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Toorin watches the carnage with great admiration for the martial skills of his comrades. He considers using some of the amazing power that has been buzzing about in his head ever since the Seeker's Folly conclave with the Ruby Sage, but with only one enemy and the other's closing in, Toorin shifts to where he has a clear shot and lets fly an arrow.
The normally efficient Pathfinders find the hound has thwarted most of their attacks. Imbued with the Ruby Sages power, errant throws, swipes of the blade wide, and wayward arrows all pass harmlessly by the hound.
Amarok however, does manage to pierce one of the hound's paws. Not uttering a sound, the hound once again attempts to disappear from sight.
The hound vanishes from sight. The Pathfinders are left staring at each other.
Toppling a column requires a DC 15 Strength check as a standard action. A falling column strikes all creatures in a 15-foot line. These creatures take 5d6 bludgeoning damage (Reflex DC 18 for half ). If a falling column strikes another column, it attempts to topple that column with a +5 Strength bonus. Should the PCs knock over all of the columns, the temple’s ceiling begins to crumble. One minute later, the entire combat area is struck by a cave-in that blocks the tunnel to the east; however, if the PCs flee to the west, they can escape the collapse and continue the adventure.
Spell-Like Abilities (Sp) Spell-like abilities are magical and work just like spells (though they are not spells and so have no verbal, somatic, focus, or material components). They go away in an antimagic field and are subject to spell resistance if the spell the ability is based on would be subject to spell resistance.
Identifying a spell as it is being cast requires no action, but you must be able to clearly see the spell as it is being cast, and this incurs the same penalties as a Perception skill check due to distance, poor conditions, and other factors.
1st Round: Presence or absence of magical auras.
2nd Round: Number of different magical auras and the power of the most potent aura.
3rd Round: The strength and location of each aura. If the items or creatures bearing the auras are in line of sight, you can make Knowledge (arcana) skill checks to determine the school of magic involved in each. (Make one check per aura: DC 15 + spell level, or 15 + 1/2 caster level for a nonspell effect.) If the aura emanates from a magic item, you can attempt to identify its properties (see Spellcraft).
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Pooka curses under his breath as the hound disappears, frustrated that he didn't kill it with his first charge.
Not everything dies that easy I guess...
"Luna, Find it!" He commands. Though she is not necessarily familiar with the words, she does recognize the hand signal he gives to her, and her nose immediately drops to the ground, sniffing the air around them.
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This extraordinary ability lets a creature detect approaching enemies, sniff out hidden foes, and track by sense of smell.
A creature with the scent ability can detect opponents by sense of smell, generally within 30 feet. If the opponent is upwind, the range is 60 feet. If it is downwind, the range is 15 feet. Strong scents, such as smoke or rotting garbage, can be detected at twice the ranges noted above. Overpowering scents, such as skunk musk or troglodyte stench, can be detected at three times these ranges.
The creature detects another creature's presence but not its specific location. Noting the direction of the scent is a move action. If the creature moves within 5 feet (1 square) of the scent's source, the creature can pinpoint the area that the source occupies, even if it cannot be seen.
The scent of the unnatural beast is strong in Luna's nostrils, her hackles raise and she begins a viscous stream of barks, straining to lunge and sink her teeth into the thing she cannot see, but can surely smell.
Good girl! Sic! the praise and command echoes in her ear, snapping the restraints of willpower so well trained into her. She lunges forward, teeth bared and snaps at what appears to be an empty space.
for
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for
Luna, nose to the ground, begins to circle round and round the hound's last location. Obviously on to something, she picks up her head, sits down, points her nose upwards, and begins to give short, 'barks'.
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Xûll thinks he understands (Flying invisible hound just there!) and rushes forwards, drawing his lucerne hammer as he goes... wishing that he hadn't thrown away his nodachi just for the sake of a long shot with a bow.
He swipes his blade hammer through the space where Luna's nose is pointing, putting as much effort into it as he can - even though he would likely be unbalanced at the end of it if he failed to connect.
Xull swings his mighty hammer through the air, connecting with nothing.
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Toorin moves toward the other Pathfinders and feels arcane knowledge filling his awareness of all manner of spells he had never cast before. When he gets near the others, he says, "I can't make it visible, but if it comes near us, we will be warned." He then fishes a fine silver wire from one of his component pouches and says, "Airdeall ar fad go dtí an dofheicthe," while gesturing in an arc that outlines a circle about 20' radius from the spot between Pooka and the pillar to his SW. "When you hear a bell, it means the creature has just entered the area."
Alarm spell specifies: Audible Alarm: An audible alarm produces the sound of a hand bell, and anyone within 60 feet of the warded area can hear it clearly. Reduce the distance by 10 feet for each interposing closed door and by 20 feet for each substantial interposing wall.
The Pathfinders stare around dumbfounded. The hound seems to have literally disappeared into thin air. A quick search of the surroundings are yield quite a few interesting items.
On one of the dead akatas, you spot a worn-out leather strap hanging from its mouth. The strap is attached to a belt pouch, which you can extract with ease. Time spent in the akata’s stomach has destroyed most of the contents, but several parts of a journal are still intact and legible. The entries include poetry and music composed by, as well as mundane day-to-day observations. The last several pages record the owner's complaints about the Aspis Consortium’s lack of appreciation for his accomplishments. A folded sheet of paper wedged in the journal bears the title “Potential Partners” and names the Pathfinder Society among other well-known organizations.
You also find a dagger, a vial containing dust, and a sheet of beaten gold. The sheet bears inscriptions in Aklo.
Amarok easily picks up the trail once more, though the footprints are partially obscured by those of the akatas. Every now and then one of the Pathfinders peers behind him, convinced that something is still watching them. They continue to follow the tracks until they terminate about 15 feet prior to a buried doorway before disappearing.
Perplexed once again they discuss their options.
Everyone but Pooka can detect the cracks in the floor, which you can tell breach the ceiling of a lower tunnel.
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Xûll deflates yet again, puffing and panting before retrieving his nodachi. "I guess that was a teleport, then!" he laughs as the companions finish flailing around, "We have to get better at interpreting Luna's signals."
The Shoanti follows Amarok to where the tracks are. "They stop before the buried doorway... so perhaps it is safe to assume they did not go through there, yes? Or perhaps this thing is an illusion that is also obscuring their tracks?"
Xûll walks manfully through the buried doorway. Or, at least, he hopes he does.
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As the adrenaline of combat begins to leave him, Korasu begins to move forward and experiences a sensation familiar to his usual Vanishment granted by his patron, but different in that it doesn't seem to draw from the same limited and tenuous link. He experiments a bit with this new-found temporary invisibility and surmises that it is tied to him being in motion.
A broad grin splits his beak as he takes the opportunity to Vanish and re-appear wherever he moves. He shifts in and out of being visible as he peers curiously at the strange metal sheet.
Korasu reappears as he looks down the cracks. "Ah, I can crawl down a bit and see where that may lead to, though we require rope to descend the entire way."
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"I guess that was a teleport, then!"
"My bet is still on invisibility. I've had this strange feeling we're being followed."
"Anyone know the language on this sheet of gold?"
"Perhaps the remaining fool sprung a trap and lies buried beneath the rubble?"
Warpac starts sifting through the rubble checking to see if the tracks continue once some of the rocks have been lifted.
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Pooka frowns at the disappearing tracks, and dismounts from Luna to get a closer look.
"Unless they have a way to get through the cracks here to whatever tunnel is beneath us, I'd say that the most likely answer is your's Xull. I wouldn't dismiss Warpac's senses about a trap though."
"Where is that pouch? This might not work, but it's worth a shot."
Pooka rummages around inside the pack that was inside the stomach of one of the strange canine beasts they came across earlier. He pulls out some bits of scraps that don't appear to be to damaged by the stomach acid and sniffs them to see if they smell to powerfully of animal innards.
Shrugging his shoulders, he presents the scraps to Luna's nose. "Go find him girl." he says, waving his forward, as if figuratively releasing her.
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Try as she might, Luna struggles to match the correct scent, confusing the bowels of the beast for the scent she is being commanded to find. Each time she leads Pooka to the corpses in the other room she plops her hindquarters down, wagging her tail vigorously, waiting for her treat to reward a job well done.
This is fun. This is easy. Master should do this more. I like these treats. I like finding things. Oh yea, he is doing it again! I will show him again. Yum treats!
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With a semi-exasperated sigh, Pooka looks to the others.
"Sorry, doesn't look like this is going to work. My money is on the lower tunnels. Maybe with some luck, there is a way to get to them through this door." he says, hands on his hips and surveying the work it is going to require to get it open.
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Toorin looks at the cracks and the doorway, thinking of ways to move past these obstacles. "I have a spell that can excavate the earth down about five feet. It only works on loose dirt, however; not solid rock. I think I could make one of us smaller, say down to Pooka's size or Pooka smaller still."
A thorough search of the area, both magical and mundane reveal no traps nor magical presences.
Warpac is able to tell the group that should they decide to break through it shouldn't be too hard to reach the tunnels beneath, but will be noisy.
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"Hmmm, perhaps the gold leaf document contains instructions or an incantation for slipping through the crack," Xûll notes, rubbing his shoulder after he bounced off the rubble, "Warpac, if you have a comprehend languages spare, I think now might be an outstanding time to read whatever is written on that sheet. Probably while we're standing together around this crack here..."
Warpac, after casting his spell, is able to decipher the words of the document, but is unable to understand what they mean.
The ability to read does not necessarily impart insight into the material.
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Seeing the short work Xull makes of the floor, Warpac says "Well then. That was easier than it looked like it would be!"
"I'm not sure which is the best option myself. Either way could cost us time, but I think we should at least take a look below before we try to move all this rubble. We may find recent tracks down there which, in my mind, would be a deciding factor. "
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Tracking through the cavern system, deftly following the faded footprints left by the potential holder of the gems, The monk marvels at the power unlocked within him by the mighty Ruby sage and how much more he feels. They come across the door sunken in the earth and he sownda a time examining it, though with no ideas open to him beyond those already discussed, and no way to decipher the golden sheet he does not stop Xull from breaking through.
Peering down into the darkness with his natural vision, Amarok bows to his fellow adventurers.
"I am happy to act as forward scout and climb down here to examine the place, as I have no need of light"
After Xull breaks through the flagstones, Amarok and Warpac are able to slide down into the subterranean tunnels.
They notice that these dark, 10-foot wide tunnels are quite different from the temple corridors above. Rather than expertly carved, this tunnel is slightly circular in shaped and lined with rough walls. Pausing to catch their breath or to steady themselves on the uneven flooring, the Pathfinders notice that parts of the tunnel show signs of a chemical reaction with an unknown substance.
It does not take long for them to spot a pair of tracks, Calling up, the remaining Pathfinders scamper down and join the duo.
As the Pathfinders continue through the tunnels, they quickly notice that these tunnels are not cardinally oriented, but twist and turn depending on the hardness of the stone. Numerous side branches intersect which makes navigation challenging.
After examining the curves and crevices, sudden recognition dawns on Xull.
The Pathfinders successfully move towards the end of the tunnel which slowly rises to the surface. They emerge once again into the bright sunlight of the Pillars of the Sun. Though the sun is well on its way towards setting, the heat is still palatable.
The Pathfinders see two tall sandstone outcroppings rise to the north and south, channeling whistling wind and stinging sand through this pass. The carcass of a giant serpentine beast covered in dried blisters lies in a heap at the gorge’s narrowest point, the body savaged by some powerful predator.
- Strong winds (Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook 439) channeled by the region’s topography blow west through this area.
- The sandstone scarps are 50 feet tall and feature only narrow handholds (Climb DC 20), save for a recently collapsed section to the northeast that has jagged spars that can serve as more adequate handholds (Climb DC 15).
- This rock fall has created an area of dense rubble at the base of the escarpment where it fell. The rest of the area is covered in light rubble (Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook 430).
Strong Wind: Gusts that automatically extinguish unprotected flames (candles, torches, and the like). Such gusts impose a –2 penalty on ranged attack rolls and on Perception checks.
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"Huh, I've heard of this kind of tunnel system before," Xûll notes, seeming as surprised by this as anyone else, "These have been left here by a death worm. The creature should be about as large as these tunnels themselves are."
A while later, as they exit the series of interwoven tunnels, Xûll is proven right by the carcass of said creature. He grins despite himself. "See?
After quickly inspecting the rise, Xûll comes back to the group, "That section over there should make it easier to get up the sandstone rise. I'll climb up it and then lower a rope for the rest of you to ascend the other areas. Best not to travel too much along the bit that has caved in already unless we have to."
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Warpac nervously eyes the worm as they pass by.
"Though I've heard of giant worms that create tunnels like this, I have never studied the varieties that are out there. They are all reputed to be very dangerous though. Could you tell me about this particular type of worm in case we run into another one? I'm not sure how they breed, but if there's one there may be another."
"It sure looks like an alchemist bombed this thing to death. I do believe the fellow we are chasing is an alchemist, right? If he gives us trouble, hopefully the worm softened him up for us."
When they get to the rise, Warpac greets Xûll's claim that he can hoist the dwarf with skepticism as, fully armored, he weighs close to 340 pounds. He offers to go last in case Xûll needs some help. Much to his surprise Xûll is able to pull him up, though with some effort.
Upon examining the dead death worm the Pathfinders notice that the blisters that cover the death worm’s body are filled with poison secreted from its skin and turned into powder by the dry climate and intense heat. If handled delicately, the body is not dangerous; however, if jostled violently or harmed by a damaging effect, the blisters could break and release their poison.