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Yanndu clears the passage way of the webbing, allowing for an easier descent, and more importantly, an unimpeded egress in the event of an emergency...
The stairway ends in a small archway leading into what appears to be some sort of workshop. The workbenches within the shop appear to be destroyed, and a haphazard barricade has been erected impeding the last 10 ft of the descent. The Guards and Wards appear to end at the base of the stairs, but Ramesses, Watts, and Yanndu all notice a shimmering string with a translucent bell at the entrance to the room obscured by the blockade. Upon further examination, the nearly invisible string and bell appear to be the manifestation of an Alarm spell, rather than a physical crude alarm, but nonetheless it takes less than 20 seconds for Watts remove the impediment, allowing a better look into the workshop.
The magical illumination much beyond the base of the stairs appears to have failed, and the workshop itself is completely unlit. The western wall appears to have been breached by something or someone, leading into some sort of cave.
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Watts produces his Wayfinder and activating it to produce light to illuminate the immediate area.
*** I don't enjoy intruding when not invited, especially disarming their signals along the way, but this seems to be the safest path to entry. ***
*** This area has fared far worse than the area above. I wonder to what happened here to cause this level of damage. Could it be an effect of the magical wards not extending down to this level or even be because those wards have failed years ago? ***
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"Wow, they must have been desperate to make his barrier. Something must have been coming for them."
Cirri flips through her spellbook, to the page labelled Alter Self, just in case. Thankful for Watts's light, she transfers her Ward to him.
She and Riddywhipple take a look through the room.
"It's time to head down the cave, eh?"
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No magic nor evil is detected within the cave, however some movement can be heard from the passage to the southeast, although not coming towards you.
Continuing down through the cave system reveals another collapsed wall of the library leading into a large chamber. A circular raised platform takes up the majority of this chamber, and a central pillar is covered in luminous glyphs which provide dim ambient lighting. A quartet of statues maintain a vigil over the platform.
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"Golems. Huh, yeah." Cirri trusts Watts judgement. He hasn't been wrong before! "Usually Golems are highly resistant to magic. What are their weaknesses? Usually the right kind of magic is enough to slow them down."
"I don't know anything about the religions around here. So you'll have to solve that issue."
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Ramesses attempts to recall any specifics he remebers about Glass and Wood golems. Specifically weaknesses, resistance, then Special Abilities.
Sihir, you seem to be the most knowledgeable with Ancient Osirion deities. Do you know much about this Isis? Hmm...all these creatures we've come in contact with, have either been summoned here or created here for a purpose. If we can maintain at least a neutral state, maybe we travel through without much conflict? Ramesses flashes a grin at Deyno. Don't worry big guy, i'm sure there will be plenty of blood to spill, as i doubt we can go through without being attacked by something or somone.
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Ramesses notices that there certainly seems to be something abnormal about the Glass Golems. These should not be in nearly as good of condition as they are given the damage to the room and passage of time... and the sign of Isis is rather integral to their construction unlike the Wood Golems. They seem to be imbued with abnormal durability. If they are in any way similar to their usual counterparts however, you can expect them to be not only immune to magic, but able to reflect spells periodically.
The wood golems on the other hand are fairly textbook, although a bit more well crafted than most They are immune to most magic, with the exception of spells with the Fire descriptor, Warp Wood, and Repel Wood. They are known for showering their foes in blasts of wood splinters.
They continue to stand motionless in the adjacent room.
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Cirri casts Alter Self and her form shifts into that of a Bugbear. She grunts and inhales deeply.
"Man, Bugbear noses are so sensitive." Her staff glows a bit. "Okay, let's do this."
She renews her ward on Watts.
She looks at Denyo, nods, and proceeds into the chamber.
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The golems remain stationary as the party retreats down the cave network to explore other branches. Yanndu vanishes and moves down a small corridor to inspect.
A narrow passageway leads to a collapsed wall creating a new entrance to what appears to be some form of Workshop. An unnerving creature sits at a table inspecting some sort of disassembled construct. A funeral mask covers his face, and an amethyst gem protrudes from his chest, only partially concealed by his robes. A second gargoyle-like creature sits nearby, and looks towards the collapsed wall before turning back to the man at the bench. "Master, the living approach."
The masked man slowly stands up, then speaks in a flat lifeless voice. "Ah, the visitors must have arrived." He turns towards the direction indicated by his compatriot. "Enter. We have much to discuss."
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*** The masked man is a soulbound shell. A contstruct and an intelligent one at that if I'm not beguiled. The other creature that appears to be a gargoyle is, in actuality, an outsider known as a Sceaduinar.***
"We are very much honored to make your acquaintance. I hadn't expected the inhabitants here to be so friendly." Watts quickly introduces the party barring anyone who requests otherwise before turning back to the construct. "May I ask that you educate me. Who are you?"
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The construct responds in a dull flat voice. "Master of the Archives, Badru. I am a loyal servant of the great Jeweled Sages. It is only right that the Sages returned should see their loyal servants as friendly. Yet I feel it necessary to warn you of the treachery of the one above. While you may yet find her friendly, her loyalty to the Sages is to be disputed. I understand that your decision to aid her at my expense however was made without full understanding of her treason."
A soulbound shell is the perfected version of a soulbound doll or mannequin, binding a soul to a construct in such a way that it allows the soul to retain its spellcasting prowess.
Sceaduinars are strange creatures born of pure entropy, the antithesis of creation and life.
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Watts looks to Badru with interest and takes another few moments trying to gauge the construct's servant.
"That would be more than unfortunate I must admit. Most my actions must be taken without a complete understanding of the situation. While it is necessary to proceed forward I have made poor decisions before in part because of my poor estimates. Please if you might elaborate."
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As the party seems hesitant to attack the golems, CIrri hangs back and follows them onward. "No bashing for now, I guess. Sometimes it's hard to tell when it's time for action and when it's time for talking."
She decides to cast Alter Self anyway. More time to get used to being a bugbear.
**Oh yeah, that's totally a Soulbound Shell. Does anyone know if it has any Special Abilities? Oh wait, I know!**
**That's a Sceaduinar, alright. The antithesis of creation and life. At least they're cordial.**
"So... what's going on? Who betrayed whom? An undead gynosphinx told us the Sages betrayed her... uh I think she was tasked with staying here forever, and she's having second thoughts." Cirri's bugbear voice sounds like she's growling more than anything.
"We saw signs of a great struggle with some powerful magic. What's going on down here?" She scratches one of her large ears instinctively, then takes some notes on it.
**Bugbears... naturally itchy... especially on ears...**
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“Saruna and myself were given the gift of immortality. Her objection to the Sage's gift is treason, and her struggle against his will demands her destruction.”
“Servants of the Padishah invaded. My master fled. I was left alone with the traitor, the great work unfinished.”
“My master sealed himself in the library below. With your help and the destruction of the traitor, we can reach him.”
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"Her objection to the Sage's gift would be in line with the cosmic order of things, and thus, she would find proponents of her point of view among the followers of Pharasma. You, on the other hand, have not been cursed with undeath. What was the nature of the exception that granted you continuous existence in a metal shell instead of continuous torment within a rotten, putrefying body?"
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"Man, everyone gets weighed down with absolutes... I mean, if she rejects the gift and live on but not here, then you and your master have control, right?" Cirri huffs.
**So, are they lying? Or is Saruna lying? Or are they both telling the truth but they disagree? Sometimes this is why I want to be nose deep in a book. This is another reason I hate dealing with undead.**
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"It is only torment if you will it to be. It is a gift that allows us the time to complete our sworn tasks. A gift that should be shared."
Looking over at Cirri, Badru shakes his head. "The traitor must be destroyed. Within her chest is a fraction of the Amethyst sage's power. With that, the gateway can be opened once again, and my task here complete."
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"While I would appreciate more time on this world to learn and reveal lost knowledge, the number of spectres I've encountered, bound to this world for centuries have more than convinced me that when my time comes that I should accept it."
Watts looks toward the inevitable with some disappointment.
*** Apologies, I try to temper my reactions given the times I travel with members of the Society that conspire with undead, denizens of the lower planes, or other groups far more interested in dismemberment than discussion. I agree with being, at minimum, incredibly cautious and not treating any information as guaranteed fact. However, there was, and continues to be, a fringe possibility that the Sceaduinar is an oddity of his kind. There are a great number of stories of planar beings changing, for both good or ill. The reports I have read though that usually results in changes in their form as their essence evolves, but it is so rare that I haven't seen it in person or seen anything more than seeing them in legend. I must thank this telepathic communication for not necessitating pausing to breath. Anyway, while that does likely mean the creature is the typical for it's kind, the master might still not be as there are many cases of amoral (or with a different morality to be considered such) mages and divine servants who call upon the assistance of evil creatures. Might it also be possible it is speaking poorly? Bound within a tomb for millennia might well degrade normal conversation abilities... ***
While projecting that, Watts continues to question Badru.
"If I might ask, is there any other way to open the gateway without destruction? As well, where did you come across the Inevitable. It is rare to see them on the plane much less within a sealed tomb." Thinking back to past adventures he adds, "At least, when they aren't assigned to guard the location."
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"Had their been another way I would be in there now. As for this creature... several of these invaders assaulted the sanctum, using earth elementals to obtain access. An armored golem appeared in the portal chamber and disappeared into the library shortly before the attack. This was centuries ago... just after my master sealed himself within the library below... and that was the last time that the gateway was used."
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"Well it appears we are in a bit of a situation here, we have two parties who feel completely different about what Badru did to theml. As was the situation in the begginning, these two are at odds and a side must be chosen. Watts, I believe now would be a good time to read the notebook and maybe it can shed some light on the situation, and hopefully better understand what's going on and whose side we should take."
If it's okay with you, we just need some time to take all of this in and understand it best we can. You will forgive us, we don't have eternity to live and this decision has a very immediate impact on the situation.
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Watts has little to add to Ramesses thoughts other than utter agreement. *** I can begin work right away, although with assistance we as a whole still may be able to complete the task faster. I have no desire for creating error through haste, but unless we abandon the goal, we will need to move quickly if we are to stop whatever is removing elements from the library. ***
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To the group Yanndu telepathically announces, ***...I shall attempt to connect minds with the construct...do not be alarmed...***
Yanndu attempts to connect his mind to the construct. If this works: