S14. Infirmary
Several moldy cots lay strewn around this room, while doors to smaller, more private sleeping cells hang askew to the west.
Judging from the rest of this room’s decor, this must have once been the prison’s infirmary.
There is no sign of anyone or anything in the room. Maria you still sense evil in the room, but it's unfocused, you can't pinpoint it's location.
What now?
Gadren will peer over Maria's shoulder looking for signs of traps or haunts... or a certain hatchett wielding ghost keeping a low profile.
Maria speaks in a low, hard voice I sense evil in here but I can't tell where. Something is wrong in here... But what! Where?!!
"Could the evil presence of a ghost be all around us without us being able to actually see anything?"
Mishtes will follow Maria in the room and start using his bardiche to probe around the decor in the room to see if anything happens.
When you enter the room a figure rises from the floor, emerging from with then very stones to reveal its self to you with a gibbering howl.
All three in the room feel icy fear lash at them but remain unmoved. It then flickers out of your sight, but to Maria's Detect evil it is still in the same square.
Poltergeist
LE Medium undead (incorporeal)
Init +1; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +9
AC 12, touch 12, flat-footed 11 (+1 deflection, +1 Dex)
hp 16 (3d8+3)
Fort +2, Ref +2, Will +4
Defensive Abilities incorporeal, natural invisibility, rejuvenation; Immune undead traits
What are you doing now?
"What was [u]that[/u]? First time I've had a fright like that!"
Enraged at the vile creature's attempt to seize her mind, Maria rushes toward where it was and strikes at it with her greatsword. She shouts
"It's still here!"
"I believe it's a poltergeist. They can make themselves invisible and are immune to non enchanted weapons. Spells will still hurt them."
"Anyone have an enchanted weapon?"
Having no way to hurt the ghost right now, Phaedra hangs back.
Cedric again grabs his holy symbol, and once again his eyes glow with a golden light before you can feel the warmth of positive energy flowing around the room.
DC 17 half
"Hey! What was that?" Lazar arrives at the room in time to see María fighting... nothing.
Maria keeps swinging wildly at it.
"It's some kind of wretched ghost! Help me kill it!"
Cedric channels and there is a howl of pain, around the room numerous, small, sharp metal objects rise into the air.
A rusty scalpel is hurled violently at the group in the room.
Clattering off the wall beside him from the careless throw.
The party may now act. Remember the Poltergeist is invisible.
Gadren angles a burning hands spell to cover much of the room without hitting his allies in hopes of putting a quick end to the poltergeist before it could improve it's aim... hopefully before Cedric had to use up any more of the situationaly far more valuable positive energy.
Maria growls out "Mishtes! Use that axe or give it to me!"
"That hurt it!" Lazar tries to center his attention on locating where the howl came from.
Mishtes enters a bloodrage and tries attacking the ghost with his Lopper's Axe:
Gadren casts and a fan of flames erupt from his hands to sear the area the Poltergeist lurks. It is silhouetted in fire for a moment, howling in anger before it flickers out of existence.
Treasure:
A search of this cluttered room reveals a number of valuable objects
Healer’s kits (2),
Antitoxin (3),
Antiplague (2),
Bloodblock (3),
Smelling salts (3),
Soothe syrup (2),
Potion of cure light wounds (4).
Where to now?
Maria, you feel another strong concentration of evil in S19.
Maria motions that these items should be gathered up and picks up a few herself. Then she whispers "More in the next room." She moves forward and checks the door for traps, though she's not particularly adept at that.
Unless someone stops her immediately, Maria will throw open this door (if it's unlocked), sword out and ready to smite.
Lazar follows Maria, eyes open that they won't fall into any trap.
S19. Furnace Room
A huge stone furnace dominates this room, large enough for a child to climb inside. An ancient fire has burned away the entire east wall the room, providing a panoramic, if eerie, view of the lake beyond. That same lake has gradually expanded into the room, flooding its eastern half
Maria the source of the evil is the furnace. Now you can see it you see it has a nameplate with the words Ember Maw embossed on it.
Lazar as you study the old furnace you see the metal face beginning to animate and catch the stench of burning flesh!
What are you doing now?
Gadren keeps his longsword gripped in both hands ready to help Maria as best he can.
Maria stares hard at the furnace and informs her comrades.
"There's an evil presence connected to this furnace. I don't know what it is but I say we destroy it."
She readies her greatsword but grudgingly waits for input from the others as these strangers, disliked though they are by her, seem to be fairly well-informed.
Mishtes grasps his bardiche, waiting to see what happens next.
"Look! It's becoming alive!"
"A haunted furnace? Did they incinerate inmates here?"
Maria grunts. "It's not as if anyone is going to still use this thing!" She swings her greatsword into the furnace, hoping to end whatever evil presence is here.
Gadren sighs... he didn't doubt it was more than a mundane furnace but he was running low on spells and he couldn't get close enough to his it with his sword so he stays back hoping not to get caught in some fire themed area effect of the thing.
He doesn't believe it's going to do much, but still Lazar has to try...
Cedric moves forward and Channels.
He is unable to learn how to defeat this Haunt.
Between Cedrics Channel and Lazar's arrow something fades in the furnace and the stench of cooked flesh dies away.
Maria You can sense more evil to the south. S18.
What are you doing now?
Maria moves to the next door, the one between S19 and S18.
"I sense more evil to deal with in this room. Shall we move forward?"
Learning from how much difficulty she had with dealing with any of the other sources of evil, Maria consults the others.
Following Maria's indications, Lazar has a look at the door leading to S18, just in case.
"Given how steeped with evil this place is I am starting to suspect this might take more than an evenings work but let us push onwards for now."
Lazar nods to Gaedren's words. "Quite possibly, though having all of this zone wiped would make our search down there safer. Plus, we need more days to discover all of the clues, anyway."
"Yes, we should push on and clear out as much as we can this evening. Though perhaps we could take a break by the time the sun sets and spend the night indoors back at Kendra's."
"I agree. But we do need to keep an eye out for those others who are trying to release what's in here."
What are you doing now?
Maria opens the door to the next room and looks around warily as she steps forward, trying to locate the evil presence.
Beneath her sullen mask, a slight grin appears on the paladin's face. Better to actively hunt evil and destroy it than wait in a village for it to come in the night. I feel ALIVE.
S18. Training Room.
The northeast wall of this room has partially fallen, revealing the dark, murky waters of the pond outside. Moldering training dummies and other similar equipment hint that this room may have once been a training area for the guards. In the northeast part of the room, the floor around a dark, jagged hole is surrounded by black scorch marks.
As Maria open the door and enters the fire damaged room the rubble stirs and four bony heads rise from the floor around the hole burnt deep into it.
The party acts first as the Flaming skulls rise as their first action.
Remembering he's got the perfect weapon here and now, Mishtes enters the room in a bloodrage and attacks a flaming skull (Yellow) with Lopper's Handaxe:
Maria moves forward, relishing the prospect of dealing with such hideous undead and ending the creatures' insults against all that is good. She steps forward with her sword ready to strike at the first two creatures to come in range.
But the paladin's eagerness to strike a blow for good throws her aim off entirely!
Phaedra move up closer to the commotion with her weapon drawn.
Gadren moves forward casting light again on his sword, ready to back up Maria as she pushes forward.
What the..." Lazar enters the room to find fiery skulls flying, and wonders what can they be.
He picks an arrow and shoots at one of them , still not sure if it will be useful at all but willing to instill some courage in his companions.