Sidius closes his hand on the pearl, drawing the spell energy from it and rekindling his memory... and then begins to cast a summoning spell, A dog or a rat could sniff her out, at least enough to give me an idea where to hurl the glitterdust..
Arcos nods as he strikes the glowing blade with a fist full of electricity.
Sidius begins to summon a creature to sniff out the missing woman...
Arcos attacks the shimmering blade, but his strike has no effect on the blade. However moments later the blade winks out of existence.
Arcos Sidius and Aldren hear casting...from somewhere south of the pit. Then silence....
= Round 12(19) ===
Lubella(PvE -5), Talvek (PvE -8)
Fhingle(PvL, -36 ), Sidius(-6 Sick3)
Aldren(PvE -1) Arcos(-1)
Leader(-32 SPx)
Lubella whispered, "No sign of the leader at the cultists' quarters." She started slowly zig-zagging across the corridor leading towards the pit, sweeping the air with her scimitar.
Lubella zigs and zags down the corridor but does not find anything...
Sidius's summons finishes...
Aldren 'whispered' to Lubella, "I'm turning to one of the cultists... warn the others so they don't kill me."
To Fhingle, who seemed to be guarding the boys in the sidehall, he whispered, "Through the door and close it behind you!"
He then moved to the western door and used the hat of disguise to once more shift his appearance, this time trying to appear as one of the lesser cultists bleeding from a head wound. Hopefully, if she comes through the northern door, this will give her pause...
"Aaaah... Mahathallah, why have you forsaken us!?"
Lubella whispered to the team, "Finch is disguising himself as a cultist; be careful who you attack."
Aldren disguises himself as one of the dead or dying cultists.
= Round 12(19) ===
Lubella(PvE -5), Aldren(PvE -1 disguised26)
Talvek (PvE -8) Fhingle(PvL, -36 ), Sidius(-6 Sick3) Arcos(-1)
Leader(-32 SPx)
Talvek advances to the edge of the pit and stops to listen again.
Arcos looks at Talvek with a confused expression, "Any luck? I'm not seeing too much."
Sidius is able to determine a moderate strength cure spell was cast before the masked invisible woman moved elsewhere.
Arcos and Talvek are not able to detect anything.
"I can't see or hear anything, either. Should we reconvene with the others and discuss?"
Talvek takes some experimental swings with his rapier at the empty spaces around them, careful not to hit Arcos.
Sidius summons a critter near the pit. It immediately screaches as it detects something north of Lubella.
A wash of vile negative energy fills the hall, catching the critter and Lubella
Mahathallah!
DC13 WILL
The masked woman and image appear in the hallway, sickle in hand and look of desperation. With a maniacal chuckle she cries out to Lubella and Talvek.
You cannot stop me! You children will never take ME!
= Round 13(20) ===
Lubella(PvE -5), Aldren(PvE -1 disguised26)
Talvek (PvE -8) Fhingle(PvL, -36 ), Sidius(-6 Sick3) Arcos(-1)
Masked Woman (-32 SPx)
Talvek starts sprinting and tries to leap across the pit that stands between him and the masked woman.
As his feet land on the floor with a thud, his elongated arm snakes out to send the point of his rapier at the woman. "Take you? I think we're fine with just killing you."
Lubella was taken off guard by the wave of foul energy. She grunted in pain as she moved to intercept the masked woman, then slashed with her scimitar.
"She across the pit to the west!", she advised her allies through her message spell.
Talvek makes a daring leap across the pit with an acrobatic flare to land within reach of the woman.
his blade easily hits a target but the target pops as an image is disappated.
As fortune would allow, this leaves an opening as Lubella advances and lands a strike with her own small blade.
Fhingle groans in pain and tries to remedy the wounds as best he can.
= Round 13(20) ===
Talvek (PvE -8), Lubella(PvE -9), Fhingle(PvL, -31 )
Aldren(PvE -1 disguised26)
, Sidius(-6) Arcos(-1)
Masked Woman (-42 SP)
Aldren cast Fhingle a glance of concern as the halfling continued to absorb the wounds and injuries of their allies. Patting the stout oracle on the shoulder, Aldren moved down the hall to rejoin Lubella and Talvek.
Sidius mentally winces as the woman appears, Should have summoned another eagle..at least it could fly to her... He considers the spells he has left, then throws another evil eye at the woman, keeping her from focusing on her defenses.
Aldren moves to get into the fray.
In the hallway, the masked woman stares at Sidius....and smiles
Acros takes an extra moment to consider his actions (delays)
You fools are in over your head! NOW DIE!
She lunges at Lubella with her sickle, with mad desperation ablaze in her eyes.
for
for
= Round 14(21) ===
Arcos(-1), Talvek (PvE -8), Lubella(PvE -16), Fhingle(PvL, -31 )
Aldren(PvE -1 disguised26)
, Sidius(-6)
Masked Woman (-42 SP)
Lubella winced in pain as the sickle slashed her left arm. She stepped into a flank with Talvek and sliced with her scimitar. "I'd rather be in my position than yours!"
Her wounds healed, transferred to another. Sorry, Fhingle, but thank-you!
"You keep saying that, but I'm afraid the reality of your situation does not match your fantasy." Talvek needles the masked woman both literally and figuratively.
Arcos skirts around the pit before hurling a bolt of electricity at the cult leader.
Sidius shakes his head at the smile, It would seem that she's either not intelligent enough -- or too delusional -- to realize that my hexes are still enough of a distraction to let the others strike her, even if she's resisting the worst of it... Plus, I can do it all day long.., then twists his expression, hurling the same hex at the woman.
Aldren half-stumbles around the corner at the south end of the hall, clasping his "bleeding" forehead and looking like a cultist. "Aaaaah! Mistress! I'll protect you." He stumbles forth, whip at his side.
First Lubella, then followed by Talvek slash and stab the masked woman as she presses her frenzied attack. Arcos's lightning strikes true as well.
vs hex
She again manages to ignore much of the effect of Sidius's attempt to distract her defenses.
vs bluff
She looks at Aldren with almost relief.
Well, don't just stand there! Attack these fools or heal me! she barks at the new comer.
She swings again at the halfing.
for
= Round 15(22) ===
Arcos(-1), Talvek (PvE -8), Lubella(PvE -11), Fhingle(PvL, -31 )
Aldren(PvE -1 disguised26)
, Sidius(-6)
Masked Woman (-66 SP)
Sidius notes the wounds opening on Fhingle and turns his attention to his smaller ally, using some spell energy to heal him.
"Better hurry with that heal... oops, here comes another hole!"
Talvek continues to try and distract the woman from hurting Lubella as the rapier in his hand weaves through the air, trying to find a vulnerable spot.
"Or maybe you could, you know, not be evil!", Lubella suggested, taking another swing.
Arcos steps in and makes a few false moves to throw off the masked woman’s defense before he strikes the cult leader with a fist full of electricity as he says, ”It’s a shocking concept, I know!”
And with the final flurry of attacks the masked woman lets out a gasp and drops dead to the floor.
Uhhhhg! Mahath....
Her mask is dislodged and you see her face morph from a green skinned changeling, to many forms, including one of your favorite pastry and tart supplier, the raven haired Luculla from next to the Tooth and Nail.
The two boys break down, sobbing.
Is it...could she really be...dead?
"Aw, hells. I hope this doesn't mean no more blueberry tarts." Talvek bends over the body to check it. That particular appearance explains how she was able to abduct the kids - who wouldn't trust a kindly lady who gave you delicious pastries?
"Yes, she's dead. Want to give her a kick or two?" Talvek prods the body with a foot, demonstratively. "She can't hurt you anymore. Or any of her minions."
The pieces fall into place as Talvek considers the dead changeling. Was she the source of information on the Silver Ravens? Being able to look like anyone... they would need to put measures in place to defend from shapeshifters, magical disguises, divination magic... The list goes on and on, and the tiefling mentally kicks himself for not having thought of these things earlier.
"Luculla? Really?", lubella panted, staring in disbelief at the corpse. As the adrenaline wore off after a couple of minutes of strenuous dancing and fighting, she needed a minute to catch her breath. She stood there, hands on her knees, breathing heavily; she was soaked in sweat from the exertion.
"You're safe now," she reassured the boys. "We're taking you home to your parents."
The reality of a changeling cult leader, who had sold them pastries, reinforced the need to be careful with their identities, and discussing the rebellion.
She repaid Fhingle for some of the damage that he had accepted on her behalf.
Arcos raises his eyebrows and shakes his head slightly, "I'll be damned. She made the best croissant I've ever had. Should've stuck with the bakery, stayed away from the cult business."
He takes stock of the situation, sighing heavily before saying, "What do you say we take a last look around the place, make sure we've dealt with everyone?"
Talvek nods at the suggestion from the Blue Warlock. "There was a door back where we came from. We should take a look."
Aldren was sorely tempted to do as Talvek suggested — A good kick would do me good — but he resisted the urge. The last thing we need is an angry ghost roaming this place taking revenge for how her body was treated.
He let his disguise drop entirely and began securing his weapons and retrieved the glaive. ”Does anyone need healing? I’ve exhausted my channels but have a few spells left.”
And, if nobody else did, he would cast Detect Magic and search the woman’s corpse.
As you mull over the next steps, Aldren's (still disguised I suspect) detect magic uncovers a few aura's upon the corpse of Luculla.
potions of bear’s endurance, potion of cure
light wounds, potion of cure moderate wounds, scroll of
glyph of warding; Other Gear +1 chain shirt, mwk net, mwk
sickle, cloak of resistance +1, ring of protection +1, a strange key, amber-and-jade facemask of Mahathallah
worth 500 gp, gold unholy symbol worth 100 gp, 74 gp
There were several doors back at the entrance, many open cells. Also the large temple-like chamber where Luculla, the devil and wasp originated to the west.
Sidius nods, "That... was not who I expected... But it certainly just gives us more reason to be aware... And luring children with sweet treats is both cliche and legend... because it works."
He sighs, then looks around, "I have a bit of magic left that I can turn into healing, too. That said, I think I'd like to hold on to a bit of magic for now, just in case there are others back there."
The large chamber (c8) to the east draws your attention as you consider your next direction.
The ceiling of this long chamber rises to a height of twenty
feet overhead, the shallow vaulting supported by stone
pillars. Significant sections of the walls and floors have
been inscribed with etchings of tiny letters, while statuefilled alcoves stand guard along the walls. Each of these
statues is made of stone and depicts a feminine figure,
although the details seem more like they were formed in
clay that was allowed to harden rather than carved directly
from rock.
The westernmost statues depict the woman as
a beautiful winged figure, while the easternmost depict
her as skeletal, with the middle statues depicting a
transition between the two forms. To the east, a stage
supports a stone altar presided over by a seventh statue
of the same feminine form, her right half skeletal and her
left half beautiful.
"Looks like this is their ritual chamber. I wonder if these statues represent the one they worship."
Talvek starts searching the room for any traps, secret doors, compartments or hidden elements.
Aldren had, in fact, let his disguise completely slip and was now appeared as he does naturally, with polished breastplate and black silks and crushed velvet. He grunted slightly as the others discovered the identity of the priestess, "Everything in Cheliax is built on lies and deception. Why should a bakery be any different?"
After cataloging the priestess's gear and taking the key, he followed Talvek back to the sanctuary and tried to help make sense of the statues.
Sidius nods, "Aye, that's certainly true. Though, let's be honest, we're at least half this upset because we'll miss her sweetrolls when we have our coffee."
The key Aldren recovers from the fallen leader looks like it would match the lock picked to get down to this level (after the trash room).
This room was once a shrine devoted to Norgorber, the
patron of the Gray Spiders, but the changeling cultists
have been working for many months to transition the
space into a shrine devoted to Mahathallah. A successful
as depicting her transition from beauty to skeleton (a
transformation she undergoes every day), while the
writing that covers about 75% of the walls and floors
are prayers to the Dowager of Illusions that aren’t quite
finished yet. The statues appear to be modified by sculpting or spell.
Looking in the large chamber you find a door closed to the south.
Beyond the semi-opened door you see a bedroom.
This room appears to be a combination bedchamber and
personal shrine. A portable cot bedecked with furs and a
feather mattress sits to the southwest, while to the southeast
stands a small semicircular desk on the top of which lies a
miniature altar, a statuette of a skeletal woman with fleshless
wings, and several books and scrolls.
A wooden stand in the
corner to the east supports a gold-plated human skull, its top
removed so that it can serve as a basin for what appears to
be watered-down blood.
"Yup, that's Mahathallah alright. Although this was initially another deity's shrine. Both of them worse than bad." Talvek takes a look through the open door into the bedroom, clearly itching to inspect it more thoroughly.
"We're not done here yet, but perhaps one of us can take the boys home to their parents. Ba, you suffered our injuries and look quite spent, you can probably use some rest as well. Why don't you take the boys away from here?"
Sidius nods, "Aye, that's certainly true. Though, let's be honest, we're at least half this upset because we'll miss her sweetrolls when we have our coffee."
Aldren's foul mood faded as Sidius' observation elicited a wry grin. "I don't know if I had the pleasure of her's, but as a fan of the muffins at Longroads, I see your point."
He wasn't overly bothered by the depictions of the fiend the cultists worshiped, and he found himself walking over to the skull, picking it up, and examining it out of morbid curiosity. The gold might be worth something... Then to the others he said, "If this is what you're planning to convert into some sort of a base, all this is going to have to be removed. In a day or two, I should be able to pray to Calistria to purge any lingering energies. I may even be able to reshape the stone, though don't expect any respectable artwork." He paused, contemplating the options, then quietly quipped to himself, "Maybe a giant phallus."
Then, after a moment, he added, "And we still have the matter of dear Rexus to attend to."
Sidius says, "I think we need all the bases and safehouses we can manage, but the amount of purification this place may need is staggering... and, as Finch suggests, we have other priorities right now."