its coils. There would be no one to stop it now! It already had half the ward stones... they could seal the prison no longer! This world would become its new plaything to destroy!
Even now, it could see the door buckling, it was going to give at any moment.
Its coils tensed, ready to leap.
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When the door finally fails, it is not a gradual thing... one moment, the Azlanti Monolith's iron fists are pounding on it, as it had been for the past two days, the next, there is a loud peeling screech of metal tearing along stone, and bright, blinding light suddenly bursts out of the room beyond as if the sun itself were in there... driving back even the magical darkness, as it floods the entire east side of the ritual room.
The sound that follows almost paralyzes you with fear. A primordial hissing so old, so infused with malevolent evil your brains threaten to shut down, just from hearing it. It is accompanied by a single sibilant hiss in your minds that screams, At lassssst!
As your vision clears from the blinding burst of light, you see the Azlanti Monolith still standing in the now open doorway. But, past it, framed by that same doorway, you see a gargantuan black and red serpentine creature with three tails and six cold black eyes staring like they had a direct connection to the Abyss itself.
Though those eyes are all on a single head, that head rests on the end of three long necks, all splitting off of a single body as big around as a tree, and far too long. Even as you watch, seemingly endless coils suddenly wrap around the Monolith's torso, and it is pulled forward into the room beyond, like it were a wicker toy, not a fifteen foot tall golem made of solid iron!
The hissing voice continues, pressing down on all of your minds.
Foolish, mindlessss machine! Now you are the prisoner, and I... am finally...
Suddenly, the mass of coils and scales are flowing through the doorway into the room where you wait! Brady, Faliana, and Monty have to scramble backwards to avoid getting crushed, and Dale almost falls over as he is retreats from its dripping fangs.
Only Tad stands his ground, smiling up at it as it surges into the room!
But just as it starts to free itself from the confines of its prison, the Azlanti Monolith lunges back through the doorway, both its metal hands clasping onto the snake-creatures coils and reeling it back towards the doorway. It wends one metal arm through the second and third necks while the other reaches around to lock the serpentine head in a vice like embrace!
The two titans are suddenly locked in a epic, but obviously temporary, stalemate: The snake trying to pull itself free, as it tears at the Monolith, unable to free itself... the Monolith, with its arms locked around the fiend's head, trying to keep the serpent-creature from escaping. Unable to let go, lest it do just that! Already you can see bits of the Monoliths armored plating buckling and tearing free as the snake tears at it, and you're not sure how long the stalemate can hold.
A couple of years ago, you found a long ignored book on a dusty shelf in the Grand Lodge library, that recounted a failed seeker expedition from many years before. The report included a diagram of this very creature, but at the time you had dismissed it, as wildly anatomically inaccurate.
Especially given the story was being told by the only survivor, who apparently had lost his mind as well as his companions.
They called the creature a xacarba... a powerful fiend from the deepest darkest depths of the Abyss, that reveled in corrupting and destroying all it came across. Unfortunately, you don't recall the rest of the account, as you got dragged off by the librarian, who claimed you were in a restricted area.
As the light pours from the room, and your newest friend flows out along with it, it is almost as if the Goddess herself was trying to tell you something!
It is glorious!
But wait... what's the darned golem doing! Hey... let go!
Though the other Pathfinders are your friends... and the snake-thing is your friend... the golem... well it clearly is not your friend!
In fact, it's attacking your friend!
Though the golem and fiend struggle, and the former has a solid grip on the later's head, the snake-creature is not without bite... all three of its tails are now in the room with you, lashing about with unnerving precision. Where they strike the walls and ceiling and floors, bits of stone flake off and crumble from the force of the blows, as it tries to find purchase to pull away from the Monolith. More importantly, all three of those tails seems like they cover the entire ritual area, and it is all you can do to dodge them as they lash about!
The light continues to shine brightly through the doorway, brightly illuminating the eastern side of the room, despite the magical darkness emanating from the disc on the wall. Even the western side of the room seems to brighten slightly, the darkness there getting pushed back as well, though not by as much.
The light seems to be emanating from the southwest corner of the adjoining room, where the other side of the crack would most likely be.
- Round 1 -----------
Tad, Dru, Monty, Brady <----- We are here
non-pathfinders
Dale, Faliana
Group Buffs: Bull's Strength (+4 str)
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Monty stares in awe and fear, every bit of his monkey brain screaming at him to RUN! To Run until he couldn't run anymore. But he couldn't do that. He WOULDN'T do that.
He had promised Fali a kiss.
So he grips the flail tighter and steps forward, muttering outloud...
If you got some tricks up your shaft buddy, Now's the time to show it!
before bringing the thing around and swinging it with all his might!
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Brady has one goal... the discs. Thank goodness the monolith is there to challenge the snake creature
oh dear lord what is that thing that monstrosity why does it even have three necks what could that even do keep it together Brady keep it together
but the disks! He has to get the disks. He ducks and covers, swerving and bobbing as he tries to move past the creature into the other room.
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Tad lifts his hands, and casts a spell towards the two fighting creatures.
Then Tad decides to protect himself from the fighting, so he prays and casts a spell on himself.
Seeing the battle in front of him, between the Monolith and the serpent-creature, Tad immediately says a quick prayer to Sarenrae, to free his friend! For the briefest of moments, it looks like the creature might slip free of the golem's grip, but even with Tad's help, it can't quite manage it!
Disappointed, the little grippli quickly follows that up with a second spell... but a moment of confusion crosses his face, when nothing seems to happen.
,
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With the fiendish serpent towering over them, possibly breaking free at any moment, Brady ducks beneath its lashing coils, trying to get past it and through the doorway. He pulls every trick he's ever learned about avoiding blows as he goes, and still one of the tails nearly takes his head off as it swings at him. Instead, it shatters a large block of rock out of the nearby wall, covering him in a shower of gravel and dust!
The golem ignores him entirely as he ducks between its legs into the next room. He can see not one, but two discs laying on the floor in the corner, beneath a large damaged portion of wall. One of the discs is glowing so brightly, its like looking at a little fourteen inch sun.
Monty holds up the golden heavy flail, unsure what it does, but assuming it has something to do with battling the creature before them! But, just as he goes to swing, he suddenly gets an odd look in his eyes and stops, confused.
He shakes his head and stops trying, instead dodging under the serpent trying to follow Brady into the next room. He takes up his serpentine fighting style as he goes, ready to fend off any tails that try to grab him!
But fending off a fiendish serpent with a serpent style, proves far more difficult then he thought it would be! He has barely gone three steps when another of the creatures tails swings around, and snags his leg, despite his stance. Before he can jump free, it has looped around him, and started pull him out from underneath, lifting him up off of the ground as it does so, the coils constricting tightly . His ribs start to creak painfully.
As you try to swing at the creature, you are suddenly overcome with a feeling of passiveness, and don't want to attack it all anymore.
Of course, that doesn't change your desire to get the discs and close the gate. As you duck underneath though, you get grabbed! And suddenly you're not feeling so peaceful towards it at all.
But then it grabs you!
As it starts to squeeze the life out of you, you hear the voice of the flail in your head again... and though you still have no idea what its saying, it seems to glow, just for a moment, in your hand, and you feel the coils loosen!
Drusilla decides to take the more physical approach, as she hurries into the room, only just barely dodging the lashing tails as they try to ensnare her. With all her might, she brings her trusty morning star down on the main trunk of the serpent-fiend's body, but her blow merely bounces off his thick hide, skittering across it harmlessly.
You're not sure how, or who, but somehow, your spell was re-directed!
A few moments later, you notice the odd look on Monty's face, as he tries to strike your friend with his fancy flail, and recognize the reaction. Somehow, he was affected by just such a spell as he tried to hit it! Almost as if you'd cast the sanctuary on the serpent instead of yourself!
You didn't though... you don't think...
As you watch your new friend, all experience all sorts of emotions...
Sadness that you were unable to effect it's freedom. Annoyance at the mean construct holding it fast. Confusion about what happened to your spell. Gladness that Monty was unable to hit your friend! And then concern...
You feel sudden concern for your other friends as you realize the snake-creature is hurting them!
You see it almost take off Brady's head with one tail, then a second grabs Monty, and starts to squeeze the life out of him!
A friend wouldn't do that!
Your friend wouldn't do that!
Wait a second... that thing's not your friend! That thing is no one's friend!
- Round 1 -----------
Dale, Faliana <----- We are here
- Round 2 -----------
Tad, Dru, Monty (-6), Brady
non-pathfinders
Group Buffs: Bull's Strength (+4 str)