Deluge, given the power of scent, picks up on something in the air.
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Deluge snarls and huffs at the clueless cleric, more than a little frustrated by the fact that he is unable to speak. Deluge is new to this whole shapeshifting thing and is still struggling to get the hang of things. He is wishing he chose a bear instead of this gangling reptilian shape. Or a boar. Yes, a boar would suit him far better. But it is too late now. All these teeth and the tiny arms. Ugh.
Worst of all, his snacks have melded into his body.
Unfortunately, whatever it was does not take the bait and escapes, sight unseen.
The gem is recovered, and the mission complete. You explore the rest of the complex rather quickly.
At the most west entrance, you find a robed corpse leans against one of the pillars, a dagger plunged into his chest up to the hilt. The dagger is magical, a lesser dagger of venom.
In the hall of cells just west of the ritual room, you find several ten-by-ten-foot cells, most of which are simple, unoccupied sleeping quarters, each with multiple pallets. One also has sleeping quarters, but one sleeping pallet contains the corpse of a human male whose throat has been slit. Each sleeping quarter contains small idols and shrines.
Several doors leading off the cross-shaped hallway to the east stand open, revealing more ten-by-ten-foot cells. The wall of the east hallway has collapsed, revealing the cavern beyond. Two cells contain simple sleeping quarters, each with a dead cultist—one a halfling male, the other a human female—their throats slit. The rest contain empty sleeping quarters. The sleeping quarters contain idols and shrines like those found in the previous area.
One of the rooms contains the cult’s wardrobe of disguises: a variety of mundane outfits, from religious garb to urchins’ rags. All of the clothing is suitable for use in Merab, and you even recognize a familiar outfit they saw someone in passing wearing on the streets above. The clothes in the wardrobe are worth 100 gp total.
Another cell contains the cult’s armory. The armory contains five maces, five cold iron morningstars, three spears, and six sickles. It also has a +1 cold iron morningstar.
Finally, one cell was clearly the leader’s room—it contains a simple bed, a chest with mundane clothes, and a thick book of vile prayers to Ahriman written in a variety of fiendish languages.
You also discover a wounded cultists, hiding in a cell. He is delirious and weakened by wounds and starvation, and he poses no threat. He constantly mutters to himself, repeating: “Yes, all else must wait. The Black Moon rises! She shall bring glorious ruin upon the world. I can hear her—she is almost here! Ahriman, look upon our great work, and grant me a place in the House of Oblivion!” The cultist repeats this rant, ignoring other creatures. He does have a key to the inner chamber, but you opened the door in your own way.
The room in the south-east corner contains a long table and sturdy chair, each with thick manacles dangling to the side. A smaller table in the corner hosts several surgical tools, including a deep basin, saws, scalpels, and needles. Wooden shelves support an open ledger and variety of other objects, and large, empty stone basins stand in the room’s other corners.
This room served as a lab. The ledger lists “Items Recovered” and “Items Requested”—things that the Usij have gathered which once belonged to Tahari, and things that they have gleaned that she may desire. It lists all the items that follow, with a check mark next to each.
You also find a circlet of persuasion, On the shelf labeled “Items Requested,” the PCs find three flasks of alchemist’s fire and one potion of lesser restoration. Under “Items Requested” the ledger also lists “spellbooks—unknown quantity and whereabouts,” “Fading Light lab notes,” and “plague cloak,” but these items are not checked off.
There is also a folded, faded, and threadbare banner that bears a charging leopard on a background of tan and black—the crest of one of the Tekritanin League city-states that occupied this region long before Thuvia’s unification. It is a knight’s pennon of battle (Pathfinder RPG Advanced Player’s Guide307), and once activated for the first time in ages, its magic restores its appearance and repairs its damage from age.
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Daeron his quite interested by the findings. He takes numerous notes about this Tahari and what items seems requested. He notes also for himself the name Black Moon ready to make his report to his masters.
All of this is strange, I don't know exactly what was going on here, nor what they try to do but clearly something not good.
Daeron tries to see if some "requested item" were found near the ritual.
Amenopheus, sensing the fiendish presence no longer seeks him, is present in Merab for your final report. He and Diya commend you for recovering the jewel, explaining this discovery is beyond what they had hoped.
When Amenopheus attempts to communicate with his ancient colleague’s memories within the sage jewel, it flares angrily, and he casts it across the room instinctively. Amenopheus catches his breath before walking over to wrap the thrown jewel in a thick cloth. “Unfortunately, this confirms my earlier theory: the sages’ memories are not alone within these gems. The records you recovered and observations you made suggest that the first Jeweled Sages might not have create the sage jewels on their own, but rather modeled them off someone else’s design. Now it seems that prototype was the soul receptacle for an utterly depraved servant of the Pharaoh of Forgotten Plagues who inflicted countless atrocities upon northern Garund. If she is awakening, the whole order is at risk unless we can use your findings to deduce some way to purge this evil.” He massages his forehead for a moment before noting, “Whatever lies ahead will be difficult, and the future of the Jeweled Sages relies on what we can do about this threat. Once we have a plan, you shall be the first to know.”
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Daeron returns on the dig site and talks to Obahar.
Obahar! Nice meeting you again. I would like to discuss with you about joining the Scarab Sage.
You seems to be interested in ancient history, like me.
I'm ready to make you a one lifetime offer, and to sponsor you into my Faction. I'm sure you will find a true family of likeminded people.
What did you say?
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I suppose, if I must. I did join this suicidal group of misfits to keep an eye on them and prevent them from destroying the world with all those nasty artifacts they keep finding. Who the blazes is responsible for all of them anyway. Every time I turn around I hear about another one.
Deluge has a sour expression on his face that started as soon as they find out about the sage jewel and this servant of the Pharaoh of Forgotten Plagues.
Now a normal every day plague is nothing to be worried about, but somehow I suspect that this so called servant wants to unleash a god-awful unnatural plague. Why? Why? WHY!? And why does it have to be MY problem!