Rhialla pauses, looking at Cass, then turning slowly to look at Em with an amused grin on her face, raising an eyebrow in question. "I kind of want to hear that answer to that."
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"Actually they can! But I have to have both hands on the piece of clothing and it only gets that one piece. So really it is just easier to charm people out of their clothes." Esmarelda winked. "Honestly I like them more for chests, as I can see what is inside and if it is even worth stealing. Not to mention I can touch locks and see the tumblers inside along with these goggles and well, nothing is safe from me" She smirked.
Ashlei frowns.
"Just sounds like you are groping someone awkwardly to me...and we all know how much you like 'chests' that belong to other people. So keep those gloved hands moving and open the blasted door...my 'chest' is off limits. At least until we get out of this spider infested hell-hole..."
"Alright, let's pick it, rather than make more noise and announce our presence to whatever's lying in wait." Rhialla suggests.
Cassiopeia frowns and glances down at her one piece wetsuit, then says, ”Yeah, just jimmy the lock and let’s carry on.”
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He could only chuckle at the girls banter. How he managed to be someone involved with some of the hottest lasses he had ever seen but only with one of them seemed a joke from the gods, but he was also okay with it. He did remember that there were disapearing spider monsters with weird faces about, so he did keep his mind on the present.
"I tend to agree its easier to just charm the clothes off, but im sure there are reasons you wouldnt want to."
He chuckled.
"Oh this won't take long." Esmarelda grinned as she set about working.
The door opens easily to Esmarelda skilled fingers.
Most of the weapons are of normal quality, but the armory also holds the following masterwork weapons:
light crossbow,
cutlass,
rapier,
short sword,
trident.
That is everything for this building. Where to next?
"These will be useful for some of the crew," opines Cassiopeia. "I'm curious about how long they've been here, since they're not rusted."
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Ashlei snickers.
"I'm not surprised. Chelaxaians always take good care of their blades I've heard! Can't have a dull knife when its time to torture your children properly!"
Suddenly she stops and glances at the Captain...
"That's only a story I heard from my momma's knee of course. She was a notorious liar of course! She was also a priestess of Besmara her whole life..."
She then glances at Rhialla...
"...what I mean to say she was the hardest of hard-asses, and never stopped for a second preachin' the ways of Besmara! The fact she was a whore in bed..."
She stop suddenly, shakes her head innocently and holds up empty hands to ward off all the glares.
"You know...I think I'm just going to to shut up for a while. My 'tung' is getting really dry...and not as funny as I thought for some reason."
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"all those things Ash? perhaps we should talk after this privately in our cabin eh Rhialla?"
He laughed and shook his head. He was from Cheliax sure... but his family wasnt an ardent pious sort. At least not in private.
"Lets keep moving. Maybe whatever it was you saw is why this place is abandoned... but I fear there is more."
Nodding without saying a single word in response...for once...Ashlei leads the group to the next closest building clockwise from the first building, along the wall of the fort.
You move on to the two small shacks clockwise from where you were.
B16. Slave Quarters
These shacks were designed to house slaves brought by the original Chelish colonists. They have recently been repaired and enlarged?
Next is the tower. Do you wish to check the buildings first or head into the tower?
"Let's check the buildings first—don't want to potentially leave someone or something behind us."
"Agreed. The fact that what looks like slave quarters has been enlarged form the original construction definitely hints to someone having been here since the original habitation." Rhialla says, as they move to the next outbuilding.
"Could it have been those... Creepy spider freaks?" Esmarelda asked.
"I've only seen spiders build webs, never castles. And if you can teleport, then walls aren't exactly something you care about... ?" says Cassiopeia.
"Those spiders had faces of people so I'm getting the feeling they aren't normal... Not to mention they vanished into thin air!" Esmarelda reminded them.
Moving north you enter the door on the building in the center of the fort.
B13. Garrison
Doors lead from this room in four directions. The ceilings
rafters rise fifteen feet overhead and a narrow set of stairs by
the north wall leads underground.
After checking the door for traps Esmarelda cautiously enters the room.
The room is not as empty as it looks, a nightmarish figure appears hanging in the air and blasts the party with a spell.
This indistinct figure suddenly takes on a nightmarish shape, not quite human or animal or fiend.
.
A panicked creature must drop anything it holds and flee at top speed from the source of its fear, as well as any other dangers it encounters, along a random path. It can’t take any other actions. In addition, the creature takes a –2 penalty on all saving throws, skill checks, and ability checks. If cornered, a panicked creature cowers and does not attack, typically using the total defense action in combat. A panicked creature can use special abilities, including spells, to flee; indeed, the creature must use such means if they are the only way to escape.
If you made the save? Esmarelda, Ashlei & Rhialla may act first.
Pushing aside the fear the creature makes with her ego and anger more than her spirit, Ashlei moves into the room at an angle to get a shot off and lets loose on the creature!
An abject horror from somewhere beyond her worst nightmares overwhelms all logic, all reason, all though other than one thing.
RUN.
A sound unlike any her companions have ever heard from her erupts from Rhialla’s throat as she expresses the utter fear that sends her racing from the room, running for all she’s worth.
Cassiopeia is too far back to see what's going on until she sees everyone running back past her.
"What's..."
.
Rhialla & Percy beat feet.
Ashlei lightly wounds the thing. Its incorporeal state dampening the damage.
It drifts closer to Ashlei and lashes out with one hoof/hand?
Cassiopeia May act. Then back to Ashlei.
Cass manages to catch up to Ashlei and immediately regrets that decision. She blasts off a glitterdust spell in hopes that whatever this is can be blinded.
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Feeling her life essence dissipate despite her mother's magical armor, Ashlei grimaces and tries not to puke, then heads for the door! She grabs Cassieopea's sleeve for a moment as she summons her Starknife back to her hand!
"Don't Cassie! I don't think we can't take it without the others! RUN!"
Then she's out the door, dragging Cassiopeia with her if she can.
.
.
The strange creature doesn't leave the room to follow Ashlei & Cassiopeia. The two spiderlike creatures who ambush the fleeing trio are another matter.
Orange and Yellow appear this round. Everyone else may act. Those who are panicked will run from the Spiders as well. What are you doing?
.
Seeing one of the spider things appear out of nowhere, Ashlei tries not to throw up and quick draws her starknife and charges Orange, blade already smoking and red-hot!
"Get AWAY from them! They don't want spider babies!"
"Phase spider!" shouts Cass. She's done messing around and unleashes a cone of fiery fury at the plane-hopping creature.
Letting out a scream at the sudden appearance of the spider, Rhialla's legs are enveloped by a surge of churning, rushing water from the Plane of Water that drives her swiftly across the ground and out the room.
"No! NO, No, No! Nuna!" Esmarelda stated as she ran up the wall to get away from the spiders. "Not natural!!"
Ashlei slashes Orange deeply, joined by a stream of fire from Cassiopeia.
Orange screams in pain and returns to the Ethereal plane to avoid any more damage.
Seeing that it is now alone and has two combatants that will fight Yellow decides discretion is best and also vanishes again.
You all make it out and back to the ship. 12 Rounds of fear so you're running for a while.
No one has followed you. What are you doing now?
"Let's get ourselves together... those phase spiders and that whatever-the-hell-it-is are gonna be trouble," says Cassiopeia. "Unfortunately I have no way to stop that magical fear, or to force the spiders into this plane."
Having finally overcome the stark terror, and frankly, rather angry at anything frightening her that badly, Rhialla considers the array of magic available to her through Besmara's blessing. "I think I can do something about it, making us more resistant to the effects, and even draw strength from it, as long as I'm not too terrified to act." she says, rolling her shoulders to release some of the tension there. "But it would have to wait until I next prepare spells."
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If rhialla looked angry her lover actually looked worse than that. He looked disapointed and downtrodden. He glanced at his bare hands and shook his head muttering in infernal. Then he looked to the distant crew working on defenses and spat on the ground again. He had dropped his pike and sword in that room with whatever it f&*+ing was.
"Whats it take to hurt that damned thing? And those spiders? what in the hell are those? Lets get the crew warned and ready for those blasted things."
"The spiders are phase spiders," explains Cassiopeia. "They phase-shift to appear and attack, then vanish back to another plane of existence. No easy way to follow them without magic more powerful than what we have. If Rhialla can prepare a dimensional anchor spell, she may be able to force one to remain here when it reappears."
"I'll get your weapons back by sending an unseen servant into the room to drag them back out."
Esmarelda look down from the roof, finally calming down from the magic. "They uha... they're gone right?" She called down.
.
Ashlei is quiet for a while having followed the magically compelled runners slowly back to the ship. She appears to be contemplating how things went, and remains scowling the whole time.
Once everyone has had their say she finally speaks up, seemingly randomly spouting nonsense...
"So those Phase-arachnids can talk? They're not just big 'bugs' then? OK...that leaves us Diplomacy as an option. IF we can get them to talk. IF we can understand them. IF we can give them something in exchange to leave us alone...or even help us? That's a thought. The Flying monster was...not all there? My magical starknife hurt it, I'm sure...but it was like trying to stab semi-solid mist, and I don't think it 'bled' anything either. Could the Phase Spiders hurt that thing since they can 'phase' or whatever it is they do? Also, if we intend to try and take her out, we will also need protection. The creature might be undead? Its mere touch drained my life force! My magical armor protects me some...but not enough for that."
She then looks at the group, her face pale.
"THAT...really was NOT good Captain. We may actually have to come up with ...gods above and below I can't believe I'm actually saying this...a PLAN."
Making a sudden *herk* noise, Ashlei suddenly grabs her mouth for a moment likes she was about to puke. She waves off any help.
"Sorry. I have a natural aversion to...thoughtful decision making. And having my life force drained of course. Its a family thing..."
"With time to prepare, I can protect us from the worst of what they can do. I can create a field that will repel anything incorporeal, that'll keep us from getting swarmed by them and focus on one at a time. Anyone close to me will be untouchable, and within the same range I can bolster us against fear." Rhialla says after some consideration, nodding at Ashlei's comments.
"As Cass said, there are spells that can anchor the spiders so that they can't go back once they materialize here, making them as vulnerable to our weapons as anything else. It's just a matter of being prepared now that we know what we're dealing with."
Ashlei sighs.
"We if we have the magic to take these things out, we shouldn't hesitate too long. Our people are pretty obvious, setting up on the beach. If anything larger...like a dragon or something like that...lives here and notices our efforts, then the fort will more than likely give us better protection. Tomorrow at dawn then? We head back?"
"Works for me. I'll have the best magical defenses I can come up with prepared for the day." Rhialla replies.
Esmarelda walked back down the wall to the ground to rejoin the group. "So, no magic using over here but uha... Is phase-shifting the same as incorporal?"
"No, phase-shifted spiders are actually shifting to another plane of existence—the ethereal plane. That other thing is clearly incorporeal, though. My spell passed through it with minimal effect," explains Cassiopeia.
"But, the same magic that will make the incorporeal creature solid for a time, can also keep the spiders from being able to get back to the ethereal plane, so no more, attacking then popping away." Rhialla adds.
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