Lydia, the mortification of humility requires a DC 13 Will save to deny your feelings of pride.
Wind swirls around the room in a howling gale. Through it all, the shadowy form of Valais is dimly visible at the center of the storm. The air around her shimmers and begins to form into three nebulous bubbles. Two bubbles seem covered with an oily black film, while the third is clear and filled with blue mist. Suddenly, the bubbles shoot away, passing through the walls of the library and out of the room, as Valais collapses.
“Something has gone wrong!” Kitarlo yells through gritted teeth. The sound of a thunderclap fills the room and the wind suddenly stops. Standing next to Valais is a nine-foot-tall archon. One of the archon’s arms ends with a giant shield that is carved to resemble an open book. The other ends with a pointed spear that is carved to resemble a quill.
“What foolish thing have you done?” the archon roars.
The archon quickly examines the room while listening to you, hoping to gain an understanding of the ritual they performed. At first, the archon holds his quill menacingly, as if considering whether to strike against the PCs, but he suddenly stows it on his back and bows his head, as if listening to something you cannot hear.
When he speaks again, his voice is much quieter. "I am Altha the Scrivener. I serve great Winlas, they Empyreal Lord who watches over The Great Library of Harmonious Scripture."
"This ritual was a mistake. It was incomplete, and split the soul of this poor mortal into three pieces, two demonic and one mortal. All three were too impure to exist in the environs of heaven, so they formed into separate cysts of evil and scattered."
"This is a crime, though one I know you did not intend. You will be given an opportunity to remedy the evil you have caused before being judged. You, Kitarlo, will remain in the Great Library and attempt to better decipher this ritual, searching for a means to restore this mortal, who is now catatonic. And you four mortals must return to Heaven's Shore and seek out the cysts your ritual has created."
"Know this: Judgment is coming. If you are found wanting, Kitarlo and all living members of the Pathfinder Society could be permanently exiled from Heaven. Akarah, take these people back to Heaven's Shore."
Akarah the lantern archon, released from his duty as doorwarden, says "This way, please."
Several hours later, when you arrive back at Heaven's Shore, the bird-headed Zutha is waiting for you.
"Rumor of your mishap precedes you," he says. "I'm sorry that happened. I feel somewhat responsible. Allow me to buy you a drink and give you some advice."
Later, ensconced in the Angel's Wing and drinking a very pleasant brew, you hear Zutha's advice. "I've heard some reports that indicate the possibility that two of your, um, escapees have been found."
"There is a section of the Unbent Forest, just outside Heaven's Shore across which a curse now lies. This must be one of the demon souls that escaped from Valais. Another rumor indicates that the a demon haunts a public square in Heaven’s Shore called the Garden of Laughter, where plays, puppet shows, and comedic performances are held."
"So far, no one has heard where the third piece of Valais’s soul fled, but while you deal with these first two, I will diligently search among my contacts for word of the third."
"Lastly, I have a gift which may be of some use." He sets on the table a flask of lovely pearlescent glass. "It is called the elixir of sacred breath." He explains that it functions as an elixir of fire breath, except that half of the damage it deals results directly from divine power and is therefore not subject to being reduced by resistance to fire-based attacks.
Zutha shakes his head. "No. Those were all I had."
When you arrive at the Garden of Laughter:
Inside this trimmed clearing, an assortment of acrobats, mummers, and dancers twirl about to the delight of dozens of spectators. A chorus of laughter erupts from a group of children nearby, gathered around a colorful play wagon decorated with ribbons and filled with marionettes. Perched atop the wagon is an angelic figure, roughly the size of a halfling, with iridescent wings and flowing silver hair.
With a broad smile, the angel approaches and speaks, “Hello, mortals! I am so glad you have arrived. My name is Oneol. I believe I have something you are looking for.”
Leading the way through the crowd of children, Oneol opens the back of the wagon to reveal a miniature puppet stage. A hazy bubble covered with splotches of black fills the inside of the wagon. Dimly visible inside the bubble, a fearsome demonic puppet stands in the garden of an opulent manor and silently yells orders.
“I have captured the soul of Laktharis, the kalavakus demon that you set free,” Oneol says with a grin. “After his release, Laktharis slithered his way down to Heaven’s Shore, looking for creatures to subjugate. It is the nature of kalavakus demons to control and enslave, you see. Well, naturally, when I sensed the presence of an evil slaver, I pulled the demon’s soul inside my marionette display. Now, the puppet demon has subjects to rule over that befit his status. He is a King of Strings, a ruler of puppets.”
With another sly smile, Oneol steps away from the crowd of children and whispers, “I was hoping you could help me put on a show to entertain the children. Enter the bubble of evil, defeat Laktharis, and make him look silly. The soul of this demon craves domination, so any way that you can deny him that satisfaction will make him weaker. Let us teach these children that sometimes even great evil can give rise to laughter.”
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Lizbeth raises an eyebrow.
What the...? Evil puppets?
"Wait... what? What will happen to us while we're in there? We're not going to turn into puppets too, are we? Or we'll... shrink maybe? It's not permanent is it?"
Suddenly Lizbeth's complaints and worries stop. She looks stern. "We will enter and humiliate the demon. Come! The righteous shall triumph if we stand strong!"
At Oneol's direction, you each touch the silvery sphere and are pulled into the bubble of evil.
Once you enter the bubble, you find yourselves in the courtyard of a fine manor. Intricate carvings depicting Abyssal scenery decorate the manor’s exterior walls. The manor has no doors, and in place of windows it has
impassible walls of solid gray mist. Human-sized puppets in simple clothing lurk along the interior edges of the main building’s roof, staring blankly at the courtyard below as if it were a grand stage. These puppets do not move or attack, but their eyes track your movements.
In the courtyard is a giant puppet painted to look like a ferocious demon with razor-sharp horns and violet-colored armored skin. It roars commands to the unmoving puppets in the audience. Hundreds of marionette strings hang from his arms and back.
He sneers at you as you appear. "Welcome to my domain, you pathetic slaves! I am your new master, Laktharis!" He moves to attack. From somewhere, you can hear the gasps and shrieks of the audience.
INITIATIVE
A hatch pops open on the demon-puppet's shoulder with a creak and a net bursts forth, flying at Lydia. The hatch slams shut.
The net flies true, entangling Lydia!
SUMMARY
Laktharis
Felix
Angie Sen
Lizbeth
Lydia (entangled in a net)
Then add please if I can with my comment.
[dice=Intimidate]1d20+4
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Angie Sen cuts low with his katana, but the Laktharis marionette leaps back out of the way. Then Felix begins a taunting rhyme and the children outside laugh. Laktharis looks startled. "What? No! How dare you laugh at me?! I am the terror of the Blasted Moors! Men run in horror at my approach!"
As he speaks, Laktharis gets noticeably shorter, and his voice gets just a tiny bit more shrill.
SUMMARY
Laktharis (humiliated 1)
Felix
Angie Sen
Lizbeth
Lydia (entangled in a net)
Lizbeth's big sword connects hard with the puppet's chest, smashing painted wood and cutting strings.
SUMMARY
Laktharis (13 damage)(humiliated 1)
Felix
Angie Sen
Lizbeth
Lydia (entangled in a net)
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"Speaking of putting on a show, it's time I introduced you to a friend of mine:"
The bright colors in the wagon seem to bleach and the ever-present light seems to dim as Lydia centers herself, and begins an occult incantation:
"Though I sojourn in Salvation,
I remain abomination.
A darkness rises in this Camelot:
Fomalhaut!
FOMALHAUT!
"
Those present experience a fleeting moment of profound ontological disorientation, and when it passes...
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...an unlikely stowaway has found its way to Heaven.
Standing (if that is the right word) next to Lydia now is a twisted, utterly-black wraith whose features continuously shift and writhe, the only constant a single, terrible eye...and, for some reason, a rather expensive-looking hat.
At present, it is sharply squinting at its surroundings.
"Could it be?" Inquires the entity in a voice that sounds at once hollow and rich - at least with sarcasm. "Has Heaven's 'inclusivity' policy finally gone too far?" He chuckles to himself, a sound like the crunching of Autumn leaves.
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"Don't worry, Fomalhaut - it looks like we're about to visit the Holy Kingdom's dungeon...!"
"Psh. Some overfiend YOU are...I mean - 'oh! Alas! Alack! Won't thou spare this one poor soul? I bring thee TRIBUTE!'"
With that, she staggers about some, and fumbles under the net to break out the strange enchanted apple she was given earlier, and rolls it toward the "giant" demon...
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...while Fomalhaut stares in the direction of the children's laughter (to the extent that a direction can be perceived from in here), and replies, "Hi kids! It's SHOWTIME! Wanna see how angels fall?"
He positions himself opposite Angie-Sen and flamboyantly shoves the bombastic demon over with his tenebrous pseudopods...
"THAT'S HOW! You learn something new every epoch, don't you?"
The marionette turns to regard the apple thrown at its feet. It stares for a moment, curious, but then kicks it aside to face its foes again. This momentary distraction is enough, however, for Lydia's umbral companion to lash out and (just barely!) trip the hapless demon, which crashes to the ground, delighting the unseen youngsters. Their gales of laughter cause the fearsome puppet to shrink once again, becoming almost human sized. "Not funny!" it squeaks. "I'll destroy you for this insult, dead-girl!" It seems the demon understands perfectly who is the shade's true master.
But instead, the marionette slashes at Fomalhaut, jerks to its right, rolling into a savage attack on Angie Sen. As he moves, his machinery starts to repair itself before your eyes. But as he slashes at Fomalhaut, the shade fades out of the way and Angie Sen deflects the claws with fine swordsmanship.
SUMMARY
Laktharis (11 damage)(humiliated 2)
Felix
Angie Sen
Lizbeth
Lydia (entangled in a net)
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Felix looks at the demon and it´s less than stellar performance and swings his blade once or twice, then stops.
"I could hack off that little something you call a nose, but frankly why. You are sooo ugly that it might actually improve your face. And you can´t prevent it, not because you are pathetic but because I am that DAMN Good. Now suck it!"
Laktharis spins past Lizbeth's attack and sneers at Felix, but maneuvers directly into the path of Angie Sen's katana. The elegant blade smashes more of the demon's intricately painted wooden body.
SUMMARY
Laktharis (20 damage)(humiliated 2)
Felix
Angie Sen
Lizbeth
Lydia (entangled in a net)
[ooc]Lydia, go![/dice]
Fomalhaut attacks the downed marionette, but the demon manages to roll out of the shade's way and suffer no harm.
As Laktharis continues to repair itself, it stands to its full height.
Fomalhaut and Angie Sen each smash the demon puppet so that it staggers and wooden splinters fly across the courtyard. "No! No! It isn't fair!" cries Laktharis in an increasingly shrill voice. "I'm terrifying! I'm terrifying, I'm... terrified."
COMBAT OVER
The marionette crashes to the ground, lifeless. The air in the courtyard wavers and pops and you are transported back to reality. Standing at your feet is a 2-foot tall Laktharis puppet. "Hey!" it shrills. "Hey! I'm talking to you! Stop laughing!"
Oneol ignores the little puppet and regards you. "You did well. I've seen funnier performances, but the children will get over it. Take the puppet with you and please accept these gifts before you go." Oneol rewards you with six well-crafted marionettes worth 20 gp each. He also hands you a prop that he uses in some of his other performances, a mithral heavy steel shield.
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Angie Sen bows when he receives his gift.
"Thank you for your gifts, I am sorry we did not entertain you as well as you wanted. But I am here to save a soul of a woman as quickly as I can. Perhaps when the soul is saved, I could return and preform a dance from my home land, with my dancing skills I am sure it will bring a smile to the children's faces."
And he bows again, then turns to leave.
"I believe you have more souls to pursue?"
Outside the borders of Heaven’s Shore looms a lush and mysterious forest of towering trees. A peaceful hush fills the region, and the air is heavy with the weight of years. The road ahead curves around a small grove before plunging into a wall of shimmering air resembling a massive bubble. Black splotches swirl over the translucent wall like oil floating on water. Inside the bubble, the boughs of the forest are twisted and covered with festering cysts.
“Greetings, mortals,” a stern voice calls out. With a rush of air, a gigantic, gold-feathered owl swoops down and perches on a tree near the bubble.
“My name is Skuroth, and I am warden over this section of the Unbent Forest. I am told that you are the mortals responsible for releasing this evil into Heaven and that you have been charged with cleansing it as well."
“It is not my place to countermand the will of Altha the Scrivener, so I will allow you to enter the bubble first and hunt your quarry. Be warned, however, that I will follow soon after and give chase myself. It has been many long years since evil of this magnitude walked beneath the boughs of my domain. My talons ache to once again taste the blood of demons.”