Jayse doesn't miss a beat, "Well, maybe if you'd use the good magic on me..."
The Wisp doesn't hesitate, it slips past Jayse to pursue Straehan. Unfortunately, not even his magic armor can prevent the lightning from cooking the sorcerer. He jigs like a puppet briefly.
ORDER:
36|42
29|46
30|30
23|37
Ushari continues her previous actions, this time opting to assist Jofram's next blow. Seeing she is too far away from the creature, she backflips around the creature, readying for Jofram to step up....
Okay, you little worthless piece of crap! No more ignoring me.
The blade dissipates as Jayse lunges for the blue light.
Feeling strengthened, Jofram leaps again into the fray, slashing with precision, instead of pure ferocity.
Jofram's HIT:
Ushari weaves through friend and foe alike. She distracts the Wisp at a critical moment, enabling Jofram to stab it from behind. While his blow is formidable, the weakened Wisp doesn't go down easily.
Seeing the creature is weakened, Straehan risks trying to knock it out. He casts a 'classic'. The missiles unerringly strike the creature, but it stubbornly refuses to die.
Jayse jumps at the creature, but it deftly dodges the monk's attempt to grapple it.
RANGE: 100' +10'/lv
CONCENTRATE v DC17:
EFFECT:
Missile #1 DAM:
Missile #2 DAM:
"Holy hell! What does it take to bring one of these suckers down?! Straehan, when I settle down, remind me to hire one or two of these things to guard my house!"
"Your house?" Ushari is having a very difficult time imagining the enigmatic monk settling down in any way. She quips, "Well, I am sure these creatures would be easy to feed at least".
Again the Wisp focuses its attack on the diminuative caster. Again, electricity rocks his frame. The smoking gnome hits the wall.
ORDER:
36|42
29|46
30|30
14|37
Straehan blows smoke and shakes his head to clear it. "His master really doesn't like spellcasters. Could one of you guys maybe help me out by... I dunno... "
"But Strae, don't you want a guard...wisp for your house? No? Oh well..."
Ushari concentrates on trying to finish the creature off before it flash-fries Straehan.
Straehan looks for an escape route. "Golems have more style. Undead are just... creepy."
The Wisp begins vibrating. It simulates a human voice with a jarringly inhuman quality to it.
:: Ha ha ha... Feast on souls, I can ::
:: Don't run from me, gnome... you only die tired ::
Strae looks at Ushari, "Like I said - creepy."
As Ushari and Straehan distract the glowing beacon, Jofram summons the strength for another powerful blow. Bringing the sword down on it like a guillotine, the Half-Elf wills it into oblivion.
Though surrounded, the Wisp is an elusive target. It deftly skips, dodges, and briefly winks out of existence causing both Ushari's and Jofram's blows to miss.
Despite the creature's bravado, it is clear it is grievously injured. Straehan fires off the humblest of wizardly magics hoping it's enough.
"Jayse, if this fails, you better not miss or I'm going to be charcoal."
The first thin beam of force strikes the Wisp and the eldritch light of the weird creature flickers. Then the second beam hits and the light slowly fades as the creature falls towards the floor - its form dissolving before their eyes.
RANGE: 100' +10'/lv
CONCENTRATE v DC17:
EFFECT:
Missile #1 DAM:
Missile #2 DAM:
36|42
29|46
30|30
14|37
Shouts from the women in the northern passage cause the comrades to turn, expecting yet another attack. But this is not to be. Instead, you see the form of a large, muscular warrior with rugged good looks working his way through the crowd of ladies. He is greeting many and receiving hugs in return. The smile on Porter's face is huge as he makes his way to you.
He looks down on the rapidly dissipating Wisp. "Good to see you folks." He eyes Jofram curiously for a moment before offering a nod and a concise introduction. "Porter."
Ushari cries out in joy, "Porter!! She then gives the warior a huge bear hug in response.
"I thought you were dead! I am so glad you made it!"
Porter blushes slightly. "Dead? No. Just lost and wandering around this damn place for a long time. I found Straehan's prints and followed 'em down here."
Straehan's twin shining bolts ends the threat before Jayse can think of a witty comeback, and he slumps back against the wall. He catches a whiff of ozone and looks up at Jofram with a tired smile, "Well, at least we know you can take a hit like a champ, right?" Before he can further any ribbing, the commotion of the women catches his attention, and he joins the group in congratulating Porter on his survival.
"Well, we're glad you found us, man. It'll be good to have one more blade in the group, though I gotta say I'd be happiest if we could avoid any more fights like those we've seen." The thought of the previous fight brings his mind back to the room, and he steps over to look once again at its interior.
"As much as I want to check that room out, I don't think we can handle another fight right now. Jofram, you wanna lead us to that beach? We'll break out what little food we have and try to get some sleep. Maybe in the morning we can focus on how to get out of here. Unless someone has a better idea."
Ushari blushes a bit at Porter's reaction. she steps away from him and replies to Jayse, "Yeah, that is for the best, I don't think that treasure is going anywhere. We should seal up that room though again, just in case."
Ushari cries out in joy, "Porter!! She then gives the warior a huge bear hug in response.
"I thought you were dead! I am so glad you made it!"
Jofram eases the grip on his blade as the approaching man is greeted by the others, and raises an amused eyebrow at Ushari. "Anyone else we should look for, that you've given up for dead? I'd hate to kill them by accident."
Jofram briefly introduces himself to the newcomer before nodding to Jayce's suggestion and leading the group to the beach, after sealing the treasure room.
Jayse shrugs, "I came down here alone. Did Jax come down with you guys?"
As he walks, he siphons off another fraction of his inner power to empower his blade. When he's not watching for threats, his eyes continue searching the frescoes, hoping to run across something that will shed some more light on this queer place, often running his hand along the more interesting scenes.
"No, Jayse. He returned to the village to let the other know what happened to us and see about trying to help rescue us...but considering what happened to us, I doubt they will be of much help for us now."
You seal up the room and disguise your presence and then head, en masse, back along the main corridors and towards the beach. Only the echoes of your footsteps and hushed conversations disturb the silence of the place.
When you pass the butchered pirates, Porter comments, "Nice work there." He stops briefly to roll Iron Bar over with his foot and then deliver a kick to the dead pirate's face.
As they walk, and Jayse keeps keep watch, he tries to strike up a conversation with their new traveling companion. "So, Jofram, tell us a little about yourself. What do you do when you're not coming to the rescue in strange under-ground labrynthine freak-show places?"
"I was... I... don't remember. I woke up on the beach, and everything before... I remember a busy town with a very large wall and a massive gate. I had just gotten paid I think - I'm not sure for what. That's all I remember. I have no idea how I woke up on that beach, or who or what pulled me from the waves."
He scans Jayse's face for a reaction, unsure himself what to make of his strange story.
Ushari exchanges a knowing glance with Jayse, and responds quietly to Jofram. "So, your presence here is NOT a coincidence." She pauses to let that sink in, and adds, "The four of us woke up in similar circumstances" indicating herself, Jayse, Fin, and Straehan, "and there are still many unanswered questions as to WHY we are all together."
There is a brief pause in Straehan's step before he continues on. "We should have seen that one coming... Well, cheer up, Jofram. You are in elite company. Ushari, Jayse, Fin, and I all have a similar tale, though we 'woke up' in the ocean amid the wreckage of a ship. We didn't get to the beach for another 3 days." He shakes his head, recalling their impromptu 'raft'.
Jofram looks between Ushari and Straehan, perplexed. "Are you making sport of me? You... you aren't, are you? How can this be?"
Ushari sighs, ”Jofram, I do not know. When we all found ourselves floating in the ocean, with the wreckage around us, none of us remembered much of anything. Since that point in time, we have all discovered memories of ourselves, but there are still maddeningly large gaps.”
"We jest about a great many things - but rarely the massive holes that are our pasts. As for the suspected architect of it all... have you seen a misty looking woman?"
"No, the pirates were the first souls I've laid eyes on, since I awoke."
The gnome looks vaguely disappointed at Jofram's response. "A pity that. I was hoping perhaps she gave you some explanation that she failed to provide to us. Still, don't worry about it too much. Dealing with the mystery gets easier over time and we are slowly piecing together our own pasts. We've made some progress though the reality of our lives is less than we hoped for, I think.... Ah, here we are!"
As you enter the main North-South corridor, Straehan goes to stand near a particular fresco. Like many in this corridor it is an island scene - but not a tropical one. The beach areas look windswept and feature stubby oak trees and high grasses that cling to the sand and rock outcroppings, as if attempting to keep them from being blown away. More interesting is the odd set of structures depicted. There are several smaller out-buildings surrounding a multi-storied central temple. The main building is made of a dark hardwood with a stacked stone base and a curious pagoda-like roof of red tiles. Jayse stares for a long moment.
The gnome watches his friend's reaction closely, hoping the image is a catalyst. "Jayse, does any of this seem familiar to you?"
Porter pulls out and examines a wrinkled and torn page. It draws Jofram's attention. The warrior has been very precisely mapping his route. With some help from Jofram and Ushari, they expand the map to include the portion that the team has been exploring.
Porter pokes a stubby figure at three different spots. "Here's where I found pirates. They'd been smashed or crushed. I didn't catch sight of what did the work, which is probably for the best."
Jayse listens to the back-and-forth as they walk, not having anything constructive to add. His steps slow as they come to the fresco Straehan points out, walking towards the image as if drawn. As he gets near it, he puts a hand up on the image, touching the beach, then the buildings as if they were they were the real things.
Even as Straehan asks his question, Jayse whispers, "Dehanté ké Hath.""
It's a few seconds before he realizes he's been spoken to, and he searches his memory for the question, "Oh… um…. yes. Yes it does." His tattooed hand touches on the main building, pausing there for a second. Then it moves to two secondary vacant areas against two of the main structure's walls, "But the building is incomplete… out of date. There are two additional wings. Training rooms and apartments. I slept here." There is a far-off look in his eyes as his finger goes to a specific spot in vacant air.
Once again a revelation affirms something he'd been dreading - but not something altogether unexpected at this point, "This building is from Bolline; it's a training academy of sorts." He pauses, casting his pale blue eyes quickly at Porter, Jofram, and the women. When he speaks again, his voice is pitched low - not in an attempt to keep it concealed… simply as if he's unsure how his words will be taken. "This is where assassins were trained. More specifically, this is where Dehanté ké Hath are trained. 'Hands of Oblivion'. Some of the premiere assassins in Miir... this is where I was trained."
The words hang in the air for a few seconds before Jayse continues, his voice stronger, "But like I said, the image is out-of-date. It hasn't looked like this for three hundred years. So either the fresco-maker is fond of antiquity, or this place is very old."
Ushari is silent for a moment as things start to click inside her mind. The revelation of Jayse did not surprise her, at least not very much. She has seen up close and personal how effective Jayse's skills were. Indeed those skills has kept her, and her companions alive more than once.
Still, it did not change the fact Jayse was a murderer...much as she had been. Or rather much as Despairs' Daughter was.
So, the three of us all have blood stained on our hands and in our souls. How does Jofram fit into this, how much blood is on his hands? She remembers something he mentioned about a town...
She keeps her voice pitched low, knowing this information was meant for only them. "Jofram, you mentioned a town where you were getting paid for something. Was this walled city filled with tall buildings, sweeping arches, and high walkways, siting on the shore of a massive body of water?"
"No, nothing quite so grand as that, I think. Possibly a small frontier city? I'm not sure."
"I would not have expected assassins to value decor so highly, and certainly not so passive a subject." he says, gesturing to the frescoes as they pass."
Leading the group up to the final junction, Jofram gestures to the final path.
"This is where I entered, from the beach." Eager to breathe fresh air again, he takes them outside.
Jayse looks confused, "You referring to their training facility?"
He then turns to Strae and Ushari, "So this place has frescos of everywhere on Miir? Or shoudl I start getting the willies that it has locations apparently important to mine and Ushari's past? Did anything stand out as particularly relevant to any of your memories, Strae?"
Despite Jayse's grim news, Straehan tries to cast it in a positive light. "The upside is that we now have solid leads to follow - names and organizations. When we get to Orfallen we can research those. We're no longer looking for a needle in a haystack."
Regarding the frescoes, he says, "I've seen all sorts of places on these walls. I only recognized some of Karstaad... and only because of the outfits and cavalry. But it wasn't an 'a-ha!' for me. I think the crypt-owner was well traveled and this whole place was designed to show his accomplishments and where he's been. There is one panel in the wide corridor just south of here. It shows several castles and him in front of a table with building plans. I'm guessing our boy was an architect among other things."
"If you're finished looking at these Bolline scenes, let's check out this beach." Straehan wanders into the corridor leading to the beach.
"Sure."
You enter the beach-cave and your attention is drawn to the briney smell of the air, the pristine sand, lapping waters, the remains of a boat that bob gently in the uneven surf, the broken bow, and the prodigious tracks of whatever crushed the aforementioned bow.
Straehan sends balls of light dancing across the water, attempting to define the extent of the cave. It is high; the ceiling stalagtites are some 60' above you and relatively large. It is also wholly enclosed. Straehan examines the layers of natural rock along one of the natural walls.
"Well, I have good news or bad news depending on your point of view. The soil is consistent with what we saw on Amador... so I don't think we've left the island or at least we aren't outside of the Great Southern Isles. The other thing - judging from this rock stratefication we are about 200' underground - which pretty much jives with my recollection of how far we came down that sluice."