Upon Connor's words as to the cloud of energy hovering above the lever, Felix now too can see it and the occasional sparks running along the chain link. Each time an electrical spark goes off, a brief tangy stink of ozone fills the air and can be picked up by Felix's fine nose.
From the flickering lightning tongues, you can discern that the cloud of energy is in fact a small Lightning Elemental. They enjoy attacking creatures that are made of metal and creatures that wear metal armour or wield metal weapons.
It enjoys slamming into its target and if it hits its intended, it will also electrocute its target (causing additional wounding via its electricity).
"What a sick trick for the gods to play on that poor soul. If that is the case, I hope Felix's kindness gave him some comfort."
Rhialtyra nodded in agreement. "The sooner Pharasma takes him, the sooner he will find peace," she murmured. She shook her head as her spell wore off.
"There is nothing I can see here that has any magical aura. Unfortunately, I am not capable of locating spirits, but perhaps we'll encounter more."
”You were able to detect magic, and I saw you study this entire chamber. Tell us, then; are these sparks not magical, or are they merely a reaction to some tinker’s trick?” he asks her.
Her attention drawn up, Rhia frowned. "I know not whether they be alchemical or some tinker's trick, but I can say that those sparks are no magic that I am familiar with."
Her attention drawn up, Rhia frowned.
"I know not whether they be alchemical or some tinker's trick; but I can say that those sparks are no magic that I am familiar with."
He nods at at the assessment.
He looks at her for a moment, then he attempts to decipher on his own what they may be...
He looks up at her.
"Likely they are naught but some trick of the light," he says in response.
His eyes move from the mystical Oracle to the well-traveled Rouge, the cheerful Bard and finally the mysterious Sorceress.
"Of course, I may be wrong on what they truly are... Will any of you attempt to learn more about this mystery?" he presses them, hoping that the others may try to solve this puzzle when his own efforts had failed.
Connor looks at the others and shrugs.
”Perhaps it some Sprite or other Fey creature stuck in the gears, though by all accounts I’d wager it is something far more mundane which dazzles our senses to distract us from our purpose.”
He glances around the room with a frown on his face.
”We have had little to show from this expedition except for those two daggers that Rhialtyra Sunaki found earlier.”
”While it is true that those daggers are clearly worth two-thousand gold pieces, that still only leaves us with four-hundred a piece after all is said and done. That is not enough for my taste, especially as we are forced to risk our necks for little else.”
He glances at the shining thing in the metal and his eyes narrow.
”It is more likely, then, that this thing is actually the shine of light off some hidden jewel or gem tucked inside for safekeeping.”
”As it may fetch a good price, I shall take it and then we may try to sell it to the Baroness or her people on our return.”
He promptly draws the small dagger in his kit and reaches into the machine to pry the glowing item out.
Connor, Rhialtyra, Felix and Riley cannot determine the nature of the roiling, sparking cloud above the lever which frustrates them.
Riley looks closely at the metallic contraption and the ridge above moving beyond the wall into the corridor (and noted earlier by Connor) and suddenly he realises what it could be/do.
The elaborate machine seems to be a control mechanism for a possible walkway ledge. If the lever is pulled, it will cause the machine's gears to spin, and the long chain running from this chamber to the outside corridor (and beyond) will start winding up onto the large spool to the side of the machine. This will raise and lower the ledge. But you also know this action will be loud and reverberate in the underground chamber.
He promptly draws the small dagger in his kit and reaches into the machine to pry the glowing item out.
Riley continues to inspect the gears. He puts his index finger over his lips as he concentrates. He scratches his head and then points at the ridge in the ceiling. He then points at the gears. "You think this thing is some type of control mechanism? I bet a chain runs through that ridge and is connected here. This contraption appears to raise and lower a ledge in another area. I bet that lever is the control switch." He pauses then adds, "Or it's some kind of S &M device." He gives Rhia a devious grin. "I give it about a 60/40 chance that it is the former."
Riley tosses around the idea of pulling the lever, but thinks better of it. "If we pull this lever, everything in here will know we are here. What do you guys think?"
"You think this thing is some type of control mechanism? I bet a chain runs through that ridge and is connected here. This contraption appears to raise and lower a ledge in another area. I bet that lever is the control switch."
Connor pauses over the crackling ball of light and turns to Riley.
"Yes, that theory sounds very familiar," he says with a dry voice.
"If we pull this lever, everything in here will know we are here. What do you guys think?"
He looks at the lever, his eyes still on the glowing light, then turns back to Riley.
"I think that anything in this place will know that something is here, maybe. But they will not know it is us, nor will they know our capabilities."
"Yet even that may not matter."
"In truth, if things move or rattle it is possible that any threat in here will merely assume it is the shifting of the tower, for it has already tipped heavily."
"That being the case I say yes; pull the lever and let us pursue this mystery better," he says with a shrug.
Riley; check this out here.
That being the case I say yes; pull the lever and let us pursue this mystery better."
Riley steps back, "Have at it mate!"
Riley steps back, "Have at it mate!"
Connor turns and looks at Riley with a raised eyebrow.
He glances at his companions behind him for a moment, then turns back to Riley.
”If you insist,” he says, then smiles grimly.
As Connor, battle axe in one hand and the other hand on the lever, pulls it down, the roiling cloud immediately sparks and acts, swiftly slamming into the warrior. As soon as it attacks it returns to above the lever.
Connor bellows in rage and then hefts his axe and slams it down on the creature that shocked him -
Connor's strike hits the sparking, roiling cloud true, but does not fell it. More tangy ozone fills the air around it and him.
Having been attacked by the creature before it, the roiling cloud once again slams into the perpetrator,
injuring Connor anew.
The roiling cloud swiftly moves five feet up in the air above the lever and hovers, sparking more frequently now, the pungent odour of ozone filling the chamber.
Connor watches it rise up and attacks it again -
Even though the sparking, roiling cloud guardian fought viciously against its opponent, Connor's final strike hit it true once more and it disappeared, leaving a trace of ozone and nothing more. The lever appears to be free from obstruction now.
The ebbing rage drains from his body and he looks at Riley with a crooked smile.
"Shocking... positively shocking..." he mutters.
The he lets out a ragged sigh and pulls the lever.
As a newly injured Connor begins to pull on the lever, the large gears begin to turn slowly and crunch, as though the mechanism had not be used in a very long time. Those in the chamber can hear the echoes of the long chain wnding up on the large spool and somewhere overhead in the vicinity of the ridge the sound seems to travel as if the long iron chain has been threaded through the hollow ridge. The sound of the metallic contraption is loud and is not contained to just the chamber the group is standing in. Somewhere outside something is happening, yet the party does not know what for there is a stone wall between them and the long corridor outside. The gears and chain turn until there is a grinding halt and the spool is wrapped tight in the chain. The clanging abates and then there is silence.
Connor hefts his axe and looks at Riley.
"If our guesses are right this lever moved something that was likely a chain in the hall inside that stone rafter."
"This means that if we follow the stone rafter we can find where the chain goes and likely what was moved."
He looks at his companions for a moment, his body covered in bruises and burns from the electricity on his flesh.
"Let's waste no time, then."
He will move a bit to the south, then he will wait for his companions to catch up.
”We have had little to show from this expedition except for those two daggers that Rhialtyra Sunaki found earlier.”
”While it is true that those daggers are clearly worth two-thousand gold pieces, that still only leaves us with four-hundred a piece after all is said and done. That is not enough for my taste, especially as we are forced to risk our necks for little else.”
Rhialtyra frowned at this, shaking her head slightly. "No, Connor, these daggers are worth perhaps five hundred gold pieces each, which would total at one thousand. Beyond that, we may have found these daggers, but it would not be fair to assume them as ours. For all we know, they could be cursed or hold meaning to this town or those who were here before us." It didn't seem particularly appropriate to just assume the daggers were theirs - who knew what uses they had or to whom they belonged? Nay, these were no gold pieces lying about where none had seen them and she wanted to be sure there was no use or other ownership of them to contest any claims before she thought to sell them for money.
It did not bother her that Connor assumed any income would be split evenly between them as their encounter had revealed that all of them were very much necessary to get through the adventure, but she supposed were she more her father's daughter, she'd barter all the same. As it was, she put that out of her mind and instead focused on the next matter of import.
"Or it's some kind of S &M device." He gives Rhia a devious grin. "I give it about a 60/40 chance that it is the former."
Having gathered that he was teasing, Rhialtyra tilted her head to the side a bit, being sure to put on a convincing expression of puzzlement. "S and M?" she repeated. In as sweet a tone as she could convincingly create she added, "I've never heard of such a thing, Riley - what is it?"
--
After the shocking combat that Connor experienced in the front, Rhialtyra was surprised that the man showed no expression of pain. As they prepared to move on, she stepped closer to him and pressed a hand to his back, channeling her healing energy to him.
She was unhappy with the lack of healing she was able to transmit in a single effort's moment, but returned Connor to full health as best as she could all the same. If things continued this way, she'd have to retire first. She didn't understand why her healing was so diminished, but assumed it could be anything - the gods played their tricks where they chose.
Having healed Connor, she stepped back again, turning towards Riley expectantly, as though still seeking an explanation. As she did so, she looked around, but her lack of experience showed her nothing amiss.
AC: 15 (Shield+Mage Armor)
Channel: 2/5, Lay on Hands: 3/4
"No, Connor, these daggers are worth perhaps five hundred gold pieces each, which would total at one thousand."
Connor's eyes widen and he seems a bit discouraged at the news, but not overly surprised. After all, he was no expert on the raw value of commodities. That they are finely made and well forged was enough for his untutored eye. As for his error on the value? It was no mater - they could always gain more wealth.
"Beyond that, we may have found these daggers, but it would not be fair to assume them as ours. For all we know, they could be cursed or hold meaning to this town or those who were here before us."
His face breaks into a wide grin, which he quickly smooths out as he hears the rest of her words. As she finishes her observations he nods his head at her.
"Perhaps you are right Rhialtyra Sunaki."
"But as to the fate of those daggers? Well, I suppose we shall see what happens to them later after we leave this place," he says to her with a small smile under calm eyes.
After the shocking combat that Connor experienced in the front, Rhialtyra was surprised that the man showed no expression of pain. As they prepared to move on, she stepped closer to him and pressed a hand to his back, channeling her healing energy to him.
He glances at his burned and bruised flesh and sees the wounds recede and raises his arm and flexes it, a wide grin on his face.
"My thanks," he says with a sincere voice to Rhia.
"Now we are ready to advance properly, though I will still need light to see with," he says to the others, his gaze flicking to Felix.
"Felix; can you provide light so we can continue?" he asks the Man-Cat.
Felix looks over and says Well that was...abrupt.
Riley watches as Connor pulls the lever and gets shocked then attacks the electricity. Following the one man battle, he jokes "Let's hope the platform was not supposed to be in the previous position." He pats the barbarian on the back.
"S and M?" she repeated. In as sweet a tone as she could convincingly create she added, "I've never heard of such a thing, Riley - what is it?"
"Umm..." Riley takes pause at the lady's quick return, but quickly recovers. He leans in and whispers, "I can not be too sure. Felix was trying to explain it to me the other day. Maybe you should ask him later."
Felix looks over and says "Well that was...abrupt."
Riley nods and shrugs as if to says "Did you expect anything less?"
Riley leads the group carefully, following Felix's lights. He listens for trouble and keeps an eye out for traps.
Felix looks over and says Well that was...abrupt.
Connor turns a glance at Felix and grins somewhat savagely.
"Aye, you speak the truth! And you are right, for sometimes it is better for a killing to be long and brutal. Yet in this case it seemed best to end the creature quickly," he says, possibly misunderstanding Felix's comments.
As Connor is ready to move forward, he suddenly notes that Felix is still attempting to decipher the presence of any other threats. He does what he can to move downwind of Felix to minimize the various scents in the air, and lets the Man-Cat do his work.
As he waits for Felix to ascertain the scent in the room, he feels Riley pat him on the back.
"Let's hope the platform was not supposed to be in the previous position." He pats the barbarian on the back.
His eyes narrow and he nods.
"I had thought the same," he mutters softly, trying not to disturb Felix.
"If enemies came through the lower halls of this place, surely they came before the lever was moved, yes? Yet by by moving that lever it is likely that whatever tunnel they crawled through before may now be blocked and covered."
He turns to the rouge and glances at him.
"If that is truly the case, though, then I suppose we shall simply come back and then return the lever to its upright position," he says with a crooked grin.
Any wounds suffered by Connor at the hands of the sparking cloud are all healed by the mercy of Rhilatyra's lay on hands.
Felix's nose cannot pick up any other scent apart from the general decay and ancient structure smells. The hungry and thirsty prisoner is not seen again and none know where he has disappeared to or what he was, although some of the party have their own theories.
Felix's dancing lights move down the narrow passage way and out of the old interrogation chamber and back from whence they had come - Connor and Riley take the lead through the corridor until they arrive near the spot the ridge was first noted by Connor and Rhia. Once again, the ridge seems to move through a wall in the corridor, but it must lead somewhere, so the party continues along the corridor until they encounter another closed door to their left (where the corridor currently ends).
Riley checks the door for sign of trap and cannot discover any. When someone attempts to open the door to this chamber they find it stuck - possibly from centuries of wear and moisture in this underground cavern.
"Shocking... positively shocking..." he mutters.
Anila allows a small smirk at Conner's comment. But she is excited. "I have always been fascinated with storms. When I first discovered my abilities, I dabbled a bit with lightning. This ability for the cloud to use electricity is amazing." Speaking to Conner,"I wonder if I might be able to recreate that effect for our benefit."
Anila steps forward and places her hand on Conner's axe concentrating. Arcs of electricity begin to cover the axe in the form of blue-white streaks of fire. "This should give your blade some some spark. It will only last but a moment however, and will dissipate shortly, but this seems like it might help for upcoming combats. As I grow stronger I think it might last longer."
She smiles, glad to have a reason to try something new and to help her new friends. She continues in line with the group moving forward.
Riley goes to kick the door open, but it is for naught. The sole of his foot plants on the door and goes nowhere, sending a jolt up his leg into his back. He reaches back and rubs his sore back. To Connor, "I guess I will leave the heavy hitting to you. I think I may have softened it up for you though, mate."
Anila allows a small smirk at Conner's comment. But she is excited. "I have always been fascinated with storms. When I first discovered my abilities, I dabbled a bit with lightning. This ability for the cloud to use electricity is amazing." Speaking to Conner,"I wonder if I might be able to recreate that effect for our benefit."
Connor seems to be nervous about her power at first, but the magic seems to electrify him with sparks of eagerness.
He nods at her.
"It seemed like a creature, Anila," he says.
"I am sorry I could not capture it. It may have been useful to have and keep, if it could have been captured," he says to her with a nod.
"This should give your blade some spark. It will only last but a moment however, and will dissipate shortly, but this seems like it might help for upcoming combats. As I grow stronger I think it might last longer."
He bows his head in respect and courtesy for the power of her spell.
"As for this power? I am thankful for it and eager to use it on our enemies. If you would tell me, though; what does it do for my blade when I strike so that I may know its true power," he asks somewhat reverently.
As they stand before the door and study it, he sees Riley push against it with his shoulder, but it did not seem to budge.
"I guess I will leave the heavy hitting to you. I think I may have softened it up for you though, mate."
Connor nods at him, and his eyes narrow as he puts aside his axe and moves to the door and gives it his full weight.
With a heavy thrust the door shivers and then pushes aside and the party is free to enter the passage beyond.
As they peer in to the hallway beyond, a sudden thought prompts Connor to make sure they are not set upon from behind.
He turns to Felix as the thought of some dark enemy coming against them from behind.
"Felix, my friend, if you would not mind... Hold the Door," he says with a nod.
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Riley's swift kick does naught but pain his leg and hip. Connor, putting his full weight behind the effort, manages to force the door open.
As Felix directs his dancing lights inside the dark chamber, those at the threshold of the open doorway, are able to determine without much doubt the purpose of this chamber. The dank room stores an ancient rack, a fanciful brazen bull, an iron maiden, a cauldron, iron chairs with sharp edges and cruel protuberances, and a wooden table upon which sit various implements of torture. In an iron chair immediately to the north of the door sits a skeleton. A bronze plaque affixed to the eastern wall depicts a crowing rooster above crossed spears. Underneath the spear, there is a little writing, though from your current vantage you cannot read it clearly.
Riley moves around the room looking for anything of interest. He runs his hands along the walls looking for doors.
As Riley moves to the section of the room where the plague hangs, he can note the writing/short phrase readily as it is in the Common tongue,
Confession Cleanses the Soul--Pain Clarifies the Mind.
Before he can move on, Riley, suddenly hears a faint voice in the back of his mind, "You look weary. Rest in one of the chairs provided here."
From his position by the open door, Felix, with his strong sense of smell, can detect the foulness of death in the room, past the general humidity and earthy-mustiness of the chamber. From the western side of the room, Felix can detect another, underlying smell -- a very old, living scent although he can pick up no sound coming from that area of the chamber apart from Riley's footfalls.
Riley, succumbing to the faint voice's urging in his mind, moves to the nearest iron chair with its cruel edges and sharp protuberances and sits down. As he sits, Riley feels the sharp edges and protrusions pierce the flesh on the back of his legs but he remains in the chair convinced of his weariness.
All of a sudden a darkest raven becomes visible, perched proudly atop the plaque on the western wall. He speaks in a shrill voice,
"Greetings, fine citizens of our glorious empire! So good to have visitors, though I fear I have no refreshments to offer. I assume you are here for the treasure. Well, I'd be happy to assist, provided that you give me what I require! It has been so long since I was able to ply my trade. I require only that each of you shed your life's blood in this room - simply take a seat in one of my lovely chairs." The raven's dark eyes look unblinkingly at the party.
Felix warns the others about the smells. There is something living in this chamber. This time listen to me and return to the door here so we can sweep together.
Speak of the devil. Yeah shedding my life blood is not going to happen, nor is it going to happen to any more of my companions. Who are you to make this request of us?
Anila nods and says to Connor I would be happy to. She then casts the spell to sense magic.
Connor moves in the room and strides to the plaque and reads it.
Confession Cleanses the Soul--Pain Clarifies the Mind.
Confess... you must confess...
He rubs his chin and glances around.
So, this place is to break the body to bend the mind?
He frowns as he glances at the instruments and notices Riley's strange actions.
Felix warns the others about the smells. There is something living in this chamber. This time listen to me and return to the door here so we can sweep together.
Connor nods at the wisdom of Felix and then turns to the women in the group -
"Can any of you detect the presence of sorcery in this room?" he asks with a frown as he watches Riley out of the corner of his eye.
Anila nods and says to Connor I would be happy to. She then casts the spell to sense magic.
He nods at Anila, his eyes peering around the room.
All of a sudden a darkest raven becomes visible, perched proudly atop the plaque on the western wall. He speaks in a shrill voice,
"Greetings, fine citizens of our glorious empire! So good to have visitors, though I fear I have no refreshments to offer. I assume you are here for the treasure. Well, I'd be happy to assist, provided that you give me what I require! It has been so long since I was able to ply my trade. I require only that each of you shed your life's blood in this room - simply take a seat in one of my lovely chairs." The raven's dark eyes look unblinkingly at the party.
His eyes narrow.
A messenger of the gods, perhaps...
He glances at Riley who has sat on one of the chairs and notices now that Riley seems to be in pain, though he acts as if he was compelled to sit...
Speak of the devil. Yeah shedding my life blood is not going to happen, nor is it going to happen to any more of my companions. Who are you to make this request of us?
Connor glances to Felix and nods in assent.
"You speak for me, my friend," he says to the Man-Cat.
"Come then," he says calling to the Raven - "try our steel!" he growls and hefts his axe.
"Oh, that is most unfortunate to hear. I am Harzogopas. My mistress' bones sit there in yon chair and I have been bound to this chamber ever since. She was a fine torturer - the finest in the land she was. I was hoping you would be amiable companions for I have been alone for so long. Are you certain you will not bleed for me - any of you?"
As the raven answered Felxi's question, Anila cast Detect Magic into the space and she could within moments discern the presence of a magical aura inside the chamber.
"You speak for me, my friend," he says to the Man-Cat.
"Come then," he says calling to the Raven - "try our steel!" he growls.
Upon the declaration, the raven disappeared/vanished as quickly as it appeared.
Felix could hear the faint sound of flapping wings moving past the cauldron in the centre of the room and then the sound stops.
Upon the declaration, the raven disappeared/vanished as quickly as it appeared.
What madness is this?
He glances around the room, seeking for the creature desperately as he pivots on his back foot, his body turning in a tight circle, as his eyes scan the shadows.
Round 1
The creature appears again - this time in its true form - Fiendish wings and a whipping scorpion-like tail lash behind a diminutive, red-skinned body.
It flies at the closest person - the warrior who had challenged it with his steel.
but alas, to the frustration of the creature, the scorpion-like tail whipped the air but could not penetrate the warrior's armour to land a hit and Connor remains unscathed.
Anila sees the foul creature and lets loose with another silent wail.
Round 1
He doesn't stare at it long, instead he growls in rage and swings his axe at the creature -
Anila sees the foul creature and lets loose with another silent wail.
Connor roars in frustration as the axe swings wide and the sound of Anila's voice rattling in his ears.
"Get behind him Riley and make that whoreson bleed!" he cries out.