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Paiomi shoves over her sister, "That's not a problem" as she grins at Aeostep, "You're cute, are you free later?" she winks as she drops and strikes the board without looking.
she grins with satisfaction without looking as the plank breaks cleanly in two! Naiomi ducks as one half the plank nearly brains her.
Aeotsep puts away the wooden boards and takes a quarterstaff and a blindfold from the weapon racks. He then requests that everyone in the room close their eyes and be silent. As he walks around you, he tells you to pay attention to the sound of his footsteps and the aroma of incense in his robes. The monk exhorts that consciousness is achieved through the sum of senses, and relying on only one of them creates a false perception of the world. He tells you to open their eyes and each of you to demonstrate what you have learned.
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Paiomi swipes the blindfold. "Let me do this Naiomi, you get too aroused when blindfolded..." she smirks.
Wrapping the blindfold around her head, "Ok, Rea....." she staggers as Aostep plants a left hook squarely on Paiomi's cheek. She spins in a violent circle before slamming into the wall and collapsing, senseless.
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Troyst waits his turn patiently, no longer anxious to show off. He smirks when Paiomi hits the ground and steps forward to help her up. He wraps the blindfold around his head and sets himself in the middle of the room. A few minutes pass and he's about to take the blindfold off when he hears a soft scuff on the floor. He turns and throws his arm up in an X, blocking the downward blow.
Both Yukine and Paiomi are uncessful in determing the direction and timing of the blow and find themselves the receiving end of his strike. Troyst however is able to not only successfully anticipate the attack but is able to parry the blow and prevent a strike. The monk remarks, "Well done." as he moves down towards Naiomi and Sajan.
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Naiomi laughs hysterically as her sister catches the wall with her face. "Let me show you how this is done little sister"
Naiomi puts the blindfold on and shouts out to the master "Show me what you got"
The master takes his opportunity thinking the Hasegawa is distracted, but she clearly knows his presence. Her quick foot work allows her to start to side step the blow, yet she trips over her own feet losing her balance. The master takes his shot and in a last feeble attempt Naiomi tries to block it, but only succeeds in hitting herself square in the face before falling to the floor.
Nodding to Sajan with satisfaction he moves on to Naiomi. After her face hits the floor he sighs. "Tsk, tsk. Such promise, yet no coordination. You should watch after Sajan next time, you could learn much from him."
Looking over the group he remarks, "Very well then, let's move on."
The fourth trial takes place by the waterfall to the west of the village, and the walk through the Down Valley attracts the attention of curious bystanders. Under the assumption that Aeotsep is about to test a group of aspirants, several dozen people take a brief break from their work to observe the trial. A trail ascends 40 feet to a mountain ledge, where a series of wooden posts overlooks the waterfall’s plunge pool. Aeotsep hops atop one of the posts and instructs you to do the same and stand immobile for 1 hour. Though at face value this seems to be a test of balance, the trial is actually designed to test resilience and resoluteness.
"No then, let us see how you fair in the fourth trial. Up you go."
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"Ohhhhh I got this for sure this time!"
Naiomi takes her position whispering to herself:
I'm a f~~~ing ninja...
She maintains her balance and holds out for the first 20 minutes, looking like she does this for a living.
Her stamina is strong, her balance is better. She continues to hold steady, unwavering.
The crowd begins to cheer her on as she stands more still than the post holding her.
The crowd erupts with cheer as Naiomi has stood through the test of endurance and stamina. A smile on her face goes from ear to ear as she hops down safely off the post, runs over to the master and gives him a giant Hasegawa hug.
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"What you say Naiomi? you want to fall off?" Paiomi laughs. "Hey Sajan, get a drink after we crush this? Hasegawas are nimble. Like cats." she hops onto the post. After the first 20 minutes, she sees Yukine pinwheel her arms and topple into the water.
Acrobatics Take 10+10
Seeing Yukine tumble into the water below, "That's a shame!" she mutters. She glances over at her sister annoyingly.
Acrobatics Take 10+10
"Tired yet sis?" she asks. "Nope." came the reply. She looks at Aeostep who is grinning at the efforts the party is putting into maintaining their balance. Well, except at the Hasegawa sisters who don't seem to mind this at all.
Acrobatics Take 10+10
"And we're almost done... " Paiomi sighs, checking her fingernails and buffing them. She briefly considers jetting her sister with a stream of water from below, but decides against it as it would be counterproductive to their mission.
"Finally! done!" she says as the crowd erupts into cheers as she hops off the post to the ground.
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Familiar with such training, Sajan jumps on top of a post and begins meditating
Acrobatics Take 10 + 10 on all 3 rolls
After an hour of complete silence, Sajan hops off only to notice Troyst is dozing off while the sisters seemingly flirt with the spectators.
"Most troublesome indeed" he mutters under his breath
Nodding in acceptance the master notes to the Hasegawa clan, "Well done."
As Aeotsep leads you back into the monastery and to a hidden trail, he tells you a story of Tar Kuata’s past.
“Many years after he began to teach students in these mountains, Narmek Tar Kuata challenged the air spirits for mastery of the winds. They attempted to tear him from the peak, but he struck the mountain and caused a great pillar of stone to rise high into the sky. Acknowledging Narmek Tar Kuata’s superiority, the air spirits granted him the respect he had earned, and have served the monastery ever since. The spire, as we call it, still stands as a reminder of our alliance with these spirits, and our founder’s remains reside in a reliquary at its top.”
Aeotsep steps out from the covered path and into daylight, where a impossibly tall stone pillar rises from the mountainside. “Climbing to the top symbolizes the metaphysical ascent that Narmek Tar Kuata realized. This climb is your next trial.”
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The sisters scramble for the tower in a race, pushing each other and pulling hair. The crowd is amused by the shrieks and grunts of the sisters as they attempt to reach the tower first to climb it. As Paiomi leaps to the tower, her sister catches her by the collar and pulls her back and begins to climb. Naiomi's footling slips briefly at the start but that lets Paiomi catch up and scramble over her, kicking her off! "Hey!" say Naiomi, as Paiomi continues climbing.
As she tries to rush up the tower, nearly halfway up her grip slips from her sweaty palms and she promptly falls off the tower past her laughing sister. "Oomph!" she exclaims as she hits the ground. Followed by a shoe hitting her in the face. "Hey!" she yells at her sister. Who is now barefoot and grinning in amusement when her shoe hit Paiomi's face. Naiomi promptly continues climbing up the tower.
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Naiomi laughs hysterically as she holds onto the pillar with one hand, the other pointing down at her fallen sister. She holds on for some time laughing and teasing as the onlookers begin to laugh along as well. She looks over to the master who is not as amused. Quickly she composes herself and easily climbs this pillar to the top.
Once at the top she looks to Sajan before shouting down to her sister "I guess there really are only 2 Hasegawa's here" before erupting once again in laughter.
Aeostep nods approvingly as three of the five make it to the top with ease. Looking at both Yukine and Paiomi on the ground he waits expectantly. After a solid minute of watching them they get the idea that he wants them to try again. Getting up off the ground Paiomi scampers up the pillar quickly on her first try, clearly doing better without her sister agitating her. Yukine falters halfway up, but doesn't lose her grip and is able to recover and finally climbs to the top.
On the top of the pillar, you find Itephta hovering above the spire, accompanied by a slender Garundi woman carrying a long spear, her dark hair woven into a braid. Aeotsep joins you a few moments later, carrying a large bag on his back.
“This is your last test, Pathfinders—one I personally requested and insisted on observing,” Itephta says without taking his eyes off the wooden case in his hands. The young monk opens the lid, gracefully plucks a wand from inside, and hands the empty box to Aeotsep. Itephta points the wand at the spire, and in a matter of seconds, the narrow summit expands into a broad platform, like an unfolding mushroom.
“Irori teaches that inner peace and knowledge are key, but one must be able to defend his values in trial by arms,” he explains as the Garundi woman alights on the platform. “I ask that you spar with the monastery’s champion, Aramaya. Please make it an honorable fight, for the great Tar Kuata watches us today.”
Aeotsep’s idea of an honorable fight prohibits dealing lethal damage, and he opens his bag to reveal an array of wooden weapons—including any weapon you can use except firearms. These function as normal weapons of their type, except that they deal nonlethal damage. Because Sajan, Troyst and Naiomi ascended the spire unaided, Aeotsep instead offers them either a masterwork version of the weapon or the one lesser merciful metamagic rod in his bag.
Once everyone has selected their weapon, Aeostep places the five party members on the edge of the pillar spread equally apart with Aramaya in the center. He moves to the center and announces, "When I signal, begin."
Silence fills the air and the only sound is a slight breeze blowing across the top of the pillar. The mood is tense as everyone waits for the signal.
"Begin." announces the master and before you can blink an eye your opponent is moving towards Yukine in a flash. She twirls her longspear and slams it directly into Yukine's chest with tremendous force and blasts her off the edge of the pillar.
Yukine's strike finds its target and an annoyed Aramaya is hit with Yukine's wooden sword.
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Feeling annoyed as her specialty does not have the option to not cause harm, Paiomi sighs and pulls a light crossbow. While taking too long to decide, she hears the impact of Aramaya's attack against Yukine. She loads, turns and fires!
"Yes!" she erupts when the bolt strikes true. "Don't Yu-yu, I got your back!" she says to Yukine.
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Naiomi is pleased with the opportunity to spar once again with her sister, and this new combatant.
Browsing the weapons she picks up 2 masterwork wooden wakizashis. She wields them in her hands as if this is not the first time she has held a sparring weapon.
Once the battle begins, Naiomi steps up swiftly and positions herself for the attack.
What Yukine stars the rest of the party continues. Sajan, Troyst and Paiomi all lay incredibly well placed attacks that quickly send the champion sprawling to the floor with her spear rolling across the pillar to the center.
Itephta revives Aramaya with a quick spell. Aramaya respectfully acknowledges your abilities and retires. Instead of asking you to climb down, you instead are carried back down by the invisible force to the ground. Itephta, Aeotsep, and Menkha then excuse themselves to discuss your trials, leaving you to wander the monastery's grounds in the meantime. You are given a room in one of their caves for that night.
The next morning, you gather with Itephta and Aeotsep in the Master’s Room. Itephta is amenable to bequeathing the Sky Key component to the Pathfinder Society on the condition you provide the monastery short-term assistance.
“Our monastery is remote and receives little direct aid from Sothis and the great river cities of Osirion, and this distance has made us a target for worshippers of Rovagug who recently became our neighbors. These so-called Doomsday Knights frequently attack caravans and pilgrims, and we have done what we can to protect the trails that lead here with the disciples we have. In fact, one of our own, a respected Ouat named Bertrag, disappeared several days before you arrived. At this point I assume he has perished; the cult is known for sacrificing intelligent creatures."
“Irori promotes self-perfection, but I do not confuse that with blind self-reliance when confronted with a true threat. Tar Kuata can guard travelers or strike at the cult’s heart, but it cannot do both. With your assistance, we might rid this land of the Rough Beast’s warriors once and for all.”
"They are a cult of Rovagug led by Tasutek, a priest granted considerable physical strength by his patron. Most wield divine power in one form or another. The church of Sarenrae warned us of this group, which fled the Dawnflower's wrath in An and found refuge here. While we defend the monastery and the roads, we need you to destroy the cult of Rovagug."
Before you depart, Aeotsep wishes you fortune and insight in your upcoming challenges.
Approximately 30 miles north of Tar Kuata, the Merotsi Mines were abandoned over a century ago. While excavating the deeper levels, the miners breached a hot spring that filled lower areas with toxic water and fumes. The miners were able to vent only some of the gases before the conditions forced them to abandon the worksite and the proprietor formally closed the mine soon after. A weathered wooden sign still stands by the entrance, warning visitors in Osiriani to keep out.
The air here is acrid but does little beyond irritating the eyes. Five horses tethered to hooks on the walls have bloodshot eyes, rashes, and other minor conditions from their exposure to the mist. Your arrival agitates the horses, which begin neighing and kicking.
There are two main ways to descend to the lower mine levels: a set of mine carts to the east, and an elevator to the west. The mine carts sit on a double track that descends down a steep tunnel. Each pair of carts connects to a pulley assemblage by chains, which an operator can move using a large windlass at the top of the tunnel. Each cart can hold up to three Medium creatures and has a smaller windlass, allowing a creature to ascend or descend unaided.
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"Those horses don't look happy..." notes Paiomi, rubbing her eyes. "Whose horses are these anyway? Any of these your boyfriend Naiomi?" Paiomi nudges.
She begins by examining the elevator, looking at the mechanisms and levers. [b]"I don't know too much about this, but I can try to fix it?"[b] she says.
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Troyst watches the Hasegawas sneak through the brush while he walks up the path. He rolls his eyes at Yukine, "look at those silly people." When they reach the elevator and mine carts, he looks around for something to brute force into working, but finding nothing, he sits down to wait for the others to sort it out. "I imagine neither option will be quiet. Can't we just walk in?"
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"Alright alright fine, I got this." And to that Naiomi gets to work on the elevator mechanism.
"There, that ought to do it. I am pretty confident that we should be able to safely take this down now. Shall we?" Naiomi motions for the rest of the gang to enter the elevator.
"Might need someone with some strength though to lower us down safely via that pulley over there."
Once inside the elevator, Naiomi positions behind her sister. "Paiomi, quit moving around. I'm trying to use your ass for cover."
Take 10 on stealth for 21, 23 if Paiomi's ass counts as significant source of cover.