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Garduk's eyes glow faintly as they start perceiving and deciphering the intricate lines of arcane weaving within and around the Smooth Stone Chest. The weave is intricate and it takes him a while to unravel what it is set out to do but eventually it becomes clear. The box has been enchanted with a powerful glamour, fooling whoever lifting the lid that they have done it in that very moment but when in fact, the box remains closed.
Incidentally, Garduk also notices the Box of Golden Faces glowing with magic.
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Guided by what Garduk has found out, Vasily takes the box over from Kulga. With an intense concentration, he focuses on the lid of the box, convincing himself that he has indeed a firm grasp on it before he yanks it above. He feels something clouding his mind at that very moment but his strength of will powers through and the fog clears. He finds in his hand the stone lid, and the contents clear for everyone to see. Within, he finds a collection of material components for a wealth of spells, which Garduk estimates having a value 500 gp. However, many of them are bulking and come up to about 70 lb in weight.
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Vasily takes a different tack from Brayne, instead adopting the masks' demeanour, adopting an air that is as fierce and outraged as he could muster. Despite no actual drama experience, he knows enough that an true actor does not simply pretend - he actually draws forth real emotions to convey the very persona he wishes to convey and roars at them in anger. And sure enough, the masks react, parroting him back in return as their expressions become more and more furious. When all three are grimacing equally in fuming hatred, there is a sudden click and a panel at the top slides open, revealing the contents of the box! Within, you find a collection of ancient stone miniatures of a Viking army from the Land of the Linnorm Kings.
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Garduk hesitates, weighing the chance that the strange burned bather would leave them alone with his treasures against the likelihood that they were being watched. After a moment, he replaces the tome with the scrolls in the devil box, and turns to leave with the others.
"If the Paracountess wants The Inward Facing Circle, I suppose she can bargain with Grandmaster Torch for it. We've paid the information broker for some information, it's time to collect."
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Torch is still lounging luxuriously in his bath when the Pathfinders carry the five boxes with their contents. He looks pleased and signals for his half-orc guards to bring over the boxes over one by one to examine the contents.
"Well done! I asked for three but you managed to crack all five. I certainly need to have a long ... talk with the safecracker I employed. But that's for another day. Hmm, and all the content intact, it seems." It seems he glances enigmatically at Garduk but looks away so quickly again that you are left uncertain if he did.
"Torch is always a man of his words. Nessian has laired himself and his gang in a new base of operations he has rather ostentatiously nicknamed the Pyramid of the Dog. It bears nothing of that grandeur, however. It's simply dilapidated structure he has carved out of a ruin of a group of half-collapsed siege towers that pepper the fields just outside of Absalom." He then provides you explicit directions on how to get there. But before dismissing you, he adds on, "But wait, you not only went above and beyond my humble request, but you kept your end of the bargain." Again, a surreptitiously glance at Garduk. "That definitely deserves a reward." He waves his butler over and directs him to reward each of the Pathfinders 100gp. "I hope that can be the start of a fruitful partnership with the Society. Good day, and happy hunting."
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Yargos sighs a huge sigh of relief when the group steps out of Torch's quarters. "My, that's a rather intimidating man, isn't he?" Shaking his head perhaps to get that experience out of the way, he perks up and says, "Come, let's go. I've done extensive studies of the various sieges on Absalom and I know which siege machines he was referring to."
The Pathfinders make their way of the Siphons and when they emerge, the sun is just beginning to rise for Oathday, the fourth day of the week, and day where traditionally pacts are signed and oaths are sworn. Yargos leads the team to head towards the western gate through streets which are still largely deserted.
Suddenly, he freezes, staring into the distance. "Oh no, he's done it again! Look!" With his hand trembling, Yargos points to the top of the cliffs in the distance where clearly in the pre-dawn sky, an interchange of flashing green and orange lights. "He must be mad! That is one of the final and most important signals. It sends a team of Black Echelon operatives to attack the Metro-Cathedral! And that will bring the armada invasion!" He looks at your confused faces and realises he has skipped too much in his explanation.
"Um, you know the the Metro-Cathedral, dedicated to Abadar? No? Um, every Oathday morning, the priests of Abadar plays the ritual tune on the cathedral’s giant pipe organ to remind all of Absalom to honor its pacts. When Black Echelon shuts down the giant organ in midtune, the sudden disruption is the signal for Silent Tide, for the awaiting Armada to approach the city and begin its attack run!" He looks conflicted for a while. "If we hunt down Nessian and get the codebook back, we might be in time to abort the invasion. But if you don't make it in time, the city would be flooded with undeads just as it awakens!" He turns to the Pathfinders and wrings his hands. "Should we continue going for Nessian, or stop the attack on the cathedral?"
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Much as he wants to shut Nessian down now that they ahve the location, Vasily understands the the cathedral presents a more immediate and dire threat. He takes a moment but the risk calculation is pretty easy to make.
"I think we have to make sure the city is safe and not filled with walking dead before we deal with Nessian. To the Cathedral!"
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Harry frowns and looks at the others.
Frankly, if we could stop the attack on the cathedral, I would say we should, but unfortunately I fear we'll be so loud that we'll disrupt the service anyways, and those undead bastards will accomplish their mission either way. If we don't stop Nessian, he'll set off another and another and another attack, and we'll be so busy putting out fires we'll never be able to stop him.
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Yargos considers Garduk's question briefly, then frowns and replies. "The group of thugs sent to ... kill me. That they have not returned might tip him off" He agonizes this for a while before adding, "But I agree. We need to stop the attack on the cathedral. Otherwise, even if we get the codebook back and abort the invasion, too many innocents might have been slaughtered by then. Come! It's this way."
Yargos brings you through the narrow maze-like streets of the Puddles district. Even before the Pathfinder could see the cathedral, they can already hear a magnificent tune start being played from a few streets over. But as they get closer, the sound starts to break down and become patchy. Just when the group rounds a corner, bringing the cathedral into sight, a creepy moment ensues as the sound becomes a cacophony of off-key noise and then suddenly comes to an end. Yargos screams, "We have to hurry!"
The Pathfinder charges ahead, shoving aside the small handful of morning worshippers who are fleeing the cathedral in panic. With no time to ask them any questions, the team burst straight in. And a most bizarre sight greets you.
The cathedral is about 80 feet deep, and like most, is filled with rows and rows of pew, facing a large stone altar. What stands out in this particular cathedral is the massive set of organs behind it, with gigantic pipes extending 30 feet high up into the vast ceiling. The organ seems to be built for giants - the organ keys alone are 15 feet elevated the ground, and each key is large enough to accommodate an entire person. At your stunned faces, Yargos quickly explains that in the Metro-Cathedral, the priest of Abadar don't just play the organ - they dance on it, and through both the performance and the music generated, offer their worship to their god each morning.
It is a sight that you would likely have wanted to see in normal times, but what greets you instead are the scores of dead bodies of both commoners who looked like they were trying to flee from their pew, and that of the bloody priests and priestess lying on the organ keys and on the floor surrounding it. Only one priestess remains. A young woman, likely in her 20s, is cowering in front of the altar. She looks badly wounded but that she has not fled speaks volumes of her courage. She turns around when she hears the Pathfinders entering. Gesturing towards the organ, she yells, "Please help!"
On the organ keys stands two of the Black Echelon operatives that you had encountered earlier. They look as if they ready to climb up the pipes but on seeing you enter, they hold their ground, daring anyone to come close to the organ. More bizarrely, four more of the undeads are perched on the top of the pipes. For a moment, you wonder what they are doing there then it hits you. The unnatural silence that emanates from each would mean that even if someone manage to start playing the organs again, no sound would emerge. As yet, thankfully, there are insufficient number of them on the pipes.
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The undeads react quickly. Almost in sync, all the Black Echelon operatives releases thick fog that quickly spreads around them, filling up the front of the cathedral. In addition, the four at the top of the pipes squirm and enmesh themselves among the jungle of pipes, increasing the difficulty in hitting them with ranged attacks.
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Before it gets too crowded, Vasily rushes up towards the altar ducking behind with hte priestess when he arrives. "I am little use against these bony fellows," says Vasily to the others. "I can try to keep the music going while you dispatch the ones down here. I can also likely climb if we need to get to the top there."
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Garduk moves up the aisle, drawing his wand of magic missile as he goes. He peers through the mist at the undead warriors perched on top of the pipes and mutters, "We're going to need some help with those."
He casts his thoughts out into the planes, looking for the right ally for the situation. Hrm. Yes, that will do.
As soon as his summoned ally appears, Garduk shouts in Auran,
"'akhraj al'awghad ealaa ras al'anabib! la tukasir aleudu!"
Thirty feet above Garduk, there is a flash of light and the crackle of electricity, followed by a thunderous boom. A glowing yellow and white creature made of living electricity appears in the vague outline of an eagle.
At Garduk's shouted instructions, the lightning elemental streaks towards the orange-garbed skeletal warrior, leaving a trail of blue-white sparks in its wake. The elemental slams into the undead creature with a sizzle of electricity.
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"Well, that should at least provide a distraction for..."
Garduk stares up in shock at the sizzle and boom of the elemental slamming into the Black Echelon warrior. Responding to Kulga and Brayne, he says,
"I ... I don't know." He thinks for a moment, then says with more confidence, "I mean, yes, of course it hit! That's the point of bringing it here in the first place!"
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All the Pathfinders surge ahead, coming up beside the priestess to offer her some solace and protection. She clearly sighs with relief that help has finally arrived. Between sobs, she calls out almost in hysteria, "What's happening? Why are undeads attacking our church? Taking over our organ of all things?"
Yargos remains outside, knowing his lack of effectiveness in such a situations. That does not stop him from calling out, "We need to get the music restarted quickly! The silenced cathedral is the signal for the start of the invasion!"
Hearing the call, Garguk stops along the way. Reaching into the planes, he calls forth a swirling mass of lightning that takes the form of a crackling bird of prey. It plunges straight towards the nearest undead on the pipes, slamming into it and sending a silenced surge of electricity into it, cracking a number of its bones.
This undead whips out its sickle and slashes at the elemental but it's still buzzing from the attack and stumbles, almost falling over the pipes. The two nearest undeads moves in, drawing their sickles at the same time. One manages to slice into Lenny, disrupting somewhat its structural form, while the other misses. The remaining undead on top of the pipes find no opening so simply repositions, waiting.
The two undeads on the organ keys stand ready, waiting to attack the nearest Pathfinder to approach.
Just then, the door to the east bursts open (silently) as three more undeads rush into the main chamber. Through the open door, you can see the lifeless bodies of more priests. "No!!!" the priestess screams in anguish. Two of the undeads close in on Harry, while the third climbs onto the organ keys as well.
count = 2
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Garduk growls as more of the undead warriors charge into the sanctuary, then forces his attention back to the invaders blocking the tops of the pipes.
We'll see how the new arrivals do against the firm of Fists, Fangs, and Bang. My job is to clear the pipes up there.
He points his wand of magic missile in the general direction of the orange-garbed skeleton and lets fly.
"Telum magicum!"
Two ice-blue missiles appear in the air, already in motion toward the top of the giant organ and slam into the Black Echelon warrior.
The lightning elemental rears back in the air in front of the pipes, electricity crackling with each beat of its wings. With a shriek, it darts forward and attacks.
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Ischell moves to rescue Harry, flinging out his kama in quick succession at the two undeads facing him. One is partially blocked by Harry and the attack misses, but Ischell manages to slam the kama against the other and pushes it back.
Meanwhile, Vasily races to the further end of the giant keyboard, climbs on top and starts hopping onto a few adjacent keys. Few would call it music but at least some tune floats out finally from the cathedral. Kulga moves with him but directly towards one of the operatives. As she climbs, the undead strikes as soon as she nears, and swings again when she gets past him. The angle is awkward, however, and it misses both times.
Garduk presses his attack on those on the pipes. He launches a bolt of arcane energy at the middle one. The blow is so powerful it blasts it into pieces which clatter all the way down the organ. Lenny shifts and slams the one of the left, singeing it badly with its lightning as well.
The priestess stands behind the Pathfinders, using them as a shield against the undeads. With deep pants, she asks, "Why is it important to keep the music playing? Just leave them be and flee the cathedral!"
count = 0