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Augh! As the snakes begin to slither over the party's feet, Mathilde swings her hands in a wide circle, digging her feet into the ground. From next to her, the ground begins to shift, forming itself into a melon-sized clump of dirt and rock that follows the movement of her hands and slams into the ground where the serpents writhe .
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Sigh, Snakes.. why does it have to be snakes??
Locken carefully move 5 feet diagonally to the right aligning with Obaekwon, then crouch down as he draw a dagger. He then use his other free hand gesture to Symphony and Obaekwon suggesting a flanking maneuver on mass of snakes where its lies. Then he proceed to slash the dagger downward using small and precise circular motion to the ground where the mass of snakes lies.
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Mathilde creates a large mass that smashes directly into the snakes, killing at least half of the swarm. Frostwind moves back yelling for the group to get out of the way as she intends to use a bomb.
Locken learns the hard way that his weapons are not that effective against snakes. He kills a few but clearly not enough to break up the party of snakes.
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Symphony glances as Frostwind and nods. She said duck.
Symphony steps back from the teeming mass of hissing reptiles, dropping her backback in place, then retrieving her bow from its secure straps on the side of the pack and an arrow from the quiver strapped to the opposite side. She nocks an arrow and aims at the mass of snakes. Maybe she can pierce several with a shot. This is probably going to be a job for Frostwind, though.
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The snakes hiss and crawl all over Obaekwon. Biting him and distracting him in a gross manner. Luckily for him they aren't the poisonous kind.
Janira sees the party in distress and does what she does best, she starts telling tales of heroic deeds of pathfinders in the past in attempt to rile the group up!"Let us remember the sacrifice of the fabled Yasmin bint Faroud, favored of the Ten, who gave her life distracting Zythrustianax, draconic scourge of the Society, so dozens of junior agents could survive. Her act of benevolence is the epitome of cooperation within the Society.”
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"Well I think if we go down he... gah are those snakes? Gross!
As the snakes slither up and begin gnawing on him Obeakwon hear's Frostwind's warning. With that he wastes no time in fleeing as far from the snakes as he can. Unfortunately the horrible smell coming from the mass of snakes proves stronger than his stomach and he struggles not to retch, slowing his movement dramatically.
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"Obaekwan get back!!!" Locken shouted at his comrade in hope of not only intimidate the critters but also to reassure Obaekwan who is in obvious crisis.
While continue to slash at the masses with his dagger. Eventhough it may not be effective he hope it would help as a distraction so Obaekwan can escape the current situation.
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Symphony fires an arrow that kills maybe one more snake out of the congregating masses. Obaekwon moves out in time just for Frostwind to throw a bomb into the snakes direction. The bomb explodes and causes the snakes to scatter away.
Janira is quick to praise the group for a job well done getting us out of a stick situation before it gets any worse. As well as immediately tending to Obaekwon's wounds, healing him to full health. She suggest then to quickly get back on track, as soon it may be dusk. Any further delays might cause the gillmen to leave before you even get there!
***
The dense forest opens to a wide clearing at the base of a sheer cliff. Thick vines cover the surface of the cliff stretching 30 feet overhead. “Here! The cave entrance is behind those vines,” Janira says with a broad smile as she walks to the cliff’s face. She pulls back several layers of vegetation to reveal a narrow crack in the cliff’s surface. “This is where I saw the gillmen enter.” As she motions toward the aperture, the surrounding woods come alive with the sound of small animals fleeing some unseen danger and a large creature crashing through the undergrowth.
The halfling worriedly remarks, “Quick, take cover before whatever it is spots us!” As if she’d summoned the creature with her words, a massive horned monstrosity emerges from the trees. Standing eight feet tall on a pair of cloven hooves and wielding a tremendous axe, the bull-headed creature roars with unbridled anger when it spots the group.
Wisely assessing that a minotaur is beyond her charges’ capabilities, Janira screams, “A minotaur! There’s little chance we can stand against it. Take this bag,” she continues, pulling off her backpack, “and head deeper into the caves. Finish your mission. I’ll lead it away from the caves, lose it in the forest, and join you as soon as I can. Now go! GO!” She heaves her backpack into the cave, casts a spell, and darts off toward the minotaur before turning to lure it away.
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Nodded once toward Janira and another towards his companions. Without hesitation Locken move quickly out of the creature line of sight, then proceed with caution toward the cave entrance.
Brave girl, let's hope this mission is worth it..
With precision and feline like grace he uses the surrounding natural terrain, the shades to mask his form, the wind, to mask his scents, and foot step to mask his sounds. All in sync with the environment, a trick he learn from his travels.
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Symphony levels a baleful stare at the minotaur, but she does as she's told. With a scowl, she marches into the cave, far enough that she entrance is no longer visible. There is no valor in retreat! She fishes her hooded lantern from her pack to light her way. She carries it in her left hand. In her right, she carries her longsword.
Erastil, give me something to fight. None will see my merit if my confirmation is spent turning on my heels!
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Mathilde looks little pleased at turning her back on the courageous Halfling, but she trusted Janira's judgement - after all, she'd been doing this adventuring thing far longer than Mathilde. If Janira said the minotaur was out of their weight class, it was probably true, and if she said she could give it the slip and circle back, Mathilde would trust her. Reluctantly.
Still, she can't help but stop for a moment, preparing to pull up a few stones and hillocks to slow the minotaur's progress...until she thinks better of it and retreats behind Locken and Symphony into the cave, grabbing Janira's bag as she goes. I'll carry this, then, she says absently to her surroundings, hoisting the small bag onto her shoulder next to her own. No load ever slowed a dwarf down, and I don't need to carry my weapon at hand.
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Concerning for your own safety as well as an intent to follow authority. You all move into the cave as requested by Janira. As you look back, you see Janira in the far distance running away and flicking magic missiles towards the angry Minotaur.
Entering the cave through the 5 feet wide entrance is not too difficult of a feat. As you cramp yourselves to find a broad tunnel inside. It is damp and dark but somewhat dimly illuminated inside the cave, those without extraordinary low-light or darkvision is left unable to see.
All of the tunnels of the cave as far as you can see in this area are between 3 and 10 feet wide and vary equally in height, though most are a comfortable 7 or more feet wide in each dimension. Water dripping from stalactites and the distant rushing of underground streams creates an eerie backdrop. The caves’ walls are patterned with blue-green luminescent fungi that provide dim light. Petroglyphs—most depicting marine animals or spiral shapes—periodically decorate the tunnels’ walls.
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Taken advantage of the light source Symphony provided, Locken simply examine the entrance of the cavern in hope of spotting details others aren't able to pick up, even though the the condition is rather unfavorable for Locken as he is a stranger here.
Out of his element, he turned to his companion.
"Obaekwan, if you would lead the way, I shall cover your flank"
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Mathilde tries to help Obaekwon follow the foot marks, but even after he points out the disturbances she can hardly follow their path - her eyes are drawn instead to the petroglyphs on the walls. Does anyone recognize these markings? They don't look much like any language I know of, but they could be pictograms, or some kind of code...and I wonder if this fungus was put here on purpose?
Mesmerized by the carvings and the glow of the bioluminescent walls, she takes up a position near the rear of the group, dividing her gaze between the walls and the tunnel behind to keep an eye out for surprises from the darkness behind. With her sight long accustomed to dark tunnels, the lack of light troubles her little, and her ears stay sharp even as her eyes wander.
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The group cautiously explore deeper into the cave illuminated by Symphony's lantern. As you head deeper, sounds of water become more prominent, and pictograms more frequent.
The narrow tunnel twists and turns for several hundred feet before slowly opening to a wider passage. A large hole spans the cave’s width and stretches ten feet down the path. At the bottom of the pit lies a small bundle of cloth. Across the other side of the gaping hole seems to lie a walking plank long enough to cover the distance of the hole.
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Symphony looks down at the cloth in the pit and says, "Any able-bodied climbers among us?" She glances at Mathilde and says, "Or perhaps you can just tell the rocks not to let us crash to the floor? At any rate, we should get a closer look at that."
She surveys the area, trying to understand anything in this mysterious cave.
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Silently repudiating herself for not thinking of it, Symphony reaches into her backpack and, after rummaging around for a good bit, finally pulls out the 50 feet of hemp rope she had packed for just such an occasion. She ties several knots near one end, then lowers it into the pit.
"I can hold any of y'all," she says as she stands up, grips the other end of the rope in two hands, and prepares to brace herself. "Someone climb down, and let's look at us some cloth and get over on the other side of... wherever it is we are."
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Obaekwon peers down into the pit. "Anything interesting down there?"
"This pit isn't natural, somebody dug it out." He looks at the walls. "Probably a year or so ago. Maybe more."
Obeakwon eyes the board on the other side of the pit. "Who among us is the most nimble? I bet somebody could hop over and put the board in place."
Obaekwon does his best to discern whether it would be safe to land on the other side.
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Symphony collects the cloak with ease and makes her way back up. Mathilde throws herself across the pit and brings the walkway to the rest of the crew to enable them to cross safely. Everyone keeps their eyes open as they make their way further into the cave.
The tunnels continue on, leading deeper beneath the Kortos Mounts until they eventually open into a large cavern. What must have once been beautifully carved reliefs and inscriptions have since weathered heavily, their features dulled and softened to the point that it is hard to distinguish what each once depicted. A wide tunnel exits the cavern on its far side, and blue-burning torches line the passageway’s walls. The withered writings seem to be a combination of an ancient language, Aquan and Azlanti.
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Symphony fretfully acknowledges the different signs and figures Frostwind points out, and she nods at their excited finds, but she is visibly frustrated. All this information may as well be from another world.
"Fascinating," she says, sheathing her sword and taking out the writing materials she was handed earlier. Symphony records everything Frostwind says, and she looks around again to see if she can discern any of her companion's reports...
... but she cannot, so she continues to record Frostwind's observations.
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As a group, you are able to decipher two of the pictorials of Aroden's guises. You pay careful attention to one picture depicting a warrior of sorts, assumingly a soldier. The Soldier is depicted bearing a lantern through the streets of a city, following the dead god’s prophecy that the vigilant shall carry light to the darkest corners of the world to banish the shadows.
The most well kept pictogram is one of a worker in the field, assumingly a farmer. The Farmer is depicted plowing four lines in a field, retelling Aroden’s prophecy that humankind would prepare the rocky earth for planting and over generations wear the pebbles down into fertile soil. Unable to decipher the ten other possible depictions, you move on.
A narrow passage way, that acts as a bridge over a gushing river, illuminated by torches bring you into another chamber. The soft light of the surrounding fungus mixes with the flickering glow of the nearby torches to reveal a grand chamber. A large pool of water along the chamber’s southern edge reflects the blue and green radiance to illuminate the massive stalactites that cling to the ceiling overhead. Two other tunnels branch off from this area, leading to the east and west.
Rising up from the pool is a column of rock with steeply sloped sides and a flat top, as if someone had sawn off the top of a massive stalagmite. A miniature city carved from this same stone occupies nearly the entire surface. Tiny trinkets such as ancient coins, polished semiprecious stones, and ornately braided loops of string are scattered throughout the diorama, and pale cave frogs clamber atop it. The smooth cavern floor is covered in gravel and pebbles along the edge of the pool, and several foot-long centipedes prowl among the gravel in their search for prey.
In the pool, kneeling in the water, facing the miniature carving and with it's back towards you, is a lone gillmen. His robe is folded and kept away at the edge of the pool, so it'd not get wet presumably.
To the left of the pool, is a foul smelling passageway, and to the right of the pool is another passageway, that seems to be somewhat illuminated by sunlight, indicated an exit is close.
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"!They certainly are handy with the carvings. Though I'm not so sure about their knack for prophecy." Obaekwon whispers. When they encounter the kneeling gillman he stops."This fellow here, his cloak is just like the one found in the hole."
Upon seeing the gillman Obaekwon attempts to blend into the shadows.