Ebon's warning for everyone to use their bashing weapons is perhaps a little unnecessary, for his mighty Shoanti earthbreaker turns out to be an incredibly proficient bonebreaker as well. With a mighty roar he slams his hammer down upon the owlbear, smashing right through it from its skull down to its talons. The blow sends the whole thing crashing to the ground in a mess of feathers and bone shards. One of the owlbear's glass eyes rolls out of the socket and across the floor, coming to a rest at the base of a simple wooden sarcophagus.
With the threat dissipated, you're able to heal up those wounds and have a look around the room. There's a door on the far wall, but nothing else pops out as immediately notable (or, more importantly perhaps, dangerous).
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Tod simply stares at the pile of destruction for a moment. He blinks a few times, then speaks:
"Remind me to never get on your bad side Ebon. By the way, would you mind giving me a jolt or two with my wand here?"
"Well friends, we might as well press on I suppose. Although I will check my shoes first this time!"
Tod sheathes his weapon and opens the door, perceptorating as he shines the light through the doorway.
Tod decides that now is the perfect time to check that darn loose thread on his doublet. A man can't be too fashionable when exploring, after all!
Norine detects nothing magical in this room. Even a quick search around determines nothing of particular value (except on an academic level, of course).
Tod opens the door to the adjacent room, woefully distracted yet again. The musty storeroom beyond is filled to the brim with boxes and crates stacked in disorganised piles, some only a few boxes high and others reaching all the way to the ceiling. A single unlit oil lamp hangs from a bracket to the right of the door you just opened.
Small puddles of liquid stand stagnant on the floor, and the occasional drip of water echoes in the darkness. Tod doesn't notice it, but someone behind him likely spies the strange yellow... something--pollen, perhaps--lying drenched in the water. Indeed, the further you look into the room, the more the yellow pollen seems to spread around, congregating towards the centre of the room...
It's hard to see it from here, but you can somewhat glimpse something from behind the tall stack of barrels and boxes in the centre of the room. Fleshy, tentacle-like green leaves poke out from around the edges, and you occasionally spy what appears to be a yellowed tentacle(?) peeking around the edge of the pile. Peeking is certainly the right word for it - it certainly seems to be cognisant of your presence!
There's a strange swishy-squelch noise as the thing shifts out from behind the boxes. It is clearly some kind of plant-monster, and yet... it's not like anything you have ever seen before. It moves slowly on leafy green "legs", out of which grows a bulbous yellow flower. Protruding from the flower is a long, tentacle-like yellow tendril that constantly shifts and moves, as if it were tasting the air like a snake's tongue. The bulb opens up to reveal a bizarre, moss(?)-covered opening, perhaps a mouth... perhaps not.
From within the 'mouth', the plant spits a wad of yellow pollen right into Todric's unsuspecting face!
Initiative: Ebon | Norine | Todric | Targost | Muluk | Plant | Mez
Knowledge (Nature) to identify this creature.
There is no response from the plant creature or any indication that it heard and/or understood Norine.
Initiative: Ebon | Norine | Todric | Targost | Muluk | Plant | Mez
Status
Ebon: 5 damage
Plant: 10 damage
Todric: 5 damageMoving for Muluk.
Ebon charges up, but the plant lashes out with its tentacle-like appendage and slaps him diagonally across the face. The shock of the blow causes the mighty barbarian to merely shatter the tiles with his giant earthbreaker.
Norine follows close behind Ebon, as does the quite lucky Todric - he jabs his rapier deep into the fleshy folds of its flower, causing the plant to let out a strange skcrhhiiiiii cry, possibly in pain. Targost follows up with a bolt of force right into the centre of its bulb. Muluk ducks around behind the plant, scimitar at the ready.
Having just been stabbed, the plant retaliates, whacking Todric alongside his left temple. Mez begins to stalk around behind it, taking his time with his shield held high to avoid attack.
Todric thrusts again, this time feeling something wet and squishy deep in the centre of the bulb. The plant lets out the same high-pitched shriek as before, slowly gurgling away into nothing as the whole thing rapidly wilts on the spot. Its giant tendril flaps down over Todric's shoulder and slowly slides down to the ground.
Looking briefly around the room, the most stand-out feature is the door just behind Todric. Nailed to the door is a small wooden sign with letters neatly painted in white: "Scriptorium--Quiet Please."
Norine detects nothing magical in this room.
Moving the crates won't be too hard, it'll just take some time and probably cause some noise.
Mez and Ebon (and possibly some others) work together to shift the pile of crates in front of the door. This entrance is likewise labelled with a wooden sign reading "Archives--Private".
Trying the doorknob, it seems to be unlocked, but the door is well and truly stuck on something on the other side.
Alas, even with Tod and Mez's help, Ebon just can't budge whatever's on the other side of the door. Seems like it's going to remain stuck at this rate.
Todric opens the unstuck door marked 'Scriptorium' into a dark, vaulted chamber. Bare wooden shelves, empty except for some extra writing supplies--sheets of parchment, bottles of ink, and quills--line the wall closest to you, and three desks with high stools stand in the centre of the room between six columns.
There are two exits from this room, one to your left and right, both marked with familiar signs: the right reads 'Storeroom 2', while the left reads 'Archives--Private'.
A body lies slumped in the far corner, still clutching a club in its rigor mortis. Its legs have been eaten away by some kind of acid, and the corpse is already showing signs of putrefaction, with patches of dark mould beginning to set up colonies on the man's skin. A broken lantern lies next to the body, its oil spilled on the floor. This poor sod seems to have once been a guard of some sort, wearing what is now a rather ruined set of simple chain and uniform, but even that was apparently not enough to save him from whatever foul fate befell him.
The two right-most desks each hold small, empty candelabra, two bottles of long-dried ink, and old quill pens. They're covered with a light sheen of dust, appearing unused for a short time. The leftmost desk, however, shows signs of recent occupation; the candelabrum holds the stubs of half-burnt candles, the ink bottles are still wet, and fresh ink stains the quill pens. A handful of books and scrolls lie open on the desk.
No sign of any beasties hanging around here. Judging by a trail of dried blood on the ground, you think the poor fellow probably dragged himself to where he is from the room on the right (Storeroom 2) before perishing.
Norine also notices a sheet of parchment that has fallen beneath the leftmost desk and been forgotten.
Targost has a look at the books and papers on the desk. For the most part, the books seem to be largely treatises on the solar system and the empty space beyond. The parchments, however, appear to be written in a series of hieroglyphics - Osiriani no doubt - and Targost can make no sense of them. He also notes, flipping through some of the books, that there are similarly-written notes in some of the margins of the books as well.
Norine picks up the piece of parchment, all set on reading it out to the group... only to frown when she, too, spies the same Osiriani hieroglyphics.
Spying the familiar lettering from over Norine's shoulder, Todric offers his services as a translator! The writing is scratchy and messy, and the wording sometimes archaic and strange, but he can make some sense of what's written. The scrolls and marginalia mostly refer to "the Dark Tapestry" (surprise surprise) and the "Dominions of the Black", as well as something called the "Gate of Beyond", a long-lost portal to these otherworldly realms. There are also references to an ancient sorcerer by the name of Kubburum Ishmedagan and the mad wizard Ralzeros the Overwatched.
The parchment Norine found is, perhaps, even more interesting. As well as some sketches and diagrams of some strange portal and some kind of cylindrical canister (Norine must have mistaken them for hieroglyphics), it speaks further on the aforementioned Gate of Beyond. Apparently, the "brain canister" (as the author refers to it) is the key to opening the portal. There are also various notes on how to best attach it to the Gate - the author worries that an incorrect placement may result in damage to the canister, and the subsequent backlash would likely demolish both the canister and portal.
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"This note may tell us how to close the portal, as would likely be our want, since detaching or destroying this brain canister - or purposely attaching it incorrectly, if it is not attached already - may close the portal. I am not sure that I like what seems to have come through this Gate."
"I wonder if Kubburum Ishmedagan was the one Ralzeros battled before disappearing, though I don't know how that would help us: I wouldn't know, to start, which is friend and which is foe, or both or neither."
Norine looks again through her Chronicles.
"Nope, still nothing. I could use an extra brain canister now and then..."
Leaving the papers with others, Norine prays for Guidance and then will carefully inspect the body, trying not to disturb the molds. She also says a little prayer over the body.
There's nothing of much use about the poor bloke in the corner, although you discover that his uniform is embroidered with a black rose insignia--he's definitely a worker in this place. Well, was.
Norine can't quite place what the mould on his body is at all. On the other hand, she probably couldn't tell apart one mould from another in general. From a quick inspection of the body, it seems like the man died from blood loss rather than infection; the mould seems to have come later.
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Squatting near the body, Ebon eyes the trail of blood from the storeroom to here.
Glancing up as Norine approaches..
" Aye, little one. Would seem it is a hazardous duty."
He says solemnly as he rises and hefts his Earthbreaker in hand.
"Gorum show the path." He intones quickly as he cast guidance on himself and nears the door to storeroom 2 , listening for noises..