The guardian is not really surprised, as a charging vesk is not exactly stealthy. But that doesn't help. Boreal deals the guardian a large cut. EH-RK also hits with his gun.
Olmehya moves with the others and when the creature comes into view she immediately begins consulting her wrist computer about the being's nature. "Gibson, pull up the database on mystical creatures, filter for glowing eyes..."
With a dangerous foe standing next to him the guardian releases the built up glow in one blindingly bright explosion of light, like the death of a star. After that the glow in the guardians eyes is gone.
"Drat," Olmehya says as her quick database search reveals nothing to her. Then her eyes widen as there is a great explosion of energy from the creature which envelops Boreal Typhon.
Noticing the glow is gone from its eyes and hoping that means it can't release such a blast again, Olmehya dashes in and attempts to reprimand it for its actions with a blow from her battle glove.
"You son of a..." Boreal says, scales singed and armor blackened.
Eric continues moving and firing
Manteca's antennae quiver in panic at the explosion. He begins trying to coordinate the party into a position where flank is achieved without blocking EH-RK's shot, and takes a shot of his own.
Boreal pays the guardian back in same coin, but the others fail to add to that. But the guardian is more than a match even for the vesk. He brings his spear down on her and deals her another bad wound.
Blood dripping from a serious gash in her side, Boreal says to herself under her breath, "Finally a worthy opponent."
Eric fires down at the solarion again.
Boreal deals another mighty blow to the guardian, severing an arm and EH-RK ends the glow in the guardian's eyes once and for all with a headshot. The guardian slumps to the ground.
Eric gathers his rifle and reloads it. He then climbs down to meet the others.
Humanoids: We should proceed to the entrance. No doubt we made noise...we might have warned our foes that we have arrived.
Eric taps out a few commands in his datapad and begins moving slowly and quietly towards the entrance.
The heavy doors block any noise. If there is noise inside to start with, that is. Extensive metalwork crisscrosses them, the ornately carved
wooden doors leading into the temple have survived the ages intact.
Eric moves up to the door, gives them a search, listens a moment and then opens them.
From its floor to its curved ceiling thirty feet above, this entry hall is covered in sweeping arcs of constellations marked with delicate lines and numbers at regular intervals.
To the right, some short movement was seen of someone going for cover.
Manteca stands with his hands on his knees, clearly winded by the sprint up the stairs. EH-RK, do not engage!, says the shirren telepathically. I'm going to take a look at the wounds Boreal Typhon has sustained! She can't keep going so quickly!
Boreal sits down, very unceremoniously. "Is everyone okay?" She says looking around at everyone. Not seeing any serious wounds on anyone she drops down onto her back with her arms out besides her. "That was a good fight." she breathes heavy, closing her eyes with a small smile on her face. The smile twitches slightly and you can see blood starting to drip through her armor, pooling beneath her.
Eric notes the movement and retreats back from the door.
Humanoids: There are other unknown creatures in this place. he says upon arrival back at the group.
Dr. Solstarni approaches the vesk to examine her wounds and says to the android, "EH-RK, would you take a look at any equipment our most recent foe may have carried?"
"Now, Boreal Typhon, let's see what we can do about your wounds. You fought ferociously," she adds in genuine admiration.
Olmeya can see Boreal's grin spread a bit at the compliment.
Seeing the blood pooling around Boreal, Manteca sighs and takes out his medkit. "Dr. Olmehya, I'll do the basic triage and you can provide the more serious healing? I do want to make sure we preserve your abilities as much as possible. Plus, I've done this a time or two - Boreal Typhon tends not to know her own limits when battle begins."
"Dr Manteca Imani, you haven't had to patch me up that often..." She says dramatically "And besides, last time was barely enough to leave a scar." with a chuckle that turns into a wince.
"So whats the damage?" She asks looking at the doctors.
"No, I haven't succeeded at patching you up that often," the shirren says, carefully setting gauze on the burn wounds from the thing that just confronted them. "This is at least simply muscle damage - it will heal. How will other vesk react to the teethmarks? They're the deepest, they're most likely to scar."
"The scar has value because of it's story. Do you think the story behind this scar will be worthy of praise?" Boreal asks the shirren
Manteca pauses for a moment, antennae wiggling at the though of facing down a mountain eel and not considering it a story worthy of praise. "Yes, I think it will," he says carefully, "though please make sure to give honor to the shirren people by explaining who got the killing blow."
"When I retell the battle I will make sure everyone knows it was you that felled the beast. You bring honor to yourself."
As Manteca finishes his work, Olmehya sits on her knees beside Boreal Typhon and places one hand beneath the vesk, under her back, a second hand on her shoulder, and a third hand rests lightly on the bite wound to the vesk's face. As she begins to concentrate, there is a faint glow of vital energy flowing between the two relative strangers, restoring vesk flesh to its uninjured, though not unmarred, state.
"Thank you both." She says after they seem to be done with her. "Good as new." though she is still slightly stiff, and a bit tender.
The cultists seem to be busy inside, and don't care about what is going on outside.
Whenever his allies are ready, Eric proceeds to the doors and stealthily peeks inside once more
Manteca creeps towards the door, stopping 30 feet out when EH-RK is in range of his telepathy. EH-RK, if you have a clear shot, take it and we will follow. Otherwise, return here if there's information you think we'll want.
Eric sends a message via his datapad's short range communicator
Everything quiet. Approach safely.
and he enters the temple as stealthily as he can
Manteca telepathically calls to the others and approaches the doorway stealthily.
From its floor to its curved ceiling thirty feet above, this entry hall is covered in sweeping arcs of constellations marked with delicate lines and numbers at regular intervals. A series of short climbing pitons stick out of the ground near the center of the room, where embedded floor scythes were placed to slash at the unwelcome. But those pitons disable that.
The center of the temple is walled off. To the left is a gallery. The exterior wall of it contains nearly one hundred tall, narrow windows that allow thin streams of anemic light to pass through their foggy panes. The interior wall depicts the night sky and its stars. Dozens of stylized starburst carvings decorate the floor.
Three wooden doors line the west wall of the gallery to the right. The curving interior wall depicts the night sky and its stars.
"Isn't this place beautiful?" Olmehya whispers. "This is where they were holding me, over here."
"It is. For a ruin it has aged well."
Manteca doesn't speak out loud, but to the party members the shirren's telepathic excitement is palpable, making them all feel as though a sugar-ful skittermander was tearing about their brains in manic glee. The history, the societal implications of whomever built this, the ramifications to modern religious thought - all blurring through their minds in a sharp hummmm.
Olmehya points to the farthest door from them when she mentions where she was held.
"But I haven't seen the rest of the place, except for walking through this very same area on my way to that room. And I have no idea what the cultists were doing--I escaped through an exterior window from that room."
Boreal is wondering in slightly, looking at the art on the ceiling.
Olmehya takes a good look around before walking toward the door to the room she had been held in to open it.
Manteca follows suit, remembering that there's dangerous cultists around.
Eric creeps towards the right
EH-RK moves to the left side where the star pattern decorates the floor, while Olmehya chooses the right to approach her former prison. Manteca is unsure whom to follow while Boreal adores the ceiling.
As EH-RK enters the star covered area, the stars at the ceiling fall down on him like a meteorite shower.
On Olmehya's side the door of her prison flies open and that crazy minigun wielding cultist steps out. "So you came back to face your fate!"
Behind her in the room hide some more cultists.
Boreal rushes to support the good doctors.
SP 5/28 HP 27/27
Eric is blindsided by the falling star trap.