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Gallix storms down the stairs to where the skeletal warriors lie in all their many pieces. He snatches up one of their scimitars from off the floor, then makes his way back up to the altar. When he reaches the general and the others, he shoves the handle of the weapon towards the general's chest and says in a stern voice, "This here is our strategy right now. Now that's enough talk of the past. Let's get going. Go on, somebody relay that if his head is too thick to get the meaning." With that, he hands off the scimitar to the man and hustles back down the stairs, where he stands tapping his foot impatiently as he waits for the others to come along.
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Mr Peppers pulls up a seat and drags his journal out yet again and begins taking notes on the interesting memories and strategies the General speaks of, nodding with interest then asking him in Draconic "Tell us more General of these battles. Do these snakes employ arcane magic in your fights? Do they unleash volley's of fire and acid? How do you defend your men from such attacks? Do you have anyone in your army here that controls the arcane?"
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Lac Suhn grabs the scimitar and gives Gallix a knowing nod and a respectful grin - it would seem he's speaking the General's language after all.
He then looks to Mr. Peppers and continues with the details, "Their warbeasts are fearsome, but subterfuge is truly what tore our lines down. Misinformation spread among the ranks, dissenters and the magically compelled turning on their own brothers. I've fought human opponents, and loath as I am to spill another man's blood, I'd take that clean death over the slow, strangling suffocation these monsters mete out." He sighs, and you get the idea he's probably referring to their constrictor snakes.
"The priestesses are especially vile. Indeed, they do unleash volleys of acid. We've not many tools that can be used against their arts, nor do we actively seek to understand their foul magic. You've seen what they've done to my people. You, stranger, would perhaps have better luck against them," he adds, as he notices the two wands hanging from Mr. Pepper's pack.
"Regardless, it is now the time for action. Some of my men must still be alive, perhaps just outside. I must find them and lead them back home, and if I should encounter that priestess..." He holds the scimitar Gallix provided him high into the air, "I shall tear her limb from limb and feed whatever is left to the wolves. Come, Uzsanriar, let us leave this foul place." He helps the wounded leader up. "My thanks again, strangers." The two make their way back down the hallway from whence you came.
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"From what I saw of the spellcasting of that cleric we don't want to get tangled up with it, teleportation magic is not trivial."
Mr Peppers thanks the General then packs away his journal, gets up and brushes off his robes. Damn, I was hoping he had some insight to share on the arcane...
"Well I guess we should move forward then right? The clock is ticking." With that he'll draw forth his wand and follow the group down the stairs.
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A crack of thunder and the tang of ozone cut through the complex. The figures before you, and indeed the walls, the floor, even the air itself seem to crumble and fall away like glittering sands through an hourglass. Unfamiliar figures—their heavy, hooded robes embroidered with the symbol of a winged eye—stand about the field, their hands crackling with lightning. Dozens of Pathfinder spellcasters lie dead at their feet. A gargantuan image of a woman appears and shimmers like a desert mirage. She has a regal bearing, but her features are lined as if by years of endless duty.
”Arrogant Pathfinders! Your ridiculous Society spends fortunes and lives to reassemble a treasure that turns time itself like the pages of a book—a key that could undo all the misery and suffering our world now knows—and you use it for this? Poking at snakes and playing at heroism? Golarion knew a true hero once! Our Lord Aroden—who raised the Starstone from the sea and imprisoned the undead tyrant Tar-Baphon—could already walk the world again were it not for your petty games and delays. Every death in your hours of playtime now hangs as a weight around your collective necks, you spoiled children.
“I am Lady Arodeth, and on behalf of the Harbingers of Fate and the God of Mankind himself, I have seized your Sky Key. Its defenders threw their lives away trying to stop compassion and destiny from returning to this world. I advise you not to throw your own lives away attempting to do the same.
“Behold the return of the Last Azlanti! Behold Aroden!”
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When D. sees the slaughter, he's taken by surprise.
"I'd not have expected this result when coming over to this continent.
Killings with numbers like these, i've not heard of aside from the history books, about the empire's separation."
Still, though sometimes he had a word to process twice to fully make a sentence fluent, he did get annoyed by the attitude of the woman.
"The past is the past, and any zealous fanatics should learn from it, not meddle with it."
Although he meant it, the option did appeal.
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The robed Heralds begin casting, and arcs of lightning leap to the rods made of skymetal. A deep thrum from somewhere below reverberates with chest-tightening force, then the earth begins to heave and quake. Emerald green miasma lashes out, snaking back along the arcs of arcane lightning and infecting hooded casters throughout the crowd. Your body - or perhaps the whole world - crumbles to dust and you hear a distant scream of "She's overloaded it!"
And just as swiftly, the world is whole again, but in place of a flower-speckled field stands the sprawling marketplace of a small city.
Ivory-white buildings and columns feature reliefs and endless statuary all depicting physically perfect human specimens in poses of glory over serpentfolk. A chiton-clad crowd of gawkers stares, both at you and at the roiling dome of green light that encompasses nearly a square mile of territory, beyond which this strange city stretches on.
Robed Heralds panic as they sprint beyond the edges of the glistening dome, only to collapse just beyond its border. There they scream and writhe, their bones cracking as flesh and sinew age to dust in mere moments. Meanwhile, those unfortunates consumed by the green miasma scream and stagger, their features warping and bloating as if the power seeking refuge within them were too big for mere flesh to contain.
And high overhead, a looming stone glows with a light visible even in the growing light of dawn.
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Gallix stumbles around in shock, his eyes darting all around him, trying and failing to understand any part of what's going on around him. "I knew I should have stayed in bed," he calls out to no one in particular. Once everything seems to calm down for a moment, he doubles over, still completely at a loss for any sense of what's going on. "Gods could I use a smoke right now. Anyway. Where the devil are we?"
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Sirettis and Isa chirp at each other, concerned for their safety. As the world melts and reforms around them, Sirettis cracks a smile. "These temporal anomalies have blessed Isa with some of her magical reserves, at least."
She tugs at her hair. "Where are we, now? Perhaps 'when are we' is the correct question."
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Regain one daily use of a Resolve.
and
Heal hit points.
Uesugi stared in disbelief wondering if this what it meant to be a Pathfinder that death would be forever looking to add you to it's ranks.
He had made a promise on his honor and would never forsake that but seeing the senseless death before his eyes still sickened his stomach.
he tried to raise his voice over the screams of those being crushed by the green miasma.
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Mr Peppers rubs his eyes as he watches things unfold, shedding a tear for his fallen arcane peers. He quickly looks around to check on his companions health and well being. "Is everyone ok? Did we lose anyone?"
As he gets up he quickly pats himself down to check on his own well being, not to mention his equipment and lastly his journal and spellbook, quickly flipping through to be sure everything is safe and sound. "I'm not completely sure where or when we are, but I expect maybe we're in the same place in a different time? Judging by these statues I'd expect after our snake slaying escapade?"
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Gallix recognizes a striking resemblance to the General and Uzanriar as he looks at the crowd, especially the purple irises many of the people have. Sirettis recognizes the architecture as Azlantian, but more importantly, as she looks into the sky, she notes that the bright light is quite reminiscent of the asteroid that fell in the Earthfall event. She's able to deduce that you likely have less than 2 hours before the asteroid above crashes into Golarion.
With the sudden appearance of so many Pathfinders in their city, the crowd watches with their mouths agape, glaring especially at any half-orcs and dwarves, as if they'd never seen such people before. Many of them appear to be getting angry at the sudden invasion.
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Three of the better-dressed locals whisper words to each other, and one begins riling up the crowd, speaking foreign words that are likely the ancient Azlanti language. They look to have jewel-encrusted daggers tied to their sides, although they haven't drawn them, the crowd chants and encourages them to do something about the mysterious intruders.
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D. rolls his eyes.
"So, were are stuck in this continent's past, because the cocky zealot messed with the time frame?
And the locals are hostile already."
As the people start chanting some more..his patience is tested.
D. swirls a grain of sand, accelerating it, then swiftly points a finger at the one rousing the crowd, his eyes sharp locking into that person's eyes.
He shoots a sand bullet at the person's:
[Belt buckle: drop the pants to the floor, reveal any embarrassing underwear]
[Dagger: bounce it off his/her hip]
[Earring: to break it, a close 'i-can-hit-more-if-i-want' look in his eyes.]
[Telekinesis: (unlikely, but cool) at the head, but withhold with telekinesis, to accent the point of 'i could have killed you if i wanted']
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"Oh, it's the Earthfall." Sirettis says matter-of-factly. "The Azlanti did win. Sadly we do not have much more time. Maybe two hours or so." She reads off the facts bluntly.
Isa chirps and flies overhead.
"I am confident, Isa. We will survive this. We have to."
Sirettis's hair attempts to lash wildly, but it's more confusing than scary.
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Gallix finally comes to his senses as the crowd around them grows more hostile. "I may not understand what they're saying, but I get the message. These folks are not too happy we're here. And ya know what? NEITHER AM I! He stands beside D. and flexes at the crowd, hoping to cow them into submission before things get violent. He also points toward the men being consumed by the miasma and yells out, [b]"You wanna turn out like that?! Come at me, then!"{/b]
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D's sand bullet bounces between the three guardsmens' daggers with pinpoint precision, shattering the deep purple jewels on each of them one by one, and the crowd's chanting comes to a halt as they look on. The three speak a few words to the masses and they disperse back into the city, leaving the Pathfinders to wander about the ancient city at their leisure. Well, not quite at their leisure, given the impending doom floating overhead.
You do notice a familiar looking elf making his way towards you from between two buildings.
The resemblance of the elf to the Master of Scrolls, Kreighton Shaine is uncanny.
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"Umm, two hours til what?"
"Approximately two hours until the star makes impact, signaling the end of the Azlanti civilization. We seem to be bound within the city, judging by what happened to the heralds when they tried to flee. We will need to survive until the 'time bubble' magic expires, which should be before the Earthfall."
"Of course, time estimations are approximate. I have never witnessed the Earthfall first hand."
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As the figure limps even closer, his face becomes clearer, and Sirettis indeed recognizes him as Kreighton Shaine, although his face is more deeply lined than it was when you saw him this morning on the field.
"My apologies for not reaching you more quickly, but I have been quite distracted," he pants.
To the left and right across the ancient marketplace, other versions of Kreighton Shaine are speaking to other, equally bewildered Pathfinders.
"It seems redundant to say so at this point, but the Harbingers of Fate have seized control of the Sky Key, and we all appear to be trapped in what the Isle of Kortos used to be eons ago. The same sort of temporal bubble that brought the serpentfolk city of Sessegishoss to us now keeps our forces pinned down here."
"We are attempting to uncover the Sky Key Vault now. While the vault itself seems to be here in this time period, our entrance to it wasn't projected back, and we've lost our bearings relative to its location in this new landscape. What's more, I worry simply reclaiming the Sky Key will not be enough to allow our escape - that green surge we all witnessed seems to have invested many of the Harbingers with enough of the Sky Key's energy to maintain our chronological exile."
Shaine looks worriedly up at the sky. "We will need to work together to uncover the vault and cut the tethers that anchor this time period to the Harbingers’ spellcasters. We must do both so we can use the Sky Key to escape."
A crack of thunder sounds overhead as the dome of green light twists and arcs down to the surface with a thunderous crash, and strange, hairy beasts stride where it struck.
"... And we would be wise to move quickly."
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Mr Peppers also notices the Master of Scrolls, or at least a younger version of him headed their way. "The Master of Scrolls? The man who introduced the crowd of Pathfinders back in the field before the Sky Key was activated in the first place? His position demands our immediate respect."
Mr Peppers then clears his throat. "So Master Shane, what must we do to achieve these goals? Luckily it seems this time shift has restored some of my arcane power. I'm starting to think that we'll be needing every bit of power and wisdom to get back home. I'm not very interested in viewing the Earthfall first hand."
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Shaine nods at Mr. Peppers. "As I said, the Sky Key Vault is what we need to find. But how will we find it...?" Shaine looks into the distance for a moment, then continues, "Divine providence? I'm not sure, as it's made of steel and sky metals, but also buried approximately 30 feet beneath the earth, which shields it from most of our available divinations. I remain open to suggestions, of course."
"The other task is, as I said, to interrupt the Harbingers' spellcasting so as to disrupt their anchoring of the time period. Anything you have to shut down magical effects should do the trick. And if it is a magical effect, it will certainly expire upon their deaths- tragic, certainly, but better than all of us dying here. Then again, these Harbinger spellcasters must be of some relative skill based on the spells they performed. You may be able to coax them into dismissing the effects themselves, though their temporal investitures seem to have made them a bit.... erratic."
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Mr Peppers listens intently and nods along with the Master of Scrolls as he describes the options he sees before us. This is my moment. The arcane is my element, yet I feel woefully inadequate. IF we get back alive I need to double down on my studies.
After a few moments of thought Mr Peppers speaks up. "I'm not sure we have the divine nor arcane ability to magically locate the vault. I've only mastered the most basic of arcane detection and as you said, if it is buried deep underground I wouldn't be able to see the radiating magic. Sirettis or Sir D here, are the only others of our company to have any magical ability. Unless of course someone else has been holding back their talents. I'm certainly open to suggestions in locating it. On the matter of disabling its magic... again I feel inadequate. I've studied the arcane for most of my years and while I've been able to understand how to enhance magic, disabling it with a touch or a word has so far eluded me. Unless someone else has greater ability I foresee our only option there being dealing with the Harbinger's one way or another."
With that Mr Peppers turns to the rest of the group for their input.
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"Well, Mr. Peppers, I have to admit that I still have a trick or two up my sleeve, though it's more useful in the 'beating people to a pulp' department than in locating some hidden vault. I suppose I usually can find my way around a conversation, though...one way or another." Gallix grins at the elf as he begins to loudly crack his knuckles.
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"Very well. Whether or not you can understand the magic they are using here, we must do whatever we can to stop their progress. I shall accompany you and provide my assistance as needed, Pathfinders. This is a very serious mission, so let's get to it!" Shaine distributes a potion of cure light wounds to each of you, and dusts himself off before falling towards the rear of the group.
You head through the city, accompanied by the Master of Scrolls, and note that several of the locals stand out - they glow with a bright green hue - very similar to the dome you're surrounded by. You note three such people in particular:
A glowing human female with ragged clothing looks to the sky. She's sweating profusely and twitching as she watches the asteroid come ever closer. Her clothing appears Taldan-made.
A Varisian half-elven male with an aura of green radiance stands at the corner of a building. You can see a deck of cards hanging from his cloak. He occasionally pulls some out and examines them while mumbling to himself.
A human male twists his glowing staff around in his hand as he stares at passerbys. He seems rather confident in his abilities, throwing the staff up in the air and catching it every now and then with a twist, and carries the holy symbol of Aroden with him.
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Gallix points out the three individuals radiating the odd energy. "Who do you suppose will be interested in talking? My guess is that the fellow with the staff and the crazy eyes won't be interested in missing out on the festivities at hand, so maybe let's let him be for a moment, eh? So what do you all say, the Sweaty Lass or the Card Reader?"
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Mr Peppers nods in agreement with Sirettis and Gallix, trying to search out who 'the sweaty' lass is. "I'll let you two do more of the talking, years and years of individual study tends to take away from someone's personal charms it seems. I'll attempt to see what I can glean from some covert magical detection, so please keep their attention away from me."
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"Hmm, i'll go with your plan, Peppers-san.
Shall we speak with the man with his stick? I believe i can disrupt his focus on it, so that you can observe his magics."
From the crowd, D. should potentially have some bonus to not being the culprit of his plan.
He aims to keep the stick in the air through his sand bullets.
Of course, the stick might 'accidentally break', if the blast's damage gets through the stick's hardness.
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You walk down a narrow stone path between two market buildings towards the Card Reader. He has three cards in his hands and holds them close to his face. He only notices you after hearing seven pairs of footsteps approaching, and he looks up at Sirettis for a moment, notices her strange hair, and then starts laughing hysterically as he looks at the card, then looks back at Sirettis. You catch a glimpse of the card he was comparing your companion to.
"JUST AS I THOUGHT! A future of ugliness, ooooh yes... That hair, and those eyes! The truth of the cards shines through - the prophecy is true!" He holds the card high above his head, as if to salute it.
Master Shaine shakes his head and whispers to Gallix and D, "This one's definitely off. Way off. I am surprised he's able to assist in the spellcasting at all. He has those cards... As the witch suggested, perhaps he'd be interested in a game?"
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Gallix approaches the man, leaning back in a very relaxed postured and holding his hands in his pockets. When he gets close to the card reader, he looks at the card the Harrower is holding and smirks. "You dolt! That's not the card that confirms the prophecy! What backwater trickster taught you to read cards?" He turns his head towards the others and winks miscihevously. How's about you put those cards up and head home before you embarrass yourself any further."