As if thinking the same thought, Sealman hoists (manhandles... rathandles?) Rissi and plops her on Thunderpuss.
Happy with what he's done, Seal begins to sign softly to himself while guiding the two of them like a pony handler at the fair.
"Rat on a cat, rat on a cat. Oh my, look at that. A rat on a cat."
It's impossible to tell how many floors the outbuilding that stood here once had, for all that remains are the sooty, scorched stones onf its foundation. To the east, a four-foot-wide stone well sits, partially collapsed, in the corner of the ruins.
A few sickly looking ravens are perched atop the foundation stones; they fly clumsily away once you approach.
Rissi seems paralyzed on the back of Thunderpuss.
She whispers "No, I don't see anything. I wonder how long ago the fire happened."
The ash on the ground and grayish plants creeping in on the site indicate that the fire happened quite a long time ago.
I am wonder how long he has lived with the dead?"
Seal will examine the entire exterior of the manse. Unless there is anything that peaks his interest he recommends going through the front door.
"Wait, aren't some undead born of sorrow and tragedy in their mortal life?" suggests the Varisian boy as he beholds the remains of the fire.
"Yes, and it *squeak* may be the case here. I believe that Norgorberites tend to be rather efficient at generating tragedies of their own volition."
She slides off the cat and scoots away as she talks, hoping Seal is too absorbed in his studies to notice.
Seal doesn't notice anything in particular on the outside of the house except that it is in a dilapidated state in most places, although there are signs of an attempt at recent renovation. Clearly those plans did not get far.
The party moves into the front doors. . .
The sound of the house straining and creaking gives this long, high-ceilinged room an additional sense of age and decay. The place smells damp, the unpleasant tinge of mold lacing the air as surely as it stains the wooden floor, walls, and furniture in pallid patches. Moldering trophies hang on the wall to the northeast: a boar, a bear, a firepelt cougar (much like Thunderpuss), and a stag, yet they pale in comparison to the monster on display in the center of the room. Here crouches a twelve-foot-long creature with the body of a lion, a scorpion's tail fitted with dozens of razor barbs, huge batlike wings, and a deformed humanoid face.
---
Kufieno cocktail his head. "Do you hear that....crying?"
"I hear no such thing. I must *chhhh* say, though, that the master of this place has rather exotic tastes. A stuffed manticore; dangerous and intelligent."
"Hearing what?"
Visably spooked, Seal confirms Kufieno's remark.
"I hear it too. It sounds like its coming from upstairs."
Upon viewing the trophies, Seal tries to sooth Thunderpuss's ruffered fur.
"It is OK there. You probably didn't know him."
Seal then stops and looks around. His big nose begins to open and close as he begins to sniff the air.
"I know that smell. One time our barn caught fire and Horsey McGuie was locked in. Oh that smell, I cannot forget it. It's the smell of burnt hair and flesh."
Kufieno nods empathically at Seal. "You hear it too? I'm not crazy....., but I don't smell anything." The suli says, sniffing the air.
It turns out Seal is not crazy (well, at least not about this) as seconds later a burning stinger manifests and flies at the dwarf!
Seal trips on a loose floor board as the burning stinger flies over his head.
Oblivious to what just happened, Seal remarks again about the strange enviroment.
"At first I thought the air was chilly, now there a flashes of heat flying by."
Unless anything else manifests, Seal continues into the next room.
"What was that? What did you mean by 'smell of burnt hair and flesh'? I didn't smell anything like that."
Further on in the room past the taxidermied beasts, a rather gruesome antique-what appears to be a mummified monkey head-hangs on the northern wall in the center of the room. A bellpull extends from the monkey's gaping mouth. A ratty throw rug partially obscures a foul stain of dark-colored mold on the floor.
Two sets of stairs to the north and south lead down and up respectively.
Further on, a mahogany table surrounded by chairs sits in the center of the room. Twin fireplaces loom to the west, while to the east, stained-glass windows obscure what could have been a breathtaking view of the Lost Coast. Each window depicts a monster rising out of smoke pouring from a seven-sided box. From north to south are depicted a gnarled tree with an enraged face, an immense hook-beaked bird with sky-blue and gold plumage, a winged centaurlike creature with a lion's lower body and snarling woman's upper torso, and a deep blue squidlike creature with evil red eyes.
Peering around the room, Kufieno point to the mold on the floor. "Look there. The mold grows in a spiral....almost like a bird's-eye view of a spiraling staircase descending downward, with each step littered with skulls and bones. Creepy!"
As the party pushes deeper into the room, Kufieno studies the windows for a moment. "Interesting..."
Seal walks up to the edge of the moldy rug. He stops and stares into it. He continues to stare and stare and stare.
In a monotone voice, he whispers aloud, his eyes unmoving.
"It's like a downward spiraling staircase. Further and further it dives down into the ground, embraced by the Darklands. Each step littered with skulls and bones. It drives through the rock like a fitted screw, into the realm of nightmares and evil. The Malebolge springs forth, devils dancing to the decedent drums. Past the Nine Hells the staircase winds. But now it has stopped. By Torag, it's full of stars."
Rissi flattens herself when the fiery bolt passes over Seal.
羔羊中的孤羊 she cries out in dismay. "Such a fine welcome." she complains as she picks herself up and brushes off her robes.
As she has a chance to look over the windows the muses. "Strong necromancy in this place. Your spiral, and look at the windows." She walks up and pulls out a book and quickly sketches a few of the symbols from the windows. She talks as she works. "These creatures are being trapped by the magic of these runes; look at the fear on their faces. I wonder if the runes are some ancient variation on a magic jar or trap the soul dweomer." She pauses. "I am concerned by the level of power represented here. This is strong necromancy." She shuts her book and puts it in her pack. "It is likely we are unprepared for whatever forces are at play here." she says, in matter-of-fact tone.
"I am glad those monster are in there and not out here. They look mean . . . and hungry. Sometimes, I wonder if the undead are just misunderstood.
"What is the first thing you do when you wake up? You eat! So just think of death as a very long nap. When the undead awake, they are hungry and want something to eat. Of course, most of the time the closest food is a villager or halfling child. I hear rats are safe though. I saw a play once were one vampire mocked another vampire for eating rats, so I guess rat-eating is frowned upon in after death circles. I mean it was in a play, so it has to be true, right? Right?"
"Perhaps someday you will experience the living death, and if you come back from it you can tell us all about it. Until then, perhaps we can perhaps *chhhh* forgo such metaphysical ponderings."
She pauses, and continues "Although, if you want to find out at some point, I'm sure I could *chhh* help arrange it." she says cheerfully.
"Those of us who lack conjurations or abjurations to protect themselves, should consider equipping themselves so now. The bodiless dead are less effective against some magics, should we encounter any."
"You're right Rissi, this is fear - not rage. Your idea may well be correct, but I honestly don't want to cross the path of whatever trapped them in there. This seems well beyond anything we've encountered thus far."
"I have plenty of conjectures and adjectives, but my momma always said that words would never hurt me. I doubt they would hurt anything in here. Unless they are Fighting Words. Of course, I never use them. Once a guy in a tavern said, 'Dem's fightin' wards.' The next moment he was on the ground, knocked out with beer soaking his face.
"Oh oh, there are also magic words. But I don't know any of them. Rissi, will your conjunctiva and admiration protect us?"
"I've used this wand of armoring, we should be good for close to an hour." Kufieno muses. "Not sure I have anything else I can do."
The first door on the left proves to be a narrow hallway with several doors leading off.
Seal opens the door that looks like it leads to a room that leads back outside.
Before they go, Rissi will study the spiral, to see if it has any manner of magic emanating from it.
She also considers if it has religious significance.
The spiral has no magical or religious significance that Rissi can determine.
Seal leads the way:
This oak-paneled chamber must have once been breathtaking, but is a sad sight now-the floorboards are warped with moisture and the paneling scratched and spotted with mold. A grand piano, its surface splotchy and keys warped, leans tiredly in the southeast corner.
Seal walks over to the piano and leans up against the frame. Looking around, he rapidly tap the two high note keys.
Tingle, tingle, tingle, tingle.
Ghosts hate this.
Tingle, tingle, tingle, tingle.
[ooc]DC 13 KN (religion) to recognize this as a haunt. If you can beat a 10 on Initiative, you can take a surprise round action.
Rissi shudders at Sealman's amusical evocations.
|
While Miana internally sighs at the dwarf's natural desire to touch everything, usually his instinct goes towards the right direction.
This time, it does not.
"Step back! Evil lurks near the ivory!", Miana calls out!
Would I know that positive energy aka Lay on Hands could disrupt haunts?
Seal stands shocked at Miana's accusation.
"I may not be very good at playing. But to say I'm evil is kinda harsh ..."
The dwarf's face droops in a pout.
Oblivious of what's going on, the oracle studies the piano carefully. "That's strange. It seems unnaturally decayed, as if it had been standing unattended here for decades. Is some magic at work here?"
Kufieno cocks his head. "Do you hear that? Piano music, but not what Seal played...an echo maybe."
Once it ends, you become fatigued.
+2 vs spell/spell like ability.
As the melody reaches crescendo, Seal starts to tap his feet. His legs begin to get a little wiggle as if he's about to break into dance, but then stops.
"It has a good rhythm, but needs more cowbell."
Unless there is anything else, Seal will proceed through the eastern door of this room.
Seal leads the way into a simple washroom. An ancient metal washtub stands to the north, a ring of mildew crusting its inner surface. A strange, furtive scratching comes from inside the tub.
Inside the tub is a horrific and pitiful blind, tumor-heavy wretch of a rat. As it hears you moving near it begins shrieking in a frenzy, trying desperately to clamber out of the tub.
Seal quickly tub-stomps the cancer-ridden rat to put it out of its misery and to quiet its nail-on-metal scratching.
"That one is not for you, Thunderpuss. I don't want you to get a tummy-ache."
Seeing how the nearby hallway ends at a door that appears to enter a room which is also assessable from the parlor, Seal recommends entering from the parlor side.
"No, wait! *hisss*" Rissi tries to claw up as quickly as sh can to stop the dwarf, but is far too feeble to slow his movements.
"Was that... was that really necessary? The creature was suffering and scared. *shhhhh* Perhaps it was a kindness, but, but...". The wizard seems at a loss for words.