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Yoko looks through the Pack, and takes out one of the Potions of Cure Light Wounds. "I was in such a rush to help, that I never introduced myself! The name's Yoko!" Stretching out a hand toward Uriah, she grins gleefully. "Always good to meet another that's good with a gun! My girl here takes a bit to keep loaded, but she packs a Wallop!"
Yoko has Bright red hair, kept in a Ponytail that goes down to the small of her back. Her youth is pretty obvious with her exuberance, but she is very willing to help out where needed. Other than the gun at her back, and a pouch on her hip, she doesn't have too many other possessions. (at least not that she brings with her)
"Hey Janira! It's been a bit since I've heard your stories! Would you mind watching some of my heavier stuff while we go exploring? I normally try to leave it at camp but, well, Catching up wasn't the easiest! I saw Master Shaine a little after you left, and left right away! Hopefully I can be of help!"
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Following Teloish and Lady Mae into the cave, Yoko lays down next to the edge of the pit, looking down toward the water. "I've got a rope if that will help? Won't be much help holding it though."
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"Hiya, Yoko! The name's Ayla!" she exclaims, bowing grandly. Ayla has long red hair and eyebrows, and a bright, enthusiastic smile that takes up most of her face. Her too-big eyes are bright blue and twinkling. On her back is a bulging backpack and in her hands rests a well-polished light crossbow.
"You may have heard of me!" she continues without pause. "I've got a few adventures under my belt, some of them for the Pathfinders! I'm also the famous author of the Ada Mantine series of adventure novels! They're great! Here!" she shoves a novel at Yoko, and another at Teloish. The cover reads 'Ada Mantine and the Icy Hand of Death, An Adventure Novel by Ayla Vivindor.' "This is Ada's thirteenth adventure!"
"I think I'll call the next one: 'Ada Mantine and the Monstrous Minotaur!' Or maybe... 'Ada Mantine and the Caverns of the Horned Beast!' I guess we'll have to see how this mission goes, eh?"
"Well, come on then! Let's go, time's a wasting! Back to work!"
Ayla scampers off into the caverns.
Seeing the others ooh-ing and aah-ing over a hole, Ayla examines it.
"Yup, that's a hole, alright... Ooh! A bundle! Bundle's are exciting!"
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Genryl gives a sputter as his vision swims into focus again, staring up at Janira's worried face. He gives a cough and smiles weakly at her. "I'm still here, thanks to you. Sorry for disobeying your orders, I'll accept full responsibility for that. I just had this feeling that it would come back to haunt me if I didn't stay." Genryl then sloly gets to his bare feet, and streches out the few kinks in his body and neck.
taking stock of his bloodeied and tattered clothes, Genryl moves up to everyone else and the bag. "Ayla aking that potion would be a good idea! I wish i had it a few moments ago, but I'd be glad to have it for next time." He looks over everything else in the pack before deciding there is nothing else he can use.
When Yoko introduces herself, the human-height, brown-haired and dwarfbeared man gives a bright smile, the warm dimples showing up above his beard. "It's a pleasure to meet you Yoko! I'm Genryl, Genryl Vinebrewer. I take it you were running late for our meeting this morning? Might I reccomend staying at the inn next time? I'll bring some good wine if you'd want the company." He also makes sure to introduce himself to Teloish and offer the man some wine as well.
After introductions, Genryl pulls out his family's harrow deck and has the two newcomers pull a card each.
Genryl gives a broad smile when he sees the card. "The Brass Dwarf! One of my favorites! This card can represent one of two things, either an invulnerability to a present danger, or a dark fate or failure that might be fall you but save everyone else from something worse... On the whole it's a good card!"
Genryl has the exact opposite reaction to Teloish's card, frowning deeply. "The Mute Hag... This is a dark card that shows a hag that can see into the hearts of men and uses that power to create blood pacts and spread poisonous secrets, the kind that degrades even the closest of friends. She's also dreaded by many a performer as she can cause them to stumble over words or even loose focus. Please do be careful about the next few days..."
Genryl hangs back a bit behind everyone, taking a moment to change his shirt and use a cantrip to create enough water to wash his other clothes and cloak.
As he turns the corner and finds everyone loooking over a hole filled with water, he gives a small sigh. "Well, I needn't have used that cantrip so much, it looks like. But you've found a bundle, do ya know what it is?"
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"Pleased to meet you, more so that you are on this side of the dirt rather than the other. Name's Theolish" Theolish said, holding out his hand.
Looking at the card he thought for a moment. "I will keep that in mind. I think she might also mean that it would be wise to not give people knowledge that can be used against you." he said
The grippli climbs down the whole and retrieves, what appears to be a cloak from the water.
And climbs up the other side.
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Genryl takes a look at the small pond and then back at his already somewhat damp clothes. He takes off his pack and clock bundling them together and tosses them to the other side of the ravine. They fall short and fall into the water. Grumbling something about cloaks being stupid for how they catch the wind, Genryl dives in after his things. Grabbing them he swims across doggedly, trying to making it look very much like he isn't just about to sink.
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With a shrug, Ayla takes everything else she can use from the backpack and shoves it in her pockets. Then she tosses the backpack with its remaining loot towards someone strong looking.
"Hold this big guy," she remarks, forcing the backpack onto Teloish.
Then she turns, runs at the pit and leaps across with a wide smile.
Easily landing on the other side.
Ayla bows grandly, then turns and peers into the darkness. After a moment she puts down her crossbow, pulls out a sunrod and cracks it, then gives it a shake, causing it to glow brightly. She shoves the sunrod through her belt and picks her crossbow back up. Then she peers off into the tunnels ahead...
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Yoko, after seeing everyone else handily leap across the pit, rifles through her gear before retrieving a Kunai, and a length of rope. Threading the rope through the eye at the end of the short weapon, she tosses it (While holding the other end of the rope!) handily across the gap, about 5 feet away from the edge. "Would you mind hammering that into the wall over there? That way, I can at least climb up if I fall when I jump."
The tunnels continue on, leading deeper beneath the Kortos Mounts until they eventually open into a large cavern. What must have once been beautifully carved reliefs and inscriptions have since weathered heavily, their features dulled and softened to the point that it is hard to distinguish what each once depicted. A wide tunnel exits the cavern on its far side, and blue-burning torches line the passageway’s walls.
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Yoko looks at the reliefs from a variety of different angles to determine their subject matter.
"I can't make Heads or Tails of these. What do you think they could pertain to?"
After getting frustrated with the look around the reliefs, Yoko sits on the ground, performing basic maintenance on her musket.
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After everyone crosses, Mae will continue moving down the caverns with the rest, feeling very happy with the moist air and cool stone on her feet. I can see why the gillmen come here, this place is very nice!
As the room lights up and expands she stops and blinks, trying to get her eyes to focus on the walls and the flickering light.
After a few moments of looking at the others she decides to share with them what she knows. She speaks quietly, so much so that you need to really lean in to hear it well. "These drawings are of Aroden. The old God that is now gone? A beggar, a hunter, and a scholar. I'm not sure what the last is supposed to be."
She points to each picture as she describes them. "Is this something that should be written down for Janira?" She asks, looking specifically at Ayla the writer.
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Ayla examines the walls with great enthusiasm, holding her sunrod up to the carvings.
"Nice eye, Mae!" Ayla replies excitedly, pulling out her journal and charcoal. She holds her sunrod in her teeth as she copies the images into her notebook.
"Mmmf! Errf mmmmrff!" she mutters. Unfortunately, no one can comprehend the amazing wisdom she's just imparted upon the group through the sunrod between her teeth.
Eventually she closes her journal, and stows it in her pack with the charcoal. She spits the sunrod into her hands, hooks it onto her belt and picks up her loaded crossbow.
"Done! Ready to go? Come on, guys, what's taking so long!" she exclaims, apparently oblivious to the fact that she was taking so long. Without waiting for an answer she scampers off down the tunnel.
"Onward!"
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Genryl heads into the room and takes a quick glance around. Setting down his pack he steps up to one of the walls and tries to look at the walls with Lady Mae. "Here, let me see if I can help at all."
But after a moment at staring at the heavily faded, he gives a shrug. "I think they are just too faded to understand. Let me know when you are ready to move on." Genryl then goes and looks at the blue fires, curious as to how they achieve their color.
When Mae points out that the reliefs possibly show the many guises of Aroden, Genryl's face lights up. "Wait, these have to do with Aroden? I loved the ancient and defunct religions class they teach at the Grand Lodge. Let me take a look... Wow, you're right they look like there's many of his different guises there. But the rest look too worn to be of any value. I'm sure the society would love to come back and study this later!"
The bearded man then waits around examining the walls of the place while Alya takes sketches. When she finally finishes, Genryl is already at the doorway to the next room. "If we found reliefs, then I wonder what things are hiding in the rest of these tunnels?"
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With Uriah manages to assist Lady Mae with the final translations.
The soft light of the surrounding fungus mixes with the flickering glow of the nearby torches to reveal a grand chamber. A large pool of water along the chamber’s southern edge reflects the blue and green radiance to illuminate the massive stalactites that cling to the ceiling overhead. Two other tunnels branch of from this area, leading to the east and west.
Rising up from the pool is a column of rock with steeply sloped sides and a flat top, as if someone had sawn off the top of a massive stalagmite. A miniature city carved from this same stone occupies nearly the entire surface. Tiny trinkets such as ancient coins, polished semiprecious stones, and ornately braided loops of string are scattered throughout the diorama, and pale cave frogs clamber atop it. The smooth cavern floor is covered in gravel and pebbles along the edge of the pool, and several foot-long centipedes prowl among the gravel in their search for prey.
The pool is 15 feet deep.
Standing waist deep in the water is a humanoid figure. He stands there unflinching, looking over statue.
The humanoid does not turn around or even acknowledge your presence as you approach.
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"Well, I'll just help myself then!" Ayla remarks as she moves towards the diorama. "Thanks, pal! You know you're pretty quiet, huh? Most be a thinker! I like thinkers! They don't talk much, but you know something's going on in there, hey? Yeah! You know what I'm talking about!"
As Ayla reaches the edge of the pool she stands on her tip-toes and tries to get a good look at the diorama.
The humanoid feels the disturbance in the water and turns around and notices the group. Especially the red haired gnome. He still does not speak, but just looks over them. His gaze falls on lady mae, and it lingers.
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"Oh, yeah?" Ayla asks, casting a glance at the man in the water. "You lose a friend lately, pal? Dead fellow? Found him in a hole?" Without waiting for a response she continues, "Yeah, that SUCKS. Companions dying is always lame! Still, price to be for being an adventurer! Are you an adventurer? Scholar? Explorer? Psychotic cultist? You lose a lot of friends?"
Ayla turns her attention back to the diorama as she speaks, examining it closely. "Wow, this is really detailed, hey? Look at the Starstone Cathedral! Nice craftsmanship!"
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Taking a quick glance around the room, the two things in the pond draws Genryl's attention. He wuickly reconizes the small diorama for what it is and loses interest in it. Why is everything always so Abasalom centric? Don't these people know the pleasures of an open road or a vineyard?
Drawn to the person in the water, Genryl gives a small chuckle when the man turns aound. "My, who do we have here? I don't think he's human. Is this a gillman? I admit I haven't ever met one in my travels so I can't tell..."
Watching the man's movement's closely, he glances at Mae and back again. "Hmm, I don't know if he dropped it or not but he certainly is interested in that robe. Unless anyone has any objections, what say we give it to him?"
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The gilman comes out of the water and bows toward grippli, taking the cloak, he folds it and places it with his robes.
"Not mine, friends" He says in a hushed voice, "Thank you"
"My name is Uori." The gilman starts, still with a soft voice, "You have entered the sacred site to us Gilmen. It was originally a sacred site to Aroden, the dead god of humanity, as well. Over the past century, the carvings have weathered and melted away. Soon enough, nothing will be left, and what little divine magic that is held in these walls of his light will fade."
"I have actually discerned some of the meanings of the carvings, and certain rituals that may be done to bring Aroden's blessing to those who worship." He looks to the tunnels to the north, "I may be willing to explain them to you if you help me with something"
He looks over to the human clad in armor, "There are invaders that have came and took over a section of the cave. They have been practicing foul magic and disturbing the pilgrimages to this site."
"Thank you so much for that" Uori reaches into the folds of his robes and reveals a wand. "Here, you may take this. It offers divine protection to those who uses it"
The cave’s damp air becomes increasingly stale as the PCs continue down through this tunnel, and as they approach this area, the stench of decay grows increasingly evident. The passage turns to the east and opens into a small cavern littered with bits of broken glass, rotting pieces of paper, and other unusable detritus. The body of a male dhampir lies face down toward the back of the cavern.
A wave of necromatic energy ripples through the chamber, animating four corpses and they turn towards the agents.
Round 1: Bold May Act
Yoko
Teloish
GM
Genryl
Ayla
Lady Mae
Uriah
GM
The skeleton moves in on Teloish, he swings away, but misses.
The skeleton returns the swing and connects.
Green moves up to the tunnel entrance as well.
Round 1-Bold May Act
Yoko
Genryl
Ayla
Lady Mae
Uriah
GM
Round 2
Teloish
GM
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Genryl gives a frown as the undead start moving about, he digs around in his beard for a moment while Teloish rushes forward. Finally digging the thing free, he gives it a look for a moment. "I'm absolutely terrible at channeling but it seems like every mission I've been on for the Society has me doing it all the time..."
Momentarily distracted, Teloish's grunt of pain from the skeleton's attack draws Genryl back into the moment. "Ah right, right, I was going to help! Just a second." The tall bearded man moves forward and brandishes his holy symbol. "Halcamora! I beseech you to wash away this unholy taint with your great bounty!"
As his cry finishes, a deep red wave of energy sloshes forth from his holy symbol, and splashes out towards the undead and the group. it quickly settles and is absorbed by the moss and fungi, which seem to drink in the vitality of the almost liquid energy.
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The skeleton closes in on Teloish, but is quick to cut it down. The zombie moves in as well. And, the fighter cuts that one down as well.
Round 1-Bold May Act
Yoko
Genryl
Ayla
Lady Mae
Uriah
GM
Round 2
Teloish
GM