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Noticing Amiri's wound still bleeding, Miriel again uses her wand. "I'm sorry, I should have cleaned it so I would have seen it still open, it's so hard here in the wild", she blurts out apologetically and cures rest of the wounds.
When Juliet greets them, Miriel answers warmly: "Indeed, you are correct. I am Miriel Magol from the Pathfinder Society, and our superiors were growing concerned about your well-being. It delights me to see that we are not completely too late, even if you could have used our aid earlier. What is the current situation in the area?"
Amiri looks around hesitantly. Why would these people not at least report back? They all seem fine...
She nudges her nearest companion, "What's going on here...?"
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"Aya sent us she is concerned.Frankly so am I . You have broken pathfinder rule one never split the party. How can your team cooperate when at two different sites. It's all well and good exploring but if you don't get back to report what good is that. Did you not think this beacon of light might attract others. We found a hydra that had travelled here. Desna knows what else might be on the way. Please tell me you found something worth all these risks"
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"Miriel, is it? We are all fine, just fine. This site is absolutely fascinating though, I've never seen anything like it! We've found Cyclopian sextants and astrolabes, right beside Azlanti jewelry that we suspect was once magical."
Juliet turns to the halfling, "Hi, Leena! Now that you mention it, Arletta is resting in the camp," she points to the covered area on the other side of the sphere. "She touched that sphere up there, and immediately became sick."
"There's just too much here to catalog. If we don't finish before we leave and report back, we might never finish." Juliet answers Nerisiel, "And we're perfectly safe here, don't worry. The Starwatcher Spirit protects us!"
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"The burden of my soul has lifted. I still must ask the question, why haven't there been messages from your progression. That is the reason for our concern, as the communication had always before been very extensive. Of course, now that we have arrived, we can act as messengers, if you provide us with all the knowledge you have learned", Miriel says to Juliet, relieved.
Hearing that one member is ill, she immediately starts looking for the camp. "One of you has been inflected by a malady? I am not an expert on these matters, but I will go and see what I could possibly do to help", she says and heads to the camp to meet Arletta.
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"As I said, Miriel, there is just too much work here. We have to finish it quickly, or we might never get to. We don't really even have the time to give you a report--other than that we are fine and working hard!"
"I don't think Arletta's been poisoned, Leena. But I'm pretty sure she is ill."
Steep, narrow stairs lead up to the platform, thirty feet above the lower chambers. The platform faces south, with a commanding view of the Terwa Uplands. An immense ivory hemisphere fills the platform, leaving only a few feet of stone around its edges. If this balcony once had a railing, it has long since crumbled away, leaving a vertiginous drop to the stones below.
The sphere is covered in a fine dust, and Nerisiel notices a smudge as if a hand brushed against the powder. She does not see any traps, and detects two magical auras: faint conjuration and moderate abjuration. The former seems to be a light effect and the latter is dispel chaos. Nerisiel also notices a woman, presumably Arletta, sneaking around in the camp.
"If she won't tell us anything, let's go see the sick Pathfinder."
Seeing Nerisiel investigate the orb, "Learn anything useful? Seems like a random place to put something without purpose."
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"What do you mean I won't tell you anything? I've answered all your questions!" Juliet storms back to her work, now unwilling to answer further questions.
Like Amiri's outburst, Nerisiel's shout does not receive the intended response. Arletta looks up toward the elf, then quickly hides among the tents.
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Astonished, Miriel looks at the archaeologists who scuttle around the area. "Well, it is a site of important historical significance, they surely have a great deal of work to do, and who am I to disturb their profession?", she wonders, walking slowly among the people. Leaving the other archaeologists alone, she turns her attention back to Arletta. "Please, lady Arletta, if you are not feeling well, let us help. We are here for you, whatever needs you may have. Can you share a thought with us of what has happened here since you arrived?" Miriel tries to comfort Arletta and gain her trust.
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Miriel walks over to the temporary camp. The small room is open to the sky. Within the room is a tidy camp consisting of six tents. A few sheets of canvas stretched between rivets in the wall provide shade to a table and chairs. An opening leads to the west and a solid stone door leads north.
The paladin does not see Arletta anywhere, and casts her voice to the whole room, but receives no reply.
Eager to watch Miriel turn their mission into a success or miserable failure, Amiri will follow her to her current location. Wasn't she just in here? "What happened when you touched the orb?" she says, hoping she isn't hallucinating.
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Miriel stops looking for Arletta, and walks to the orb. "Fascinating, beautiful craftmanship if it is made by mortals. I wonder if it truly causes illness by mere touch?" She sits on the platform, straightens her dress, and watches the archeologists work busily, with a uncertain look on her face. "I am at a loss. As far as the ideology of the society goes, their actions are exemplary, if we disregard the fact of a missing message. Their companions back at the main site are definitely in need of aid, and this area will be separated from any lines of supply or communication if the main camp is abandoned. However safe this place is currently, total cutoff would be disastrous. And again, I just cannot force these people to leave with good conscience."
Amiri spits on the ground. "Let's at least search the place for ourselves. We might find that "sick" Pathfinder while we are at it." Miriel is annoyingly right. There doesn't seem to be anything for us to do here. What a waste. Ha, at least I got to see someone traipse through the jungle in a dress!
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Garn stares at the archaelogist at work with some confusion. Do they value their lives so little for such debris? Not quite understanding but not willing to disturb their work in case they are doing something important, Garn turns back to the rest of the party, and overhears Nerisiel sharing about the stone.
"Chaos? That is of no concern to me." Staring at the orb with some interest, he continues, "Let me take a look." Garn climbs up the stairs to the orb, seeing the handprint on it. Taking a breath, Garn lays his hand on the orb, just beside the existing handprint.
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"No, you may get sick!" Miriel tries to warn Garn, but too late. As he seems to be unharmed, Miriel goes to examine him more closely. "You don't seem to be affected seriously, at least for now. I presume you feel completely normal? I still desire to discuss with Arletta, if she experiences clear symptoms. Comparing your reactions with hers would provide a deeper insight on the nature of the artifact."
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Leena manages to spot Arletta, but somehow says the wrong thing, as the archaeologist yells, "Stay away from me!"
Upon passing through the broken doors, the first thing you see is a large alcove filled with a stone fountain beneath a carving of a cyclops breaking free of clutching tentacles. The fountain’s basin is full of clear water.
"Looks like as good a place as any to fill our waterskins. What is such clean water doing in these ruins?" Amiri moves to refill her water skin.
Seeing no other reason to waste time with a fountain, she moves to the back and tries to decide which hallway to go down first.
Well, if you insist... Amiri takes a long draft from her waterskin and fills it again. I don't feel any different, but whatever. "Cool, we found some weird water. Can we get going now?" She says, getting antsy to delve further into the ruins.
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Miriel walks up to the carving, her eyes full of admiration. "This is absolutely enchanting! Just look at the emotion! I would so want to take this to Liberty's Edge!", she pours out her excitement. When Nerisiel mentions the water's properties, Miriel absentmindedly takes some with her hands and sips it. She forgets her usual care of her dress as she dries her hands on it, her mind again concentrated on admiring the carving.
"Amiri, at least try to see the beauty in this. The effort, the desire for freedom. There isn't anything I'd wanted more to see than this", she says to the barbarian, her usual correctness softened by her enthusiasm. She follows the lines of the carving with her fingers, sighing happily.
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Garn stares at his hand, somewhat disappointed that nothing seemed to have happened. He touches it one more time to be sure. Turning to Miriel, he replies, "No, I don't feel any different. This is strange."
He turns to look at Arletta but she clearly appears hostile, and since his party members has no luck befriending her, he decides not to try either.
Putting this eventually out of his mind, Garn follows along and after Nerisiel gives the green light with the water, Garn also drinks from the fountain. He feels his waterskin and similarly feeds it to Snowball. The trek is long and he must be dehydrated by now.
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The next room's walls feature mosaics of a stylized cyclops wearing an ornate one-eyed mask and commanding other cyclopes. In the carving, the cyclops places the mask upon other cyclopes to reverse several ailments, including blindness and even death. A large slab in the northwestern corner holds only dust, but a smaller shelf above it bears a one-eyed mask.
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Nerisiel casts a spell and then looks puzzled
This applies
In addition to hiding the face, this fine lace veil protects the wearer against gaze attacks. The wearer has a 50% chance to avoid making a saving throw against a gaze attack even when not averting her eyes. If the wearer averts her eyes, she rolls twice (once for the veil, once for averting her eyes) and uses the more favorable result.
This does not apply
Against patterns, visual figments, and other vision-based effects and attacks that cannot affect blind creatures, the veil grants the wearer a +4 circumstance bonus on saving throws. The veil does not otherwise impede the wearer's vision in any way.
On last part
Does it also have the ability to remove blindness and petrification as per the mural and if so is it a once a day ability once ever? or as many times as the scenario requires and then done?
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Miriel reluctantly leaves the fountain carving, but her disappointment quickly fades as she notices the mosaics in the next room. She rushes to examine the newfound piece of art, smiling widely and darting between different parts of the mosaic. "Dear Juliet was right in following the light. This is truly a magnificent find! Who could have guessed the jungle hides such secrets", she manages to say while admiring the art.
"Art is only worth looking at as an expression of strength. That carving was good, it would take more than some tentacles to hold down such a mighty beast! You see, Princess, it isn't the desire that counts, but the results. It is more important to be strong than to want to be strong."
Seeing the mosaic, Amiri is less impressed. "Now this is much more boring. That mask though..." She moves towards it on the shelf and picks it up. "Does this do what is depicted in the mosaic?"
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Round Surprise
Effects none
- Garn
- Amiri - surprised
- Leena
- Nerisiel
- Snowball - surprised
- GM
- Miriel - surprised
The conversation continues as you check the next room. After finding nothing, you move to the end of the hallway.
This wide room has two alcoves to the west and east. The western alcove bears mosaics of a burly cyclops with a flail and shield. In one image, a human with a conical hat hands the cyclops the flail; in each other image, the large cyclops is smashing fiends or serpent-headed humanoids with it. A large slab in this alcove is empty, but a shelf above it contains a fine looking heavy flail and a steel shield. The smaller alcove to the east contains two slabs; above them are depictions of a pair of cyclopes servants tending to the burly cyclops’s needs.
But before you have a chance to explore the room, a pair of gigantic snake-like creatures attack.
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Round 1
Effects none
- Garn -
- Amiri
- Leena
- Nerisiel
- Snowball
- Red - 2 damage
- Green
- Miriel
Garn casts an enchantment on his club, then Leena conjures a starknife in front of the red-scaled snake, and Nerisiel slides along the wall.
The green-scaled snake snaps at Nerisiel, but she just barely manages to dodge the bite.
No slashing? That's all I have! "This will have to do!" Amiri brings down her sword on the creature in front of her, praying nothing horrible happens in response.
Standard Attack on Red
Free Rage
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Idiot! There are old rogues and bold rogues but no bold old rogues. Stay alive until your friends get here Nerisiel concentrates on keeping the snake at bay until help arrives. For once not singing in rhyme
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