Hickle feels that there is a definite pull toward the desert. He can almost guarantee Nebta-Khufre went that way; why is hard to say. But there is also a more subtle pull toward Tephu itself. If you want to follow his exact path, you'll have to head into the desert. But it is clear the Mask headed toward the city at some point.
He tapped the compass a few tines to be sure, carefully measuring it's mana output with an expression of utmost concentration. His own magic sometimes had a curious effect on devices he was unfamiliar with, a byproduct of spending the last couple centuries rught next to the Mana Wastes. "Yes... There's clearly a strong pull towards the dessert somewhere, but now that you girls have made your points clear... There migjt be something in the city as well, though it's a much more subtle sign then the other."
"Maybe the mask had other parts to it," Malavine mused, "Or something related to it. More information would help." Which meant...sigh...research.
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"Does not the tool seek out all necromantic energy? If so, I say for the desert. Surely the foul city has its share of hedge wizards and odd skeletons guarding whatever bit of claptrap any fool with a black book and a mislaid corpse thought to guard.
I admire your desire to seek out and eradicate all such displays of evil, but, alas, we have not time. Perhaps after we accomplish our main mission we can come back and ensure the city is pure.
But for the now, we might follow the strongest source the compass finds."
As you head into the desert, you're glad of the camels, who are much more used to walking in the shifting sands than you. You're also glad that you're a handful of miles away from the city; traveling through trackless wastes with the sun beating down on you is not an enjoyable sensation for most of you.
As the day wears on toward late morning, the Compass gets stronger, though not as strong as it was when you first encountered Nebta-Khufre.
Perception:
Zelda:
Liath:
Malavine:
Hickle:
Kephry:
Kephry is the first to notice, but Hickle spots it as she's raising her arm to point. There is a body lying in the rocky dust at the bottom of a gully.
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Liath peers down the gully. "Are any of you good at climbing? Wait, here, if all of you could assist me, we can tie knots in this rope, and climb down. They may still be alive, or, if not, they may hold clues as to how we died.
Also, does it seem as if the compass points directly at this body?" she asks as she starts tying knots in her rope and looking for somewhere to tie it to.
As far as Hickle can tell, the Compass is reacting really hard right now, not necessarily directly at the body (it's not quite that precise) but definitely in that direction.
Looking at the descent, the group thinks it can be managed on foot; it's not as steep as it initially looked.
Malavine was unsure of her climbing skills, but she did have rope. Using some to secure herself, she tried to climb down.
Malavine has absolutely no problems. When she reaches the bottom, does she approach the body?
Malavine takes a short moment to check the body out from a distance before approaching for a better look.
If nothing was obvious she approached cautiously, Starknife at the ready.
The body radiates with a vague Necromantic aura. From about 15', Malavine notices something surprising. The body is that of Nebta-Khufre (by his clothes and body markings); he no longer wears the Mask of the Forgotten Pharaoh.
"That's who was wearing the mask, judging by the clothes. Guess the mask didn't need them anymore." Which wasn't worrying at all...Malavine moved closer to search the body, still expecting it to attack.
Shmick and buckle stood on standby at the top of the crevice, the former having his arm configured into gun mode and aimed at the corpse. Upon learning that it aeemed to radiate neceomatic energy and seeing Malavine approach, he decides it's best to shoot at it instead.
Anything of value has been removed, probably by the same individuals who took the mask. There are...odd footprints nearby.
Shmick fires his weapon, filling the body "full of lead" as it were. The dead body dances in the sand from the impacts, some blood leaking out, but honestly most of it was already in the sand. It makes no move to animate.
Suddenly, a number of women appear seemingly from the sands themselves, prepared to do battle. They are armed with shortbows. You notice almost immediately, however, they are not human, as each has a bee's abdominal section hanging behind them where their...ahem...bum should be.
Initiative
Bee-women -
Liath -
Hickle -
Malavine -
Kephry -
Zelda -
Kephry, Liath, Hickle may act before the bee-women. Note though they are armed, they have not yet fired.
"Szzzzister! I saw we destroy them now, lest they cause us even more damage!" one of the bee women implores her seeming superior. The other one, however, seeing the inaction on the part of the "invaders," seems hesitant to order an attack.
Hickle throws up his arms as he looks down below. "Ah-! Come now, there's reslly no need for this is there? We haven't done anything wrong towarss you girls."
Slowly, the one who seems to be the leader lowers her bow, followed soon by her compatriots.
"You are not like the others. You do not wear the mask of the queen's defilers."
The gnomeish man sighs in relief, putting his own hands down at the knowledge there would be no bloodshed here just yet. Shmick keeps his gun trained on one of the monstrous humanoids for a few secconds more, before following suit and allowing his arm to reconfigure.
[ooc] I presume as they seem to be monstrous humanoids, local? Correct me if wrong and I'll roll different.
I presume as they seem to be monstrous humanoids, local? Correct me if wrong and I'll roll different.
The creatures are known as Thriae; they live in desert hives, in a social structure very similar to bees. They are known for their powers of divination and prophecy.
Tell us what you know of them and we will be on our way."
"We came upon a battle yesterday; this one," the leader gestures toward the body in the sand, "holding battle against many with gold-leafed masks. The one now dead wielded great necromantic power, and we perceived it was the return of the Sky Pharaoh, a dark power from ancient times."
"So, we chose to stand with his opponents, the gold-masks. This was our mistake." The woman pauses for a moment, a single tear drying up on her face in the desert heat. "The others immediately claimed the artifact worn by the first; not only that, they overpowered our party, and took with them our princess, that she might help them achieve their evil goals. They headed North."
Malavine glanced over at the compass, to see if agreed with that general direction. "Sounds like the people we're following, yes. Or following now, at least."
"If you can find them, can you see that our princess is freed and returned? We will repay such a debt generously."
Malavine looked at the others. "I can't see any harm in trying, but we can't make any guarantees."
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"An interesting tale. You gave aid against a common foe, but found that the enemy of your enemy is not always your friend, and thy good deed went sorely punished.
Aye, though it seems that we make the same error you yourself did, we have our own reseans for hunting the artifact down, so we have no fear of altruism being punsihed," she states as if that is unassailable logic.
"Aye, if we can bring back your wayward leader, we shall do so, but, as my companioon has said, do not think that we will put her safety above our own goal. If acquiring our quarry means her death, we will not jeopardize our own mission for thine. And so, that is simply Fate giving you...a valuable lesson."
Liath turns to the others. "We should away North. Imrael alone knows how much of a head start they have, so we win nothing by tarrying."
At this point, the journey to Tephu will take you about the same amount of time either going straight north through the desert or tracking back to the road. Which path would you like to choose?
"Course, too," Malavine noted in agreement.
The trip back to the road is short, and once you get back, you make good time to Tephu.
Tephu is a very different city from Wati; surrounded by tall, swaying papyrus reeds and towering orchards of date palms, it is known as the City of the Reed People. Tephu is also home to the Great Library of Tephu, the greatest repository of knowledge in Osirion.
You are walking beside a great canal; to your left, as well as on the other side of the canal, run rich apartments, houses and offices. Papyrus merchants are holding meetings with customers at cafes along the walk. There are many strangers from other lands; whereas in Wati the adventurers were something of a novelty, here they seem commonplace. Your diverse group is hardly noticed.
"Hmm... Let's take a look then, shall we?" The gnome comments, going through with his thoughts and taking a gander at the compass.
There are, once again, two pulls on the Compass. Both are pulling you roughly Northward.
"Vast power and money before your eternal suffering?"
The gnome frowns, as he taps the side of the compass at the same time it sparks. "Blast it, not now..."
As you move inward, the two signals diverge. One heads straight through town and out toward the desert. The other one heads toward the Old Town, where stands the famed library. Hickle interprets this as the path leading out of town being more directly tied to the Mask's current location, but that the Mask probably went to the library before leaving the area.
"Into the city or into the desert again," Malavine noticed. "Either way, going through town is the fatest way, so we might as well hit up the first source and see if we can lean anything before heading into the desert."
"Hm, yes. We may as well take a visit of this library before we head out futher."
The high blue dome of Tephu's Great Library, topped with shining golden pinnacles, towers over the surrounding buildings. Huge columns rise from immense footings along the edifice's sheer walls. Enormous bronze doors, etched with the images of sphinxes, lead into the cavernous interior. Four guards wearing chain shirts and armed with spears stand before the entry. They look unusually alert, and are questioning anyone who enters.
Looking around for a moment, Malavine shrugged and approached the doors, waiting for one of the Guards to get to her. "Good day. We are agents of the city of Wati, seeking fugitives who unleashed a plague of undeath that we were forced to destroy. We believe they entered the libraries, looking for something. That doesn't bode well for anybody. Is there someone we can speak to about finding out more? One of yourselves, perhaps?"
The guards look to each other, their body language changing from alert to surprised.
One of the guards, a slender fellow with thick black locks of hair, comes forward. "Come with me," he says, motioning for two other guards to open the doors fully.
A large, ornate desk lit by a magnificent lantern made of glass stands in the center of this entrance hall. Statues of enigmatic sphinxes sit in each corner of the room, their gazes an impossible mixture of pleasure and defiance. Archways in three walls open into larger spaces, the chambers beyond drowning in books, ledgers, scrolls, clay tablets, tomes, and other more obscure forms of record, held in countless shelves and cabinets. The smell of old books is almost overpowering.
Two curators, women dressed in white robes with black headscarves, attend the reception desk, accepting donations and assisting visitors in negotiating the jumbled shelves of the Outer Stacks. One of them is visibly injured, but is going about her duties as best she can.