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With a nod of approval and a raise of one eyebrow, Fade replies to Korug and Dumm, "Good thinking you two. I might be able to make that happen." He then talks over a plan to lure the things from their stinking pool.
Looking to the more studious among them, "Now those things in that pool seemed sort of oozy to me, but I didn't stay long to get a great look. Anyone know anything about an ooze that smells bad or lives in a place that really reeks? It would help if we knew what we were dealing with. They were about this big..." he finishes with his arms stretched to explain the approximate size of the creatures he saw.
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"Have these you two. They should help deal with the smell at least a bit." Fade says to Feli and Alya, offering each a vial of soothe syrup.
Qill thinks about the description for a bit, considers the coloration, the stench, and the ooze like nature of the creature, and thinks that the creature is most likely a Globster, an ooze that is known for its slow digestion and releasing noxious gasses from its decomposing meals. Being touched by the thing is even worse as the stench will become worse for whoever attacks it.
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she thinks deeply a moment,
"I can see now why the pathfinders requested I come with you. This is a very odd thing to find away from the sea. Many would not know what it is, Because it sounds like a Globster a sea dweller, a grotesque mass of fat, blubber and rancid flesh, it will have a large maw filled with teeth. Used to eating dead whales and such. The Globster's are not effected by acid and bludgeoning, even piercing have no effect, they shrug off Cold and electricity. Also get hit by the thing or it will sicken you. Good news is Fire dose effect it when out the water as it is now, and its slow, we can out run it."
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Fade uses his grapple hook and a silk rope to hook into a leg from the remains of the dead elf the party recently encountered. He then knots the rope around the leg for good measure. Once satisfied that the knot is secure, he makes himself invisible and floats what he now thinks of as the bait up to the ceiling and then through the rooms and down the corridor, and finally down to the water's edge, letting it drip blood the entire way.
Staying back with his collar up around his nose and mouth, he holds he breath and watches for reactions from the oozes from the safety of around the corner. When they seem to move toward it, he backs the bait up, keeping at least five to ten feet between them. He remains cautious not to get so far ahead as to allow the ooze to lose interest... If this fails to provoke the ooze he will try lowering the leg to the ground and dragging it back that way. Once the ooze get close to the corner he will move back down to the door way, while his nearby friends will try and engage the ooze one at a time...
Fade is able to get the attention of the ooze... and succeeds in convincing both oozes that the tasty leg is a delicious morsel... Both Ooze squelch through the corridor, their massive size seemingly unhindered by the tight space. As fade pulls through the door to his friends, the blubbery disgusting creature starts to pull through as well...
Pathfinders Engage Combat! The Bold May Act!
Surprise Round (Standard as readied action only)
Kalang
Korug
Qill
Fade
Feli
Dumm
Regular Init (Full Turn)
Qill
Dumm
Kalang
------------------
Glob 1
------------------
Korung
Fade
--------
Glob 2
-------------
Feli
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Dumm sheds his rational self and lets his bestial heritage take over. His muscles bulge. Coarse brown fur sprouts down his arms and across his face and neck. His fingernails lengthen and sharpen into wicked claws. His jaw contorts and lengthens into a snout, and sharp teeth fill his mouth. His armor and weapons stay where they are-- Dumm is now as much human as he is animal, both and neither. He drops to all fours and snarls.
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Seeing the ooze follow so wonderfully, Fade backs into the center of the room, past the bruiser twins, Korug and Dumm. Taking one of the tanglefoot bags off his belt, Fade readies to drop the floating leg and then launch the sticky bag at the lead ooze just before it fully enters the room, hopefully limiting it's movements.
Kalang unleashes fire on the thing...
and it takes the brunt of it, smelling something AWFUL, like spoiled meat on a barbeque.
Korug takes a handy stab at the thing, slashing open a pustule of fat. THe smell is horrific, but the hearty half orc holds on.
Dumm strikes the beast with his claw, and it's like digging his arm into puss and snot. He seems to have upset the thing at the very least, as it shudders and "Gloops".
Fade hits the thing with the tanglefoot, and despite having no foot to tangle, the sticky glue spreads across the doorway, ensnaring the thing inside and keeping it from moving.
Pathfinders Fight!
The Bold May Act!
Surprise Round (Standard as readied action only)
Qill
Feli
Regular Init (Full Turn)
Qill
Dumm
Kalang
------------------
Glob 1 -46 [Stuck+Entangled]
------------------
Korung
Fade
--------
Glob 2
-------------
Feli
Between Dumm and Kalang, the Globster is torn to ribbons, slowly oozing it's way down as it's body begins to burst and spew about. However, there is no rest for the wicked, as you can see the one behind it already trying to force its way forward.
Pathfinders Fight!
The Bold May Act!
Surprise Round (Standard as readied action only)
Qill
Feli
Regular Init (Full Turn)
Qill
------------------
Glob 1 Dead
------------------
Korung
Fade
--------
Glob 2
-------------
Feli
Feli will start her bardic performance.
Qill retreats back, the smell of the other disgusting rooms only a little bit better than the Globster, but she'll take what she can get. Feli starts to sing out her bardic preformace, and everyone feels a little bit stronger for it. The other ooze still pulsates, squeezing around the corner in a slow, gloopy, smelly mess.
Pathfinders Fight!
The Bold May Act!
Qill
Dumm
Kalang
Korung
Fade
--------
Glob 2
-------------
Feli
The disgusting Ooze attempts to force it's way into the room, only to be met by a blast from Fade and Korug that, between the two of them, annihilates the blobby disgusting ooze as it pours decay into the room.
COMBAT OVER! PATHFINDERS ARE VICTORIOUS!
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Fade fights down the urge to wretch. He uses his aether to push the remains of the ooze around, looking for anything of value, before finally pushing them completely out of the party's way so they can explore further.
Looking to Lady Alya and Kalangkang he says, "I noticed how you two cleaned yourselves up after the corpse explosion in the other room. That was really spif. Can you do that to me if I take a look in that disgusting pool over there? The way those things eat, there could be all kinds of valuables left in there, and maybe even some clues we can use in here."
The places I go and the things I do for the society. Mud and rain is looking pretty good right about now.
Fade then proceeds to head to the ooze's putrid pool and search for what he can find.
Unfortunately, within the ooze itself he finds nothing but decayed flesh and rotted meat. The pool that the oozes where originally in hides a door that opens easily enough... it could be locked, but isn't.
When Fade opens the door, he finds that Water fills the entirety of this unfinished stone chamber. Two wide cracks in the northeastern section of the wall connect into a single widening tunnel. His amazing keen eye spots that the mud under the water is thick and still, leaving surprisingly detailed footprints from a barefoot dwarf as well as a variety of distended humanoid tracks and impressions left by clawed feet. In places the tunnel’s walls shows fresh signs of breakage, suggesting something large must have squeezed through recently. His eyes also spot that further down, the tunnel dips down below the water level, becoming completely submerged.
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When Fade returns, Kalangkang starts cast prestidigitation as many times as needed to Fade shine from purity.
Here you go! Nice and clean!
After a well-done job, Klangkang went to the passage and entered the book room. He looks around and is delighted with the amount of books he sees.
He starts reading the books to find something interesting.
The walls of this room are lined with steel bookshelves bolted into the polished stone. Books rest comfortably against each other, each given ample room to be removed without risk of damaging the contents within. Two black leather chairs next to the western wall are positioned around an ostentatious wooden table supporting a single glass tumbler. There are two identical, reinforced wooden doors along the western wall.
As fade explores the watery area, Kalang starts to flip through some of the books and feels his stomach roil at what he reads, the contents of which go beyond amateur curiosity or even detached academic study. Each book details obscene Abyssal rituals, diagrams illustrating with a torturer’s morbid precision the anatomy of scores of creatures, untold annotations, and even decades of tables that closely resemble a shopkeeper’s ledgers. Carefully deciphering the tables and cross referencing the annotations with his prior knowledge, Kalang is able to dive deeper.
The author, undoubtedly Thurl, has experimented for years in the creation of Abyssal hybrids—dissecting demon corpses, sewing pieces back
together, soldering and animating them with essence derived from Abyssal larvae, and often discarding imperfect creations. Annotations and notes scattered across a dozen volumes reference how he has “devised
a technique to rival the creative power of Lamashtu’s womb,” “gone beyond the limited theories he purchased from Aslynn,” and even “discovered how to harness the power of the marilith.” In addition, the ledgers seem to track fluctuations in the price of larvae, the souls of those condemned to the Abyss which are used as valuable trade goods in the abyss.
It is up to Kalang to share how much he has learned through the books with his fellow pathfinders, including Valais who stands at the back, quietly helping them rummage. It takes him several minutes of reading at least to finish deciphering the contents.
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After the oozes are ended, Korug takes a moment to catch his breath as he calms down and the glowing marks on his body begin to fade. He sheepishliy looks around at the others. "Uhhh, sorry abou that. I still don't know what happens sometimes. I just....snap and these marks seem to take control. I've never hurt any other Pathfinders though..."
He follows the others through the watery passage, avoiding eye contact and trying not to bring attention to himself. He flips through a couple of the tomes they find, and though he doesn't fully understand what it all means, he's horrified at the ideas within.
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With the creatures dead and the threat abated, Dumm concentrates on returning to himself. His fur, claws, and teeth retract. His muscles slowly return to their normal size. Getting better at controlling that, he thinks proudly.
He stares at the books in the next room, and occasionally pulls one from a shelf to make himself appear interested. In truth, books with words in them and books without are equally useful to him, which is less than little. "Find you anything yet?"
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"If you wish Kalangkang I will be happy to help"
Also checks for Psychic Significances and magic
ALL KN Rolls Lady Alya will take 10+10+1d6 say 4
for 23 on all rolls just too save time.
She starts to look over the books as well.
"They do seem the be the privet records of a Demonologist and vivisectionist. I must say he dose like his work. But other than crafting abominations what is he trying to achieve with all this. Is he seeking to recarft himself into some kind of demonic form I wounder"
Dumm is... mildly distracted by the booze. It's REALLY high-quality booze of all types. Wine, Whiskey, you name it, it's here, and in top-shelf form.
Qill is unable to detect any particular psychic significance from the room in general, but some of the books have very dark, very storied, very awful histories... the type that leaves her feeling glad Psychic significance doesn't give her a complete background of their history.
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Once he rejoins the others and gets thoroughly cleaned by Kalangkang, Fade grumbles a thank you and pats the halfling on the head, and a begrudging smile starts to form on his lips, but vanishes in a blink when he sees the others looking at him.
He then tells them about everything he found in the watery room.
"Wasn't Thurl a dwarf? Those tracks make it look like that's how he got out of here... and something else went with him. That bastard! The things he did... it just really is starting to get under my skin, and that's a hard thing to do."
Seeing there isn't much room where the party is searching, Fade just leans in from the hallway and takes a look around. Once he sees the doors, he looks them over for traps and checks to see if they are locked.
Fade doesn't see any traps as he explores. The doors also do not seem to be locked. Valais looks around at the books and clicks her claws.
Bad enough that the snivling, petchulant man was murdering people and but to sell and trade in souls?
They shudder at the thought.
As Fade's sharp eye glances through the room, he spots what Dumm missed... some of those bottles aren't booze, their potions, cleverly hidden amongst the drinks. After a little bit of careful identifying from the magically inclined, he finds an oil of magic fang, two oils of Greater magic weapon (CL 8th), a potion of cat’s grace, a potion of fox’s cunning, and a potion of cure moderate wounds.
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"Means this that needs the Society to, ah..." Dumm sighs in frustration and continues in Elven.
When Fade finds the potions and Kalangkang identifies them, Dumm picks up the magic fang potion. "Is this one makes bite weapons stronger, yes?" He takes it for himself but leaves the others.