Zeldones' ears perk up. "Games, you say? Are those something you enjoy?"
"No," the creature answers flatly. "But my master takes much pleasure from them. And you are risking getting between my dear Anobaith and one of her pawns. I suggest you not go any further or risk her ire."
"Who is this pawn of whom you speak?"
"Tell us more of your dear Anobaith. Is she the one who keeps you here?"
"Pawn? She has many pawns. There is a half-elf she has been favoring lately. Yes, Anobaith keeps me here but not against my will. It is a pleasure to serve her."
"We will risk her ire as we have been set to a task." Temujin states plainly. "Where are the aged adventurers who came here?"
"There are more places in this world. And I would prefer not to burn this place down. I rather like this library. Oh, and the old ones? I know of whom you speak. To go down you must go up though."
Zeldones nods sagely, stroking his beard. "Ah, yes. Thank you." As an aside to Thomson, "Up the stairs, I think."
As you turn to leave, the beast stands from his table. "Perhaps you misunderstood. I did not give you permission to go find them." He begins working a spell, suddenly causing his form to blink in and out of existence.
Zeldones fixes the creature with a bold stare , then fires at it before anyone else can get in the way.
"Oh, I thought we were going to be friends..."
Galtar moves in with his falchion and slices and dices!
Temujin sighs. Can't people understand...
He turns his newfound toy, the obsidian pyramid into a long spear and tries to thrust it through the demon.
Tobian casts Dispel Magic in order to cancel out the Blink spell!
Tobian ends the magical blinking effect and Thomson hastens the party's movements! Zeldones' aim is off, as is Galtar's. Temujin's blast hits but as this thing is a daemon, it does not have its full effect. Ruckus' mind games, however, do seem to harm the daemon!
The scholarly daemon steps back and casts slow to counter the haste of the party!
Temujin scowls as his weapon is foiled a bit by the thick hide of the daemon. He steps up to the daemon and causes the obsidian to sharpen to a point one molecule wide before stabbing at the creature.
Galtar tries again to hit the strange scholar.
Zeldones maintains his bold stare and advances into the room, trying to trip the scholar up.
Tobian decides to engage in melee!
for
Everyone else misses as Ruckus' mind tricks are fought off! The daemon backs into a corner and shoots a dark ray at Temujin!
Zeldones continues his bold stare and tries the trip again.
Temujin tumbles forwards, conjuring flame and earth in each hand as the ray blasts over his head.
He shoves blasts the creature with both elements as his fury becomes unleashed.
for
for
Tobian tries again but he's no swordsman.
Galtar's first swing only serves as a distraction and he hits the daemon on the backswing! Zeldones then knocks him to the floor! Although Tobian is unable to connect even with the daemon on the floor, Temujin leaps into action to finish the daemon off!
QUICKSAND CLOAK
PRICE 15,000 GP
SLOT shoulders CL 5th WEIGHT 4 lbs.
AURA faint transmutation
The exterior of the cloak is an extradimensional space filled with water and sand. Each time a creature of the wearer’s size or smaller attempts to grapple the wearer, it must succeed at a DC 15 Reflex save or fail at the attempt and be engulfed by quicksand (Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook 427). Every round it’s trapped in the extradimensional space, the trapped creature must make a Swim check (DC 15) to climb out, landing prone adjacent to the wearer. Crawling out doesn’t provoke an attack of opportunity from the wearer, but does provoke from others. A creature that fails its Swim check by 5 or more submerges and begins to drown. A creature that succeeds at the initial save grapples the wearer normally, and doesn’t need to save again unless the wearer escapes and the creature tries to grapple the wearer again. A quicksand cloak left on the ground behaves as a patch of quicksand filling one 5-foot square, and swimming out works the same. Others may use aid another to help a creature trapped in the cloak, as though the creature were grappled. A quicksand cloak of any size can contain only one creature at a time; a creature attempting to grapple the wearer while the cloak already contains a body is not affected by the cloak.
"Hmm... This cloak pleases me. May I have it?" Temujin comments as he analyzes it.
Once gear division has been decided, Temujin will take the lead up the stairs.
Sure, of course. I hope we finish with this place soon, I am running low on mental strength.
You head up the stairs to another wide landing. There are four doors and the two windows overlooking the roof are broken.
Pondering the daemon's words, Zeldones looks out at the chimney, checking to see if it's open enough at the top to get into.
Temujin signals that he is going to open the closest door after the group readies, he opens it and strides in, boldly.
Galtar stands ready, following behind the bold Temjjin.
Tobian shrugs and moves along with the party.
The chimney is indeed open.
Temujin leads the way to a u-shaped room with a wall partitioning the space into two areas. The ceiling is high, secured by sturdy beams strung with dusty cobwebs. Broken glass windows let in pale light from the clouded sky outside.
Galtar looks around...
There is broken glass on the floor.
Galtar notes that the small space of floor separating the two halves of the southern room is trapped. A pressure plate would have released a hook hidden in the wall that would have carried the victim out the window and flung them down into the yard (where there were previously zombies).
Galtar points it out to the others, proud. "Ha! It's a trap!"
Why am I not surprised? Let's get around that and move on.
"Good eye, half-orc. Let us investigate the other rooms. I leave the trap hunting to you!" Temujin states as he moves to the next closest room.
Temujin leads the way to the next room:
In this sparsely furnished guest room a small bed and a simple table sit neglected on the wooden floorboards. Across from the entrance, an eerie blue-white glow emanates from beyond the window. The room is unnaturally cold. Through the window, a large city comes into view-a future, damned version of Absalom, perhaps. Ash and snow fall from a dark, starless sky. The buildings are little more than abandoned husks. Loots drag stolen cargo through the alleys, and gangs of humans attack each other in the streets. The sounds of wailing, arguing, and suffering fill the air.
A mysterious mothman waits in the room and immediately begins probing your thoughts with his hissing, alien voice, saying, You should not have come here. Better for them to die.
He begins casting a spell but those of you trained in magic recognize it as only a harmless major image. His voice continues, Should you succeed, all will be well.
An image of the six of you overpowering and defeating a purple-skinned female daemon with a long tail, sharp claws, and rams' horns fills the room. An overview of the forest, now at peace, fades into an image of a city-Cassomir, you recognize-celebrating your victory.
However, the voice breaks in, should you fail, all will be lost. Anobaith will expand beyond this forest and this small town to destroy the governing bodies and drive all into chaos....
An image of various government officials and nobles dying at her hands fills the room. Fires break out in an image of a city and looters run from storefront to storefront, killing each other in the anarchy.
With a wave the alien creature dismisses the images.
Tell me, it asks, Why should I believe in you? Why should I not let Anobaith toil in obscurity here in this forest?
"Perhaps you should, but if you were going to do that, then you wouldn't have shown us this and just glamered the property to throw us off the track. Instead, you have let us defeat everyone here to find you. I think I have the right, guys?" Temujin reasons.