|
"What the Hells are you doing?" As Tenibri steps out amid the snakes. "Let Dew pop over with a bit of magically lit chalk and paper and takes some rubbings!"
You must succeed at three checks from this list on each plinth to decipher it: Appraise, Knowledge (history, nature, or religion), Linguistics, or Perception. A character can attempt a given skill check only once per plinth, but he can still use a different skill on the plinth. If you can read Draconic, the skill checks are instead easier.
A
B
C
D
E
|
Tenibri, sure of himself, tumbles once again in the water without being noticed by the snakes! He succeeds in uncovering another part of the third plinth. That coincides with Agirran's brillant idea. Once Dewdrop tumbles around a few more times, the party eventually uncovers the meaning of the plinths. Your report will be a great success for the society's search about Golarion's lost history! By doing this, you learn enough to provide the Society with new insights into serpentfolk society and biology.
However, you also discover the ritual importance of the hot springs. By
performing a short rite, you can transform a vial of the water into a potion of cure light wounds (CL 3rd).
|
Tenibri agrees that the ritual should be attempted. If it is arcane in nature, he volunteers to lead it; if divine, he will support however he can.
After that, if there is more to explore in the Zoological Gardens, he suggests that we should complete our survey of this space before moving on to another.
|
|
Beyond the zoological gardens are the serpentfolk slave pens, mostly occupied by sickly, depressed human captives.
Claustrophobic cells line the walls here, many crowded with three or four miserable-looking humans. The halls converge on a hewn-stone chamber lit with braziers and choked with herb-scented smoke. As you arrive in that chamber, two guards wait for you. They look like some kind of reptilian humanoid and each have a club to their side. They slither some words that sound like "SSSSsssthisshtthhssssssssss!" and draw their weapons to attack you!
"In the name of Dahak, we shall break you as we broke the other tender-meat!"
Agirran, Kyran, Forgrim, Ptolomeo
Baddies [Red@ ; Blue@ ]
Dewdrop, Tenibri
|
|
Kyran points to the weaknesses of one of the creature while Agirran goes over to fight but misses widely.
The creature with red scales tries to strike Agirran with its club, once with its claw and once with its nasty bite! The creature with blue scales tries the same thing on Ptolomeo.
The club hits Agirran behind the neck, hurting him badly, while the other two attacks miss. The other creature hits with his club and his claw, wounding Ptolomeo. However, his shamanic toughness allows him to continue the fight.
for
for
for
Dewdrop, Tenibri, Agirran [12/22], Kyran, Forgrim, Ptolomeo [11/17]
Baddies [Red@ ; Blue@ ]
|
|
Tenibri steps into the room and opens his arms to the space. He starts drawing in energy, a dull but visible energy forming around his open hands. He suddenly whips them forward, the energy comes together and bursts forward in wave that splits the two serpentfolk. The energy bursts behind the two, opening a portal where a glowing eagle appears!
Conjurer's Focus: An occultist can spend 1 point from her arcane reservoir to cast summon monster I. She can cast this spell as a standard action, and the summoned creatures remain for 1 minute per level (instead of 1 round per level). At 3rd level and every 2 levels thereafter, the power of this ability increases by one spell level, allowing her to summon more powerful creatures (to a maximum of summon monster IX at 17th level), at the cost of an additional point from her arcane reservoir per spell level. An occultist cannot have more than one summon monster spell active in this way at one time. If this ability is used again, any existing summon monster effect immediately ends. This ability replaces the arcanist exploit gained at 1st level.
The eagle immediately swoops down at the serpentfolk warrior and makes a full attack, smiting the evil creature!
|
|
And the gnome kills the creature with a burst of air! Its weak bones weren't strong enough to support the "gust".
After a few instants, the aetheral eagle disappears with a soft *poof* and you are free to heal yourselves and look trough the belongings of the scaly creatures. Other than a club and a javelin each, they do not seem to carry anything else, save for the keys of the cells.
|
|
Tenibri moves forward to examine the bodies of the serpentfolk . He grabs the keys from one of the serpentfolk, and begins approaching the cells. He pauses, however, then turns to the rest of the group with a sad look on his face. "This won't help, will it? If we free these prisoners, they'll be just like that rose. This is 10,000 years ago; they'd turn to dust the moment they left the area." He stands there with the keys held out, dangling from his hand, as he ponders whether any good can be done for the prisoners.
|
|
After hearing Tenibri speaking, Forgrim stops for just a moment, but then start opening cells again.
"We might nae be able ta brin' them with us, but as we fight our way up and ta tha outside of this place, they might have a chance ye gettin' away from here."Looking even more determined he keep speaking."If it was me in thar, that's all I wou' ask for, a chance ta make it out of here."
|
|
"humm, I see... That's a valid question."Forgrim look up at Agirran"But I can also ask ye this. What if one of tha human here be yer ancestor and that tha only reason he ended up havin' kids be beacause we came back ta free him? Closin' tha circle!"
Forgrim looks at the group in general.
"If we start askin' ourself those questions, then look at those ta bodies over thar. What if one was responsable ta find a cure ta a disease that wou' ravage yer ancestors? Or if nae him, then maybe one of his kids or grand kids. What if tha next one we kill was tha one that save this planet from a cataclysmic event that wipe out all tha humans or dwarves or gnomes or..." Looking at Tenibri "I'm sorry, what species are you again?"
Looking back at Agirran again, Forgrim seem to wait to see his decision.
|
|
As you look through the cells, you discover that there are a lot of prisoners and that they all look humans. Yet, they have a very noble style, even kept in captivity for this long time. They all have dark hair, while their skin tone ranged from olive to pale white. They have prominent brows and high hairlines. However, you quickly notice that some of them have purple colored eyes.
Trying to discern the state in which these persons are is difficult to Forgrim, as you can't touch them since they are still in the cells. However, the dwarven cleric understands that most of them have their mind broken and are in pitiful state, wounded, poisoned and tortured.
They speak to you in a language none of you knows, they also try another language and then a last one that Dewdrop understands: draconic.
"Free us! Please! Or at least, heal us!"
|
|
"Gah, this time travel stuff is just a lot more complicated than its convenient landscaping applications would seem to suggest." He looks between the dwarf and the hooded figure he has come to think of as the 'Ghost of Hogswatch Future' and sighs. "Well there's nuthin' to it then." He pulls out a silver piece minted with the likeness of some not-yet-born, but somehow dead, Keleshite potentate on one-side and a cotton-gin on the other.
"Ahh, let 'em out. What's it going to matter anyhow. It ain't like one person or two can change the world." He goes to put the coin back in his pouch when the press of freed slaves shove past. In all the jostling he drops coin never to see it again. It was only one silver piece.
"Come on let's move!"
|
|
Looking at Tenibri "I'm sorry, what species are you again?"
With a sigh, Tenibri responds. "Wayang. I know it's strange, and I know we've mostly kept to ourselves, but I have a feeling like you're going to seeing a lot more of us joining the Society, so it's best to get used to us." Calm down, man. It's not his fault. It's your fault—or rather, your parents, and their parents—for keeping so much to ourselves for so long. Entering the world all of a sudden like this was bound to be… challenging. You're in the first wave, so suck it up and deal with it.
At the conclusion of the conversation, Tenibri nods his head. "I didn't even think about all the weird time paradoxes; we may return to a world vastly different from what we left! And wouldn't that be exciting!!! "But you're right about these fellows; they deserve whatever chance they can get. We've already disrupted the past, we might as well take it all the way. Free them."
|
|
"Seein' more of yer kind be good! That's why I left me home, ta see new and excitin' people and places."
Turning back to the cells, Forgrim help all the prisoners to gather in the room. Then taking out his holy symbol, he climb onto the table once more.
"Agirran and Ptolomeo, ye might want ta stay close for this."
Putting foward his holy symbol, the dwarf start channeling the divine energy of his god.
Once he is done, he then share his rations with the prisonners, trying to make sure everyone get some.
|
|
The party frees the men and gathers them in the guard's room and the cleric sends a wave of positive energy and all of them feel refreshed.
Once their trust earned, the men begin to open up and talk about how the troglodytes you killed handled the disgusting work of cleaning, tending, and disciplining the captives. Much of the work of breaking human wills is left to serpentfolk enchanters, who warp their charges’ minds for month using enchantments, illusions, and venom, until their humans have no single reality to cling to save for what their reptilian masters dictate to be true.
Voices sound out further down the hall—the guttural and staggered ringing of human speech rather than the lilting hisses of snakes. Men and women—many of them malnourished and wounded but athletic nonetheless—stand over the fresh corpses of troglodyte minders while gripping stolen blades and makeshift clubs.
As you approach them, they seem wary and brandish their makeshift weapons. They look as animals that were tracked.
A powerfully built woman whose face and arm are heavily burned seems to lead the group. She looks pretty unfriendly toward you, but she doesn't attack you. Not yet. She speaks in draconic.
"Who fares in these tunnels? Who are you? Slavers?"