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As Paeter reaches the middle of the chamber, some of the displays come to life and slowly come forward with the clear intention of attacking you!
One is a withered, mummified thing from beneath Osirion’s sands bearing a jeweled scarab on its chest among its spiced wrappings, a scarab seer and warrior-priest of an old Pharaonic age named Taltuma-Matl. (White)
Another is a hulking skeleton, a towering ancestor of the Kellid race who wields a greatclub fashioned from a mammoth’s ivory tusk. (Red)
The third is a shrunken, emaciated corpse wrapped in rotten silks, and holding a silvered Qadiran scimitar in its bony fists. (Blue)
The fourth is an armored warrior of a long-dead empire, clad in heavy discolored bronze plates and helm. (Green)
Round 1 (bold may act)
Paeter
Titian
Green
Falco
Red+White
Jonah
Blue
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As Titian and Paeter stand their ground and prepare themselves from the incoming battle, the old skeleton on Titian's left comes closer, takes a hit midway and tries to attack the halfling with his scimitar but misses thanks to the ranger's armor.
Round 1
Paeter
Titian
Green
Falco
Red+White
Jonah
Blue
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Jonah tries to shoot at the last skeleton but is unable to aim well, maybe because of the emotion. The said skeleton comes forward with clear intention to hit Jonah but stops before Paeter as he barely dodges a shield bash from the ranger.
Round 2
Paeter + Titian
Green (S1) [1]
Falco
Red (Z) + White (G)
Jonah
Blue (Dabudee Dabuda) (S2)
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Falco unleashes fire from his palms but while the first dodges most of the fire, the second takes the full blast of it. The ghoul tries to attack Titian thrice but hits once, while the clumsy zombie misses Paeter.
for
Round 2
Paeter + Titian
Green (S1) [3]
Falco
Red (Z) [4] + White (G) [10]
Jonah
Blue (S2)
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After Jonah's channel, Falco shots a force missile that brings the zombie down. Titian directs his blade against the remaining skeleton and shatters it.
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Paeter scans the room quickly, only worried about finding their target. "Let's move through the door over there." he says as he points across the room to the offices.
As he passes the unmoving corpse, he sees that it carries two weapons. He grabs them both and tosses them to Skip. "See if these might be helpful."
As soon as Skip does so, Paeter will open the door and move inside.
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When you are all ready, Paeter approches the door at the bottom of the room. This door to this chamber was once a pane of expensive frosted glass, which now lies in broken shards on the floor.
When you enter, you see several desks that lie overturned, papers in disarray, and chairs smashed to kindling. A sturdy steel cabinet sits against the back wall, its doors much battered and dented. The mist here roils near the floor and ceiling, creating a strange patch of visibility stretching from knee-height to a few feet overhead. The smoky tendrils flow up and down the walls unnaturally and savage visages swirl to life, fanged mouths agape, before dissolving into mist once more.
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Once you all step inside the room, you check the cabinets and tables in the darkness. After a few instants of search, Jonah and Paeter suddenly look at the ceiling for they heard something unusual and they shout a warning to the others. Indeed, you notice just in time two men that drop on Paeter, first to enter the room.
Both of them try to hit him with their slam attacks but both miss.
The two men are dressed like museum clerks but their clothes are bathed in blood and their eyes are completely insane. They grunt as if they were apes.
Round 1 Party's up!
K + Y
Falco
Jonah
Titian
Paeter
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Before moving onwards, Jonah gladly taps the wounded with curative wands, eager to see his cousins in a better shape.
The Desnan priest looks surprised by the turn of events. "Ape men! What are they displaying in museums nowadays indeed. Must be worth a checkout!"
That being said, he casts guidance on Paeter.
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Titian hits hard the first man-ape like, Jonah casts a spell to support Paeter that knocks unconscious the man, hitting with the side of his sword. Falco fires a missile against the remaining man.
The last man ape tries to hit the one that knocked down his colleague but fails.
Round 2
K [5]
Falco
Jonah
Titian
Paeter
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Paeter thinks of the safety of the clerks as he ties them up in their unconscious state with his rope. "We should get them away from the Museum. Perhaps it will cure their... primate affliction."
At the sound of the yell, Paeter bristles with his sword and shield. He cautiously moves to the cabinet and hooks the handle with the tip of his sword, throwing it open.
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A few moments pass before the person stops to scream. He answers to Jonah:
"Errm really? You... you killed them? Are you mad from the mist too? Is it safe?"
His voice seems to be much more calm, now. When you assure him the man-apes are not killed, just unconscious but tied by rope, the door of the cabinet opens and reveals a blubbery scribe. His jowls quaver and shake with terror as he tells you:
"The offices... They suddenly became flooded by a strange mist early this morning! The tendrils of it seemed to down Kadarnik's and Yannis' throat moments before they went stark mad and beat Milgen to a... to a... to a pulp!" he says, designating the two men lying on the floor unconscious.
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The scribe calms down a little bit. "My name is Saldak. Thanks for saving me." he says with a polite nod.
"I believe that the Tik Taan idols are responsible! I smelled something wrong with those hideous monkey-faced things as soon as Lugizar brought them out of his pack. I’ve a nose for trouble, I do! No one ever listens!"
He looks at Falco warily and answers: "I don't know why it didn't affect me... maybe I just have a stronger willpower? It didn't affect Milgen either, but that might not have been a good thing." He is visibly shaken by looking at the bloody mess that remains of Milgen in a corner of the room.
"I am not sure where the idols are. Last I knew, Nigel was taking stock of the pieces in storage in the East Exhibit storage room. You might ask him what he thinks is going on."
"Oh and you might need..." He begins to search one of the desks and produces a parchment-like cloth on which you can see strange writings. The cloth is labelled "Three Tik Taan Idols, courtesy of Lugizar Trantos." "This!" he says, giving the cloth to Falco.
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"Thank you for your help, Saldak. We will try to find Nigel. Watch over your unconscious compatriots after we remove them from the museum." Paeter commands.
Paeter will heft one of the tied up, unconscious men over his shoulder and make his way to the entrance, laying up the man against a wall outside.
Once the captives are outside of the Museum, Paeter will move with the party through the door to the East Exhibit with sword and shield drawn.
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Once the men are put outside the museum, you can tell that Saldak is half-happy and at the same time half-afraid. He's happy to be out of the museum but afraid to remain so close to it. He'll watch the men, though.
When you reach the entrance of the East Exibit hall, you a large placard above the entryway that reads “Hunting the Beasts of Legend” in great block letters. This gigantic chamber is relatively free of mist, and darkness is held at bay by braziers of radiant light. Behemoths occupy these halls, great taxidermy nightmares such as a two-headed bear easily taller than an ogre; a great desiccated beetle, its carapace larger than the face of the clock tower of Absalom’s Clockwork Cathedral; a massive specimen of chimera, its jaws open in a mock roar; and an assembled skeleton of a tyrant lizard. The walls here are studded with strange masks, staves, spears, and other implements of long forgotten cultures, most likely used in ritual hunts of the beasts preserved here.
Taking your attention from the large stuffed creatures, you see a pair of helm-like masks mounted on the wall. The helms begin to crack and move slightly. You have 1 round of actions you can perform at this time.