INITIATIVE round 3:
1. Hadega, Lucious, Jinath -> GO!
2. Machinery/Abysiel
3. Nyloth, Inga, Meux
Abysiel cries out in pain and shrieks like crazy "I will not die here! You shall perish! The grand device will ..."
He begins to cast a spell again and two magic missiles fly towards Jinath.
Simultanously, chains try to entangle Nyloth.
Nyloth, Inga, Meux -> GO!
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wow ok then.
to move half speed along the catwalk.
Nyloth double moves along the catwalk to get into melee range, drawing his Elven Curve Blade along the way. He also begins his spirit dance with the champion spirit.
"I'm here to give you a hand Jinath, watch your footing though, it seems that this catwalk isn't very stable."
INITIATIVE round 4:
1. Hadega, Lucious, Jinath -> GO!
2. Machinery/Abysiel
3. Nyloth, Inga, Meux
With Jinath‘s last attacks you see the body of Abysiel writhe in pain and an ear piercing scream touches your souls... seconds later he is torn apart and ash flies in all directions.
Izryen’s Hourglass
Aura strong transmutation; CL 18th
Slot none; Weight 2 lbs.
Description
Izryen’s Hourglass dates from before the Starstone, when elves stood as the only civilized humanoids of Golarion. Izryen milled her hourglass from white jade and quartz, and filled it with the magic-steeped sands of the northern Garundi desert.
Originally crafted to keep time precisely and aid the wizard’s study of the heavens, near-constant tampering and augmentation eventually forged a sympathetic link between the Hourglass and the flow of ages around it.
The sands keep perfect time, and anyone studying the artifact for 5 minutes who succeed on a DC 15 Knowledge (arcana) check can determine the exact position of any given celestial body at that moment.
While in the presence of the Hourglass, mortal beings age at half their natural rate.
"Well, looks like it's time to go. Let's get the minotaur awake and above ground already."
When Nyloth approaches Nuar Spiritskin he sees that the minotaur is still almost unconscious and heavily injured.
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Meux snaps out of his delirium as visions of grandeur make way for the reality of failure. He raises his fist in the air, shaking and trembling violently. He extends his index finger like he is about to unleash a verbal tirade, but all that comes out is a squeak,
"...MEEP!"
He lowers his hand and stomps over to the proximity of the minotaur, trying to fit everyone hurt into the radius.
From previous experience, the party is sure of what he's saying, but this time it comes out in Gnomish between clinched teeth,
"אי-שם בין זעם הבטן הלוהטת של הר הגעש לבין הפשע המרושע של פסגת השלג המושלג, טמון מקום הריפוי המקובל. אני מעניק לך את "
He then walks over to the prince and spontaneously casts CLW in place of his doom spell
Nuar Spiritskin wakes up but is still very weak and exhausted.
"Who ... who are you?"
"Everything feels so fuzzy ... I ... I was at home ... and suddenly was walking through this ... this maze." he says trembling.
"I am quite confused as to how I came to be in this situation. I ... I went to sleep in my home and awoke in a cave where I was nearly beaten to death by a horde of vile beings." Nuar groans again, clutching his head.
"I suppose it doesn't matter. You aren't here to kill me, seems like. The elf, I'd bet he put them up to it. He's been whispering in my mind, while I was asleep. Well, he implied being from very early times, just after the elves returned to Golarion after the Age of Darkness," Nuar reels off.
Per what he says, Abysiel communicated with him via the minotaur's subconscious, making it both easy and infuriating to fully recall.
"He was born among humans, and got very sad as they died around him. A...voice told him a way to save his friends. This guided him to build the Tangle under Absalom, with Izyren's Hourglass to power it, slowing or halting the ravages of time."
The Prince taps his head again, gathering himself. "But the voice - he called it the Void Whisperer or something - hoodwinked him at the last moment. It tried to use the Tangle and the elf's soul to bring itself into the world. But it didn't work. So it just left him stuck here, nigh immortal. Some vestige of the Whisperer might still be about as well."
”Aye and grab that hourglass, I know not what it does, but it is magic and the society will want it.”[/b], Lucious says to the party members near it.
The greatest treasure, as Lucious is correctly stating, is Izryen’s Hourglass, which can easily be removed from the grand device with 30 minutes worth of work.
Looking around the room you see that among the salvageable items are an alchemist’s lab, masterwork artisan’s tools, a wand of magic missile, and a wand of daze.
There is also a set of goggles of minute seeing and a potion of haste.
Scattered throughout the room are a variety of coins.
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Hadega juts out a gnarled finger at the hourglass. "Indeed Lucious could be correct. Even my studies have not covered such a thing, so it must be worth something, and very powerful. We should NOT allow any more uninvited guests here, such as this Void Whisperer. It would be very improper, and rude to our Prince here."
She turns then and addresses the Minotaur Prince. "Nuar, do you think we can find our way out now that the elf and the machinery are gone, or do you think there's another way out?"
She looks around the room as well to see if she can find some secret door.
"Your Excellency the Ambassador, maybe you should return with us to the Grand Lodge in Absalom, where the Society may check on you and see how you are feeling? And Grandmaster Torch will be happy to see you, Prince."
Nuar's ears perk up at the sound of the name. "Ah yes, Grandmaster Torch, he is a good friend of mine. I wonder how he knew that I was here?"
She turns then and addresses the Minotaur Prince. "Nuar, do you think we can find our way out now that the elf and the machinery are gone, or do you think there's another way out?"
"Have you forgotten that I am a minotaur!? Ohh ... look at my clothes ... look at my white fur! This is disgusting! Let us go!"
With Nuar's help, you are able to navigate out of the maze with relative ease, although the unnatural geometry of Delirium's Tangle stumps even the minotaur a few times. The morlocks seem to have moved on to greener underground pastures, as you encounter none on your journey to the surface.
You have not reached the surface, yet, but it is clear that Nuar's first stop will be his home. He is very grateful for all the assistance you have given him, and promises to contact the Pathfinder Society on your behalf as soon as he has convalesced.
You know that Spiritskin is only a minor functionary in the Byzantine bureaucracy of Absalom, and he will therefore have little clout, but hey, every little bit counts.
"I really have to thank Grandmaster Torch personally. That he learned of my disappearance and sent a team to help me is truly amazing."
Nuar looks surprised "I have no idea what you are referring to! I have had no contact to Grandmaster Torch in weeks ... but I am happy to be safe now."
You believe he is truthful to you.
You have reached the surface now and are smelling the typical Absolom air again.
Nuar continues "I do appreciate your help! It is not necessary for you to escort me to my villa. Again, thank you!"
On returning to the Grand Lodge, Dreng is there awaiting your return anxiously.
"So you are back! And you look tired! Good, did you find Nuar?"
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Before they part with Nuar, Hadega, sensing an individual that is as concerned with appearances and manners as herself, though he be a minotaur, says, "Yes, it appears our mission was successful. And yes you should really clean that fur. What impropriety those morlocks had sullying your suit, dragging you down there, when any civilized persons would simply send a card along for you to attend the maze at your earliest convenience. But fear not! The Pathfinder Society is here to bring such customs and good conducts to the wild places of the world. I bid you good fortune master minotaur. May we meet again."
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Back at the Grand Lodge, Hadega says, "Of course we found him! We are not farm hands fresh into the city. We found an elf trapped in his own infernal machine at the center of the maze and defeated him, setting him to rest. Lucious collected a very interesting arcane device from the machine. Even I don't know what it could be!"
"Hadega, I apologize for any sign of mistrust. Of course I knew that this young group could only thrive under your leadership!" he says with a sly smile.
"Grandmaster Torch was hoping to see Nuar but knowing that he is safe at home is surely going to make him happy. Come, he is still in the meeting room although you were gone for almost a day. I think he did not sleep." Dreng says with a snarl.
You all arrive in the meeting room and see Torch in sleeping on the chair, his feet still bathing in warm water. The half-orcs standing behind him are as attentive as ever.
"Ahemmm ... Grandmaster Torch ... Torch! Wake Up!" Dreng shouts at the scarred man.
Torch opens his eyes and looks at you with a dreamy look on his face but suddenly is clear and also shouts with a loud voice "You ... you are back! Where is Nuar?! Where is my treasure?"
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"You," Hadega says, scowling, curling her lip at Grandmaster Torch. "So it comes out, then? All you wanted was that hourglass, and you were willing to risk the Minotaur Prince to get it! What shoddy 'friendship', if you could even call it that! No doubt you leveraged Dreng here calling in some favor or somesuch nonsense!"