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The grease having done its' job, Nina snaps her fingers and dispels the effect. "Come on Inky, let's goooo!" she cries and the eidolon finally relents, weaving around until she places the witch roughly between Sirius and herself.
"Hey, check this out!" the gnome cries, her weapon flashing with an odd light as she tries to shank the witch...
...and misses soundly!
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The witch dodges Nina's mace, leaning back a few inches out of reach, and sneers at the gnome. Inky aims to hamstring the half-orc, and her long canines sink into the hairy, gristly thigh, severing the femoral artery in a font of bloody spray. The witch matches Inky, anguished snarl for menacing snarl, as he drops his club and falls.
Inky licks her whiskers, savoring fresh blood.
The halfling lies on the shattered floor, her life's essence still oozing from her wound.
The oracle is no fool. She realizes there's no escape. She weaves her morningstar in a circle before her and looses a husky, maniacal chuckle. "Let's dance, Pathfinders. I'd rather take the Aspis Consortium's secrets to the grave than surrender. Perhaps you'll join me for a swim in the River of Souls."
Themyscira
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Touched (green)
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Nina Brightspark
Incandescence
Sirius Sa'luk
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Slicer (yellow)
Debilitator (blue)
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Damien Marx
Ruby
Ban of Voluse
Dusty Bligh
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Brute (red)
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"Finally!" Damien exclaims, dropping his earthbreaker on the ground. "Ruby, you know what time it is, right?" He gives the wolf a whack on the rear, causing her to growl in anger and sprint towards the enemy. He draws his lance on his way and aims it for the heart. "Yaaa, yer goin' down, Aspis scum!"
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The wolf and her roughrider thunder across the antechamber, bearing down on the crazy oracle. Transfixed by the absurdity of that vision, the beautiful woman gapes in astonishment until it's too late. Impaled on the lupine lance, the oracle's body drags the halfling and his wolf to a halt.
Themyscira returns from the hidden tunnel, looking a little shaken and a bit embarrassed at her loss of nerve during the battle.
Your Aspis foes lie dying, strewn about the Shrine's massive antechamber. Avoiding the expanding pools of blood around their bodies, you examine and collect their gear. Each of the Aspis agents was carrying a potion of cure light wounds, among other items.
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Damien hops off Ruby and cracks his kunckles. "And that's how ya do it in Qadira. Or somethin'. Alright, let's do the lawful thing. Tie 'em up and take 'em to the authorities. Nina, Thayme... I'm never gunna get that right.. Thaymeseekra, you guys able to stem the bleeding?" Damien pulls out a length of rope and kneels, tying up the assailants' wrists.
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After surviving the ambush, you leave the Shrine of the Failed and return to the Grand Lodge. The crowd gathered around the Starstone Cathedral has disbanded, and many of the locals are still horrified, following Sir Reinhart’s ill-fated attempt to vault the chasm on horseback, which ended with a spectacular and fatal fall into oblivion.
A snickering druid named Lini is still chuckling near the gates of Skyreach. "I won't admit to having anything to do with it, but I'm pleased the horse survived. Wonder why it stopped in its tracks just short of the precipice? Only fitting, I suppose, that the crusader made the jump alone. It was *his* Test, after all."
You deliver your Aspis prisoners and Eylysia’s cache to Venture-Captain Drandle Dreng. He orders the guards to escort the prisoners to the interrogation cells. "Please, deliver our *guests* to Venture-Captain Zarta Dralneen." As they turn to leave, Dreng adds, "Take these, too." He hands them a couple of buckets of water and some towels. Dreng looks at you and shrugs. "Maybe she just wants to give them a bath before she questions them."
After the door to his office closes, the venture-captain shakes your hands, palms clammy, and congratulates you. "I offer you my thanks for your successful investigation. I'll be taking a personal interest in your future careers as Pathfinders."
"For those of you who have yet to complete your Confirmation, I promise to speak with Master of Scrolls Kreighton Shaine to have the process expedited."
"For the those who have already completed your Confirmation, you will receive further assignments soon."
Several days later, each of you receives a missive summarizing some of the Society’s initial findings:
Pathfinder,
Your recent investigations and recovery of agent Eylysia’s papers have already yielded results. Under my direction, a team of scholars has tracked down the long-retired Society ciphers the gnome used and translated many of her entries. Although many of these records present valuable leads, one is especially timely and exciting.
Several months ago, the Pathfinder Society recovered an incomplete relic called the Sky Key. Its missing components disappeared millennia ago, carried by dwarven refugees to the far corners of Avistan and beyond, and the Society has struggled to follow these faint trails to piece the potent device back together. It appears Eylysia may have found one of the pieces centuries ago! She writes of a visit to Tar Kuata in Osirion, where she not only met with the Iroran devotees there, but also the curious order of dwarven monks known as the Ouat. According to her journals, some of the resident dwarves’ ancestors arrived long ago from the distant north bearing a broken treasure of wire and steel. Based on additional context and several magical divinations, I have reason to believe Eylysia—and you—may have found one of the lost pieces of the Sky Key!
I have contacted Venture-Captain Norden Balentiir in Sothis to prepare for an expedition. You have already demonstrated your resourcefulness by uncovering this information; when I assemble a team to travel to Tar Kuata, I hope you will consider joining the expedition.
Highest regards,
Venture-Captain Ambrus Valsin
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"Aright, we did it! To the bar, I say! To the Wounded Wisp! Oh, but first..."
Damien hops off Ruby and finds a cozy spot near the fountain, pulls out a crude pen and diary and begins to write.
Dear Ruby,
Did ya think a Sky Key can open the door to Janira's heart? Haha, just kiddin'. Who's got time for that datin' thing when yer a Society agent anyway? Still, no closer to findin' home. Dun really care. Got more Aspis to kill. See ya.
He tears the page out, folds it up and stuffs it in the bag hanging from his wolf's neck.
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"Wow...we did it Inky, our first assignment!" Nina cheers, hopping down from her cranky feline companion in order to give her a hug around the neck. "And I like Damien's idea, let's head back to the Wounded Wisp for drinks! Wait 'till we tell all those siblings about the day we've had!"
As the group (or at least several of them) turn their feet back towards the bar, Nina sidles up to Damien.
"Hey Damien? That uh...that charge thing you did earlier was really something," she begins, for once seeming a bit shy. "What kind of training did you have to do to learn how to fight like that?"
Later...
"An' sho we kicked Aspisssh butt all over 'da place and Vensure Captain Dreidel Dang said we all did a great jarb!" exclaims a rather inebriated gnome to her fellow workers, waving the hammer in her hand around for emphasis. She brings the hammer down, attempting to drive a nail into a piece of wood. She misses.
"An', an' that totally awwsum halfin' fella' - Damien, real shtand up guy - he's gonna hook me an' Inky up wif uh...fightin' lesshons," she adds, bringing the hammer down once more and missing yet again.
"Dang it...thesh nail won't hold shtill...must be...must be enchanted or shomethin'..." she mutters. "Shomeone tell tha' jerk-butt mage to cut it out! Thish orphan...orphanaga...orphan home won't build itshelf!"