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Your team signed up yesterday and and submitted the symbol of your group to the priests of Phrasma for the lottery today. Yesterday was cut short by a sandstorm which drove your team indoors.
The worst of the storm passed last night but there is a gloom in the air today as you arrive at the market for the lottery.
The bustling desert city of Wati is near bursting with excitement. Adventurers from every corner of the Inner Sea region have assembled here beneath the hot Osirian sun to explore the tombs of the city's necropolis, waiting only to be assigned their first sites for exploration.
Surrounding the participants, the public has gathered to observe the ceremony as well. There is a festival-like quality in the air, and numerous street vendors are hawking goods and refreshments to participants and spectators alike. Some merchants have even brought what can only be considered adventuring gear to sell as last minute convenience items to explorers, while others advertise that they'll buy recovered treasures and antiquities from those who visit their establishments.
In front of the imposing edifice of the Grand Mausoleum, an immense awning has been erected between decorated pillars in the market to provide shade for the priests of Pharasma overseeing the lottery. Beneath the awning, two urns sit atop a table on the stage. The high priestess of the Grand Mausoleum, Sebti the Crocodile, sits behind the table, while two acolytes confer with her at either side. Behind her stands Saleem the armed priest and a new priest a tall lanky man who seems to be talking to himself. You haven't seen him before. You overhear from people in the crowd that his name is Ptemenib.
Numerous adventuring groups stand in small clusters near the stage. Most keep to themselves, but some teams engage in quiet conversation with other teams, mostly speculating about what they'll likely face in the necropolis. There is a group of halflings riding war dogs their lances lifted and flying pendants like they are ready for a parade. A team of all women in white leather armor, they keep to themselves.
You still have some time before the lottery begins
All of you had to pack up your gear and head out of the Tooth & Hookah, A famous inn for adventurers near the necropolis, for the Sunburst market at the crack of dawn although with the dust still in the air it almost seems like the sun still hasn't risen. It's almost like a fog. everything in the distance is in a haze.
Ayedan stays at the back of the part and mumbles I don't like crowds. I hope it won't be as bad as yesterday. People all over the place. Rubbing shoulders. Bumping into each other.
Looking around Faffnyr looks at the stalls. Smiling he adresses the others."How are we stacked with mundane items? Rope, a crowbar, hammer, piton. Maybe a flask of Alchemy fire or two? I still have a few coins left."
The looming figure doesn't even bother to turn his head to the Sylph when he adresses him. "Patience, Ayedan. They are nothing but sand, blown about by fickle winds. The decision has already been made and all we can do, is wait."
"I don't mind the crowds." Like a bubbling stream, the voice of the bald undine woman at the front trickles back through the party to Ayedan. "It's like a river. The water always moves, but stays as a single body. It's comforting." Her bare toes flex, feeling the smooth stone of the ground beneath them; her webbed fingers brush against the holy symbol at her breast. "I wonder why Ptemenib talks to himself?" she murmurs, more to herself than anyone else.
A stall selling dried fruits and nuts is setup near your group. Seeing Tayvara and Faffnyr glance at his stall he smiles. "Only a gold for a bag of the finest fruits. Guaranteed to fortify you on your dangerous journey."
Looking around you see the next stall has a man playing a flute and before him a three foot section of a coil of rope sways like a snake. His stall is selling lots of rope of every diameter.
There are two peddlers near you as well one selling eleven foot pole which just miss your heads as he is turning around trying to get through the crowds.
The other peddler you swear looks like a leather peacock. The guy has some rig thats all leather and wood that allows him to wear a fan like tail of shovels sprayed out like a peacock. He is crying out "Three gold a shovel, Don't get caught buried alive"
There are many more stalls and peddlers throughout the market. Some on the North end are selling food. You can smell the curry from here. You remember passing one with weapons on display as well.
Another peddler glides past with a tower of folded cloth on his head crying "Get yourself a sack, five copper a sack"
To the south the stage sits where the priests will have the drawing. A line of soldiers stands looking bothered by the crowds.
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Going closer to the fruit vendor Tayvara checks for some dried dates and raisins. Smiling at the vendor she offers a few silvers for a small sack.
Let the haggeling start.
"You have decent fruits for sure, but I would like some taste before I buy. Let me taste a few of the raisins. Red or white grapes?"
The vendor takes a single raisin from his tray and presents it with a flourish.
"This raisin comes from the most succulent Phassa reds grapes. They grow in the high valleys where once the land was so liveless and course with rock and crystal shards that the farmers there barely created enough to eat. It is said that Pharasma herself visited the valley in her travels as a mortal and was so taken by their hospitality and care that the very next day the valley was filled with vines covered in grapes." He holds up the grape "These very grapes. So I regret that it would be a sign of disrespect to not get at least 8 silver."
He looks at Tayvera with big puppy dog eyes full of sadness that he has to take so much money from her.
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"They are very tasty indeed. Unfortunatly I prefer the white ones. They hold the sweetness better. But they are still very good. I think I would offer 6silver and 6, no 8 copper for the bag, and may Saranrea bless your stand! Also if I pay the full 8 silvers, I might not have enough for the room tonight"
The merchant bows "I could not bare to see a beautiful woman forced into the streets for the want of a raisin. Thank you for your blessing. Take these for 6 silver." He hands you the pouch of Phassa raisins.
The bag peddler stops with a confused look. "did you want to buy a bag?"
Crowbar and sacks, I've got covered. Shovel might not be a bad idea but I can't carry any more. You hear whispered from he back
The Oread felt how the eyes of his companions drifted towards him. "I suppose I could be your Imunas and carry it around, Ayedan."
Ayedan sheepishly says, I'm Sorry! I'm not trying to turn you into a mule. It was just a comment on what I've got on me.
"I would suggets we not overlook the small things," Satati puts in. "Chalk, for one. If these tombs are like mazes, chalk or something else to make markings will be most useful. Something with which to make rubbings... some form of powder to search for cracks or secret doors..."
I have gold I can contribute. At this Ayedan slips his hand in his pouch and pulls out 10 gold.
As your team continues to explore the market you hear the noise of the market quite. At the stage you hear the blast of trumpets. Your team heads toward the stage along with many other groups in order to get your assignments. The crowds part in order to let you through excite to see the adventurers. There are a few not as excited. A woman in a beautiful black silk dress and her hulking oafish companion who tried to join yesterday with just the two of them. She had dragged a priest over his table when he refused to let some noble women and her pet play at being adventurers. The guard had to draw their swords before she let him go. Her and oaf watch with smug contempt as the adventurers pass. A group of men in red watch all the groups, making wagers which of you will make it out alive.
Then you are passed and reach the front of the stage with the other groups. The High Priestess Sebti stands up and address all of you...
"Welcome to the third annual opening of the Necropolis."
"Although some of you have requested specific sites to explore," She looks at One team lead by a woman in a wide floppy hat with a purple feather coming out of it as she says this. "We will trust in Pharasma to guide us. The Lady of Graves is a far better judge of destiny than we of this mortal sphere. The gates of the necropolis are now open. Upon receiving your site you will proceed the the gate. I warn you to finish your site and leave the necropolis before nightfall. The dead do not like their rest to be disturbed, especially at night."
There are a few laughs at this.
"Fear not, the gates will remain open and guards will be standing by at the holy sites until the sun sets so you have nothing to fear."
"Pharasma watches you. Let three simple rules guide you! One. Remember How This Came to Pass. The plague of madness was released by infighting among factions within the city. The necropolis remains a holy place, and those who engage in needless conflict and banditry are not only criminals, but accursed." She pauses to let this sink in looking at all of the assembled adventurers and you can only wonder if there are some adventurers that might resort to stealing the finds of other groups.
"Every Slave's Hut Is a Memorial: Every building within the necropolis is a testament to the people who lived and died in the city. You will not desecrate or vandalize the buildings and tombs, but preserve them as the memorials they were intended to be."
"Honor the Departed: The dead should be treated with dignity. If the interred need to be disturbed to recover an antiquity or relic, they should be returned to their resting places carefully, with the respect they deserve.
Failure to comply with these rules can result in expulsion from the necropolis, seizure of recovered valuables and punishment befitting your crimes." Sebti looks at Saleem whose hands rest on the hilt of his scimitars. A grim smile is his only reaction. She nods and looks back over the crowd.
"Let the lottery to begin!"
A cheer raises up as two acolytes raise from their chairs and move over to their respective urns.
Sebti's hands raise for quiet once more. "Each of your groups will get three sites to explore. Every day we will draw forth a tile from the urn on the right and a tube from the urn on the left. Each tile has a group's insignias, and each tube contains a map of a location. Thus will each group be matched to a location."
With this she motions for the acolytes to begin. One by one a tile and tube are drawn forth. The tubes are passed down to each of the parties. There are no symbols or other markings to let you know what lies within each tube.
The first three tiles go to:
The Tome Raiders, a rather eclectic team of adventurers lead by the floppy hatted women with a sword,
The next goes to The Flea Bites, a team of halflings riding war dogs
The one after that goes to and The Sand Scorpions, the group of women in leather.
The fourth tile is drawn forth and and Sebti calls out "The chosen of the Elements" The other acolyte retrieves a tube and hands it down to a guard at the front of the stage. The guard steps forward and presents the tube with a slight bow.
"I think a celebration is called for. Let´s return to our inn and drink and eat heartily, because tomorrow morning we explore a tomb"
Askaya clenches his fist in a celebratory manner without any emotions showing on his face. He hadn't been as sure about this lottery as he had made himself out to be, and hearing they were in was most pleasant news. "Kaluto, brothers and sisters! Onwards! And do remember the three rules given to us. I will not willingly take upon my shoulders the scorn of Pharasma. Now, let us do as Faffnyr says. Anyone up for some fermented goat milk?"
Inside the map case is a crude map of the necropolis and the location of the tomb. It's simple but shows where you need to go.
The Halflings are the first to go charging out the market for the avenue to the necropolis. Their lances dropped as if already charging the enemy.
The Sand Scorpions spend some time with the map. They are arguing about having enough time to get the rest of their supplies and finish the manor before they lock the gates.
The Tome Raiders take their map and tear the case open to get to the map. Their leader curses and crumples up the map and shoves it into the hands of their youngest member before storming off with her team in tow.
"Folks. We are supposed to go now. Move it, we are wasting daylight!" With a pumping motion Faffnyr animates everyone to get to their site.
The Oread lumbers behind his spirited companions. They seem to be on fire, but while Askaya is excited, he lacks the Ifrit temperament of his brother and sister. "Show some patience, because the perils and challenges the tomb will present us with will most certainly demand just that."
At last we can get away from all these people. Ayedan then drops in behind whoever is leading the way.
"The Tomb of Akhanlepi?" Satati muses. As she walks, leading the group aside Faffnyr, she searches her memory for any mentions of the name. Perhaps their tomb's host had been a religious figure...
Satati thinks back on the name and cannot remember such a name in her religious reading.
The walk through the city is quick as the avenue leading up to the gate is clear of traffic. All along the sides of the street you see people watching you. You have the feeling of being at a parade but this time you are the attraction. The air is full of dust. The dust storm yesterday hs left the city in a hazy red fog. A fine grit fills the air as you continue. The dust drops visibility to less than a hundred feet.
Ahead you see the wall of the necropolis raise up. The ancient looking stone is pitted and weather worn. A spiral of Pharasma is embossed on the mantle stone above the gate. A single priest dressed in red and holding a long scroll stands guard. He looks nervous. He keeps looking back into the interior of the necropolis as if expecting something to come scurrying out of the dust. He glares as if his glaze alone could propel you through the gate instantly.
As you walk up to him and stand there in the gateway to the interior you are overcome with a sense of gloom and silence from the space beyond the gate.
Priest
He moves to block your path and raises his hand to halt you. He is stiff and formal and holds his head high a wired beard pointing at you.
"Present your map and case and state the name of your team, mmmm... thank you!"
He takes your name and looks over the scroll checking off your names.
Behind him you get a glimpse at the city beyond. Ruined buildings and drifts of sand. Complete silence only made worse by the dust. The dust also creates deep shadows that hides the interiors of the buildings beyond.
He finishes his list and looks back up
Priest
"Mmmm.... thank you. You may now proceed, mmmm..... but know this. At sundown the gate closes. It will not open again mmmm..... till the sun raises."
With that he lets you pass into the...
Askaya gives the man a firm nod and then marches past him. Sand shifts underneath his feet and a moment of vivid transience overwhelmed the Oread, so impressed is he by that what surrounds him. He snorts and addresses Tayvara,"Lead the way, fire-kissed daughter, glory awaits us."
On the other side of the gate is a wide square with a black obelisk in the center. surrounding it are several tall buildings. Their ground floors are choked with sand dunes. Between the building you can see roads heading deeper into the interior.
One to the north that swings around the buildings and takes a longer route along the wall. Probably about an hour working through the sand choked streets
The one to the east goes along the area marked with skulls. A more direct route but you are closer to the area marked as dangerous. this route is about half hour to get to the tomb.
With the priest left behind you are now alone and on your own. What do you do from here?
We should move with all haste to our dig site, but stay on the safe path.
Faffnyr sees the Oread nod his approval. "He who knows the path does not dwell from it. Let us stay on the safe path, yes. But first, should we examine the obelisk? Since we are bathing in the history of Wati, it might be wise to do so."
Satati flexes her toes, feeling the sand sift between them, as she walks to the black obelisk, looking it over. A faint show of wonderment and curiosity flickers across her face.
"I understand your wonder. But, the obelisk will be here tomorrow. But we have one day to explore the tomb! I prefer to have all the time in the tomb"
The obelisk is a twenty foot tall black stone. Inscribed on it are scriptures from the Word of Pharasma. It is written in Osirioni. It welcomes the dead and tells the grieving that their loved ones are in Pharasma's embrace. Oddly enough it's the only thing not covered in dust from the sand storm.
As Ayedan walks through the gate, you see a whirlwind of dust starts surrounding him, as you've seen in the past whenever Ayedan is expecting trouble. I agree, the northern route is best.
Same
The team focuses on safety and takes the path along the wall. The houses and buildings all around loom in the haze of the dust. The windows are block and the doorways are choked with sand. Occasionally you see bones poking out of the sand.
The middle of the street provides the fastest movement.
Twenty minutes along you encounter shrines made of bones. woven intricately with wire they form spirals to Pharasma and there are even shrines to Ra and even Anubus. Out of the gloom you see a white haired priest of Pharasma wearing a big sunday hat carrying a basket of bones. He waves. "Hey folks you're making good time. First group I saw today. It's pretty quiet so keep on going you'll be fine!" He picks up a skeletal hand from his basket and waves it at you as you pass on. He doesn't seem all there in the head as he wanders off scratching his ass with the skeletal hand.
It's ten minutes more when you hear a berserker cry and the barking of dog then a tremendous crash that sounds like someone charged a wall. It is off in the gloom and echoes through the building so it is hard to place it. There is no more sounds after the crash.
The last half hour of the trip is quiet.
Ahead sits a massive black beetle, easily fifty feet tall. It's an immense mausoleum to the dead city, it is an easy landmark to find from anywhere in the city. It isn't your site but from the map you know it sits just below it.
The party continues through the streets until the tall iron fence that surrounds the graveyard appears out of the dusty gloom. After a short walk you find two ornate columns that mark the gateway. The actual gate is gone. The torn out and mangled gates sit 15 feet inside the graveyard. It's as if something big smashed through them.
The graveyard itself is full of short slabs, some fallen over. Many are half buried. In the center of the grave yard a dozen yards from you sits the tomb…
Roll perception and let me know what you want to do.
Ayedan takes a look around, paying particular attention to the gate trying to see if it was moved recently or if there are any footsteps in the fresh sands.
Ayedan looks over the gate. The smashed hinges were are still unrusted or even dirty. It was probably done in the past couple of hours. The sand is stirred up as if something ran through it but he can't tell what it was that came through. The tracks go off into the graveyard toward the wall that runs along the back half.
After muttering a brief prayer at the obelisk, Satati continues on with the others. She gives the priest a small wave, a confused frown flitting across her face for a moment as he scratches himself with the hand.
The cry of the dog startles her, and she flips her spear into position. After a moment, she relaxes, following the rest of the group to the tomb.
She walks over to the entrance, looking it up and down, inspecting it for any signs of entry - or traps.
Satati takes a look at the gate. It definitely looks like it was recently smashed in. Something with a lot of weight behind it smashed open the gate like a battering ram. She catch sight of a scrap of black silk stuck to the gate. It almost looks like a piece of an expensive dress caught on the gate when someone squeezed passed. The sand shows a bunch of prints. One set goes off toward the tomb while two others go off over the dunes into the graveyard toward the wall.
Ayedan stands with a frown on his face. Something recently knocked this down and went into the graveyard toward the back wall. I'm curious but that is not our job today. The tomb is. Do we check it out or go into the tomb? Ayedan has his bow out and ready as there is a lot of open space in this area.
"We shouldn't get involved. The Pharasmites will punish whoever did this. Let us move." Unlike Ayedan, Askaya doesn't spot any obvious threats and keeps his sword sheathed. It is day time, the dead are sleeping and their destination is in sight.
"I agree. My blood boils in eagerness. I think there is our tomb let us clean the entrance of debris and then move in!"
Faffnyr continues up to the tomb. It is a rectangular box of stone with dead palm trees sitting at each corner. The side facing him is carved in the likeness of an Osirian man dressed in ancient padded armor upon a chariot. On one side of the doors is the Osirian man upon his chariot with spear in hand and on the other side are three leaping lions.
Above all of this are words written in Osiriani. The name Akhentepi and the date 2416 AR to 2488 AR.
There are two 10' tall doors. The seams are covered in clay though some of it has crumbled away. There are no obvious hinges or handles. The biggest problem is that the doors are half covered in sand. It means hours of digging to clear the entrance.