Mach moves to check the basin, poking the surface of the water inside with his dagger.
The water seems to act in a way Mach is used to water acting.
"Might there be some connection between this and the Sin-creatures?"
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"Maybe? Wrath was evocation magic, though, and sloth was conjuration." Um'bala stops, slaps his forehead, and laughs. "Oh, foolish mage! I'm going about this all wrong!" He laughs a few more moments to himself, then explains.
"Just because each Thassilonian specialist was skilled at their chosen school doesn't mean they couldn't cast anything else. The Thassilonian style, however, was very rigid - their transmuters were terrible at illusory and enchantment magics, for example. I might be able to zero in on which fragment we're searching for by noticing which magics are not represented!"
"So, we've got a conjuration effect - that suggests Pride and Wrath might not be the ones we're looking for. And yet, a wrathspawn. Hmmm..." The wizard trails off in thought, resuming his mystical scans.
Standing Bear quietly stands in the back, occasionally he plants his big hammer and leans on it casually, watching and waiting. When Um'bala begins his conversation about types of magic he turns and nods, seeming to talk to someone. "I don't think that will help, Grandfather. No...I won't tell them..."
Quintus walks over and takes a small sample of the water into his water skin. Looking over at Um'bala Quintus voices a question currently nagging him. "Hey Um'bala did the Thassilonian's have slaves in their society?"
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Petronicus tries to remember of that big black book in Lady Heidmarch's office had any information about slavery, but if it did, he didn't see it. He was too busy looking at the sketches of intertwined succubi.
Shrugging, he turns to Standing Bear. "What are you mumbling about, Shoanti? Your grandpappy have anything useful to add?"
"The Thassilonians...they had tons and tons of slaves. They used their slaves for all purproses," he says casually to Quintus.
Turning to Petronicus, Standing Bear gives a shrug, "Honestly...half the time what he says seems like complete gibberish. Usually I don't work out what he means until it is too late."
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Um'bala nods as Standing Bear answers. "I've always wondered if the seven quahs of your people might have spun off from the slave castes of the various Thassilonian nations. It's a popular theory, but not one that's ever been proven one way or the other." The wizard shakes his head. "Anyway, back to the matter at hand. There's nothing else magical here other than the water. If there's something that calls in water creatures, I can't sense it. It might just be a self-filling pool." Confident of his hypothesis, he approaches the pool's edge and sticks his staff into the pool, swirling it around to see if there's anything at the bottom hidden from sight.
Milo does not get overtly uncomfortable at the mention of slavery of any sort (indeed, his monkish training permits him to avoid most emotional responses); however, seemingly without consciousness the young Halfling's stance changes just enough that anyone paying close attention would notice that something within him has changed when the conversation turns to this topic.
Turning to Standing Bear he asks, "Forgive me, my friend, I understand why you would not bother to share 'gibberish' with us, and I suppose I thank you for that!
"However, what you said aloud in response to your Grandfather suggested that while whatever he said may seem nonsensical, it was at least a clear statement or suggestion. Given that there is such a broad swath of experience among us, why don't you share it anyway?
"Given how little we know about what we are confronting here, it could not hurt!"
Petronicus responds to Standing Bear, scratching his head and ignoring (or unaware of) the halfling's mental state. "I know I wouldn't want my dead grandfather yelling in my ear all the time. All he would do when he was alive was complain about the food being too hot or too cold. I knew it drove my grandmother crazy. I think she died before him just to get away from his complaining, and I don't half blame her."
Confident of his hypothesis, he approaches the pool's edge and sticks his staff into the pool, swirling it around to see if there's anything at the bottom hidden from sight.
The water is quite clear and not that deep, so the bottom of the pool is easily visible. It contains nothing out of the ordinary other than the pretty tilework depicting a swirling vortex.
The Chelaxian walks up behind Um'bala. "What do you think, is it safe to drink?"
"Hard to say," Um'bala replies, withdrawing his staff. "The sort of magic that keeps water potable is my school, not conjuratory. It could have gone bad in the intervening years." Kneeling down next to the pool, the wizard gives the water a sniff, trying to suss out any natural issues with it.
The water seems very clear and fresh and has no discernible odor.
Quintus nods at the mention of slavery. It wouldn't be too much of a guess to say that they did, but it payed to be sure. Looking around and not seeing anything terribly dangerous he cups his hands and takes a drink of the water. Assuming nothing goes terribly wrong Quintus smiles. "Sometimes the easiest way to find out if it's safe or not is to try it."
The water is very refreshing and seems to calm Quintus' nerves and give him energy.
"Grandfather was just saying that if we started a fire in one of these rooms and all stripped down to make a sweat lodge of sorts, we would almost certainly have a vision to guide us...He also says trusting water without seeing how it affects animals is often a bad idea."
Seeing that Quintus seems to be more at ease with the drinking of the water, he smiles. "Grandfather isn't always correct..."
Milo steps forward and takes a drink himself.
Mach takes a sip of the water after seeing it doesn't appear to be harmful.
Milo immediately feels better and fully refreshed.
"This water heals apparently. Anyone who needs some healing might want to take a taste." Quintus waits for everyone else to have a turn to drink before getting ready to move on.
"Well, it is certainly refreshing!"
Mach's minor injuries heal almost instantly when he drinks from the pool.
"Cool. Hey, can we bottle some of this and take it with us?"
"Rather good idea regardless, Mach", says Milo as he too fill his flask.
After Petronicus grabs a gulp as well, the group continues on down the southern corridor. The hallway quickly turns eastward, eventually entering a connected set of colonnaded rooms. The central wide hall is lined with pillars, between which hang thick sheets of webbing. These do not seem to be the older, dusty cobwebs of the corridors, but rather fresh webs. The brittle carcasses of several albino crickets the size of small dogs hang among the tangle.
Um'bala looks and listens, but does not detect any movement within the webbed chamber. His magical divinations reveal that there is no obvious magic within sight either.
Milo stands ready to move on once Umbala's investigations are complete.
Petronicus clearly looks uncomfortable in the web-covered room.
"Yeah, yeah, sure ..." he says, hefting his guisarme and carefully stepping around the thickets webs.
"Quintus, you have that fire spell, right? Keep it handy, I have a feeling we're going to need it."
Mach keeps his knives ready and cautiously advances into the room.
Maintaining rear guard, Standing Bear, grips his weapon, fully expecting an attack of some sort. Quietly he listens to the voices in his head, not saying anything, not responding...and making certain to try and ignore them as he watched their back.
INITIATIVE:
Four giant, hairy spiders the size of a bathtub suddenly appear out of the shadows and spit sticky webs at the closest Pathfinders, entangling both Mach and Petronicus.
Seeing Petronicus struck twice and so near, Milo moves forward and Aids him in freeing himself.
Quintus steps forward and attempts to free Mach from the webbing.
Something tells me that settling into the new home in a new town has distracted him.
Seeing Petronicus struck twice and so near, Milo moves forward and Aids him in freeing himself.
Quintus steps forward and attempts to free Mach from the webbing.
[dice=Strength check]1d20-2
Petronicus manages to struggle free of some of the webbing, but is still quite entangled. "Burning balls of Asmodeus!" he screams in frustration.