Olvan nodded. "Well, it all began when Galen first discovered the Cathedral." he explained as he worked on continuing to aid his companions. "The pit we're in now opened when Aroden died, looking like it had always been here - anyone who knows why isn't saying, and I've given up trying to figure it out." the planes were weird that way. "Anyway, he found that it was growing in a perfect replica of Aroden's holy symbol. From what Galen told the rest of us later, he'd been looking for more information here in Aroden's realm at the time, and basically stumbled across it by chance. He had his vision around then and brought in the first shard of Aroden's soul some time later. When he did, this place started to grow faster and he founded our faith in response." Olvan paused for just a moment to gesture at the expansive halls. "The more gems we brought in, the faster this place grew. It's like they were meant to be together, you know? Our tenets are fairly simple - we hope to receive a share of the grace that Aroden offers, and to aid him as best we can in putting the cosmos back to the way it should be. The sooner the Age of Lost Omens ends, the better off everyone will be."
So there had apparently been more gems than she'd originally been tasked with retrieving then, and they'd been with Galen for some time. That had certainly been kept from her. From what he described, it all sounded very convincing, so convincing she would have believed they really were going to bring back Aroden...if she wasn't a goddess in her own right. In fact it all seemed rather convenient from what he told her. But how were the gems and this palace connected?
"Hmm, I see. That is quite the tale. Galen did...mention off hand, there had been some disagreement on how the ritual should proceed. He did not say anything else, could you perhaps elaborate what he meant? It almost sounded like he was talking about a different side of your church." Sevia asked, again feeding him a bit of a lie to see if Olvan could tell her anything about Thangrim and his cohorts. It would sound more suspicious if she mentioned Thangrim had come to her.
"Well, I wouldn't be surprised if people had their own thoughts - I mean, it's not like we have centuries of information and experience to draw upon for this, right?" Olvan said, trying up a bandage and moving on to the next injured member of his team as he continued talking. "As far as I've heard, though, nobody's outright come and said they disagree with the plan - after all, our faith was founded because we thought it would work. It's easy for people to be a bit nervous before an event like this one, but I don't think there's much to it." It didn't seem like he knew much about any other groups within the church.
So that meant any dissent was closed off from the others. Interesting. If she got them to work against each other, in the ensuing chaos she might be able to steal the gems. She did have to be careful though, technically Sevia was an outsider. "Really? That is reassuring of you to say so. Well, I have said I doubted that you could really resurrect Aroden, but if you can then by all means you should. The Age of Lost Omens has had a drastic toll on Golarion. I was merely concerned, what with the great power the gems represented...someone might try to...well, I suppose I need not worry." Sevia shrugged, hoping to plant that little seed of suspicion.
Bluff:1d20 + 17 ⇒ (6) + 17 = 23DC 20 to convey secret message - "Someone will probably try something at the ceremony"
"By the way, are those stairs off limits? I noticed nobody seemed to go near them." Sevia asked casually.
Olvan narrowed his eyes slightly at your words, but glanced towards the stairs. "Oh, those just go up to the balcony around the ritual site." he explained. "Galen asked everyone to avoid going in there until it's time for things to begin. I don't think it will be too much longer, actually. He just needed to brush up on how Aroden's services are run - it's been a long time. Still, I think there are a few reasonable security measures we could take..." He finishes bandaging the wounded and stands up. "Best to get to that, I think. We've worked too hard to throw everything away now."
Unless stopped, it looked like he was getting ready to head further into the complex and see about making the event safer.
"Of course. Thank you for your time, I think I will stick around here and talk with a few others." Sevia told Olvan, which was sort of true. It didn't really look like there was anywhere here where she could just disappear, and if she was gone for long they would probably start getting suspicious of where she left. Watching Olvan leave, Sevia quietly called for Epyon, holding her familiar out of sight inside her cloak and turning around. There was nowhere she could cast while hidden, but she could at least conceal the Invisibility spell she was casting on Epyon.
Stealh:1d20 + 23 ⇒ (11) + 23 = 34To conceal/avoid having noticed the spell I'm casting.
"Go. Follow Olvan, see what he's doing, explore the rest of the place if he finishes. Then report back to me within seven minutes." She hurriedly whispered to her now unseen familiar, then releasing him to follow Olvan as the man was just leaving the common area.
This is all assuming I can cast without raising a fuss/hide my spell, if it would/I can't then I won't and I'll repost or something. Should I make posts for Epyon as he follows Olvan?
It doesn't take long until Epyon returns, detailing Olvan's encounter with Galen. It sounds like they're planning to require everyone to leave their weapons in a secure locker before allowing them into the hall. Unbound by the injunction against traveling further in, Epyon was able to fly through the main hall, where an ornate crystalline network seems to have grown from the very ground itself, centered around a number of receptacles patterned after Aroden's holy symbol. The ritual has yet to begin, but already, the network seems to have magical power running through it - this seems like an intended part of the design, as far as Epyon can tell.
This is visible on the map as the brown dotted design in room 6 that looks like an arrow pointing to the right.
Shortly after Epyon returns, a loud, ringing bell can be heard - it seems like it's time for the ritual to begin. If there are any last-minute preparations to make before you head inside, well... this is the last minute in question.
'Time already?' Sevia thought curiously, thanking Epyon for his report and asking him to hide again in her backpack until it was time for him to act again. "When I give the signal, I want you to collect as many of the gems from the lattice as possible." Sevia ordered, renewing her Invisibility spell on him, as well as casting See Invisibility for herself. Both so that she could keep track of him, and just in case any of the cultists might use it. Additionally, she cast Shield, Anticipate Peril, and Message on herself as well. That way she could communicate secretly to Thangrim and Olvan at the start of the ceremony. She'd also try hiding Shadow Stryker on herself as well, since none of them knew she fought with two swords it might be plausible for them to accept her off hand weapon as her primary means of attack.
Take 10 sleight of hand to conceal two starknives in my wrist sheaths and Stryker on my body DC 29 for the former 25 for the latter. I'm not sure if I need to conceal an alchemist fire, but I definitely want to make sure I have one. If there's an issue with Epyon carrying more than 2 stones, I'll tie a pouch to his leg for him to store them in before I cast Invisibility on him
With those preparations out of the way, she returned to the main hallway to figure out just what was going on. As she did, she began concentrating on her Detect Evil spell just to check if there was anyone she shouldn't trust.
Full HP 0/8 1st spells 1/8 2nd spells 2/5 3rd spells 4/9 ki 2/7 mythic
A number of people are already inside the main hall by the time you arrive - it did take a little while to cast all of those spells - and you can see that quite a few weapons have been deposited in a secure-looking footlocker that they dragged out from somewhere. Somewhat more worrying, however, was the presence of several evil auras - including, passing just ahead of you as he went in, Sir Thangrim. Just as powerful as his aura was someone you hadn't talked to, a middle-aged human wizard.
In a way, this might not have been too surprising - as a Lawful Neutral deity, Aroden had both good and evil worshipers, and it may have been more unusual if there weren't a few of them around. Olvan - who you also managed to catch with detect evil, didn't register as such.
Most people were being routed up to the balconies, and the guard looked you over...
...but didn't seem to find anything you'd hidden on your body, and waved you up the western stairs.
Assuming you're going up, ignore if not:
This balcony overlooks the main room of the temple, allowing spectators to watch ceremonies below. Below, you can see the room known as 'The Great Eye'. This is clearly the central worship chamber of the cathedral — a great vaulted room, domed with crystal and admitting a green-golden light, with balconies (where you are) overlooking the main floor.
The symbol of Aroden is painted on the dome above, mirroring a mosaic laid out on the floor below that seems to be part of the system Eypon saw. Rows of pews are pushed back to the rear of the room. An altar on a dais is at the far end of the room, with a large, old tapestry showing Aroden covering the wall. Suspended from the ceiling is an orrery tracking the Outer Sphere, Inner Sphere, various godly icons, and other unrecognizable things, and just by looking at it you can see that it seems to have moved into a rare alignment. You've seen such devices in ages past, but while Aroden's place is obviously missing, there's nothing where your icon should have been.
That bumped up her suspicion of Thangrim a great deal, but as far as she had been able to tell he hadn't been lying to her. Would he take the gems for himself once he had them? Well...that wouldn't be at all a bad result, she get get them back from him later. And if she pitted Olvan against him, it might cause enough chaos to disrupt the ceremony. After removing some of her armaments for the guard, she was pleased he didn't seem to be able to locate any of her hidden weapons.
Walking up the stairs, she took a moment to look at the entire room, especially the orrery. Again, it did somewhat upset her that her symbol was not present, but that was to be expected. She also looked around at the various cultists, trying to gauge what any were doing. She focuses particularly on Thangrim, Olvan, and that human wizard she'd seen. "Epyon, when I hand you this alchemist fire, I want you to fly out and drop it in the center of the lattic - do not hit any of the gems. Then take cover behind the altar." Sevia told her familiar in the quaint gibberish that made up their communication - which nobody but her and him would be able to understand if they heard her. Next, she pointed her finger at Thangrim.
By the way, Epyon's max carrying capacity is 60lbs, and any bag I give him is invisible along with him, so he can put gems in the bag and carry them all up to 60lbs worth
"Thangrim, when I give you the word. I want you to close your eyes and look away from the ceremony, if you could stand behind something that would be even better. Let me know if there is anyone else aligned with you, otherwise they will be blinded by the...distraction." Sevia said, hinting vaguely towards what she was going to do. "By the way, if you are thinking of trying to steal those gems for your own purposes - it will not turn out well for you. We can discuss that more after this is all settled though." She added somewhat menacingly, then took the time to warn up to three of Thangrim's associates he pointed out, but not all of them. Couldn't have this fight be too one sided.
Intimidate:1d20 + 17 ⇒ (9) + 17 = 26
Next was Olvan, she needed to warn him so that he could really turn this into a chaotic mess. But she needed to also wait long enough that he couldn't stop the ceremony prematurely and soon enough that she could 'explain' what was going to happen.
I would like to make use of the time before the ceremony starts to talk with Thangrim if he's got anything to say, as well as consider any other information from my knowledge or perception checks. A few rounds before the ceremony starts I'm going to use Ki to go invisible and replace myself with a SLA silent image
"I don't want or need the gems." Thangrim replied via the message spell, seeming slightly offended at the notion. He did note a few more people on his side, though, gathered close to him up in the balconies.
Olvan was on the far side of the room, waiting by the altar in the lower chamber. Thangrim was up in the balconies, but on the southwestern side of the area, while the wizard you'd seen had moved to the northeastern side of the balconies along with a number of the church's other members. The lower hall was mostly empty, and the bell rang again, signaling the start of the ceremony... and distracting everyone enough that turning invisible and replacing yourself with an image was easy.
Galen came out of the back room a moment later, dressed splendidly in the full robes of a high priest of Aroden, and he was followed by four muscular men carrying a heavy-looking iron chest. Chants praising Aroden filled the air as the high priest slowly circled the lattice, stopping at each spot and filling it with a gem. Lines of green-and-gold energy connected connected each one as it was placed within the field, criss-crossing between them, and Galen - followed by those toting the case - returned to the altar before raising his hands and beginning an invocation to Aroden.
Sevia left her reply unspoken, she wasn't sure if she could take Thangrim at face value, but maybe he was less sinister then he seemed? Well, it was too late to alter her plan anyways, but she wished she could've learned a bit more about these cultists before then. As the bell rung, she enacted the first step of her plan - replacing herself with an image and recasting Message, targeting Olvan.
"Olvan. This is Sevia, do not make any sudden moves! They might be watching you, you can see me over in the balcony in the southeast." She had her silent image move slightly to draw attention to it. In truth, she had slipped down to the floor below and was now positioned near the eastern gem slots.
Climb:1d20 + 8 ⇒ (5) + 8 = 13To climb down the balcony, DC 10. If I can't climb I'll just jump down +12 to the roll.
"I am reassured that you got my warning, when you left earlier I overheard that knight in the southwest balcony talking with someone else - I think the wizard in the northeast balcony, I did not get a good look at his face. They were speaking about the soul gems. They are planning on doing something with the gems, maybe steal them - or take control of the ceremony. They were speaking in code, but I caught some of what they were saying." Quite the lie, but she was good at that sort of thing. Even if he didn't believe her though, it was too late to do anything about it but follow her instructions.
Bluff:1d20 + 17 ⇒ (16) + 17 = 33
"When I give you the signal, I want you to close your eyes and look away from the lattice, I will cast a spell that should disable them and give you time to protect the ceremony. Nod to two or three people you can trust, I will share the signal with them." Sevia said, watching where Olvan indicated, if he did, and then pointing to them as well and informing them that they needed to look away from the ceremony when she told them to so that they could defend it from 'opportunists' with Olvan. As she was finishing, Galen seemed to have finally placed the last of the gems in the lattice and returned to the potium. Plan in place, she removed the Alchemist's fire from her body and handed it to Epyon, watching the bird fly out to the middle of the lattice. As he did, she pointed back to Thangrim and his three associates, putting them into the loop of her Message spell as well as Olvan and two of his followers.
"Get ready." She told them as Epyon dropped his payload between the two middle most gems, the alchemical fire bursting harmlessly into a ball of flame that scorched the ground a little, her bird making a beeline behind Galen's podium just as she gave the signal. The flame itself was more shocking by its presence than apparent power, and her unwitting pawns might have been disappointed if not for what came next. "Now!" she whispered as loud as she could, reaching into her mythic power and pointing to the open fire source - casting Pyrotechnics on it.
DC 20 will save negates from everyone except the people Sevia warned to look away and her familiar - failure means blindness for...
Rounds:1d4 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 1 = 4No additional saves
Immediately, the flame burst into a dazzling explosion of fireworks and flame, though not harmful completely overwhelmed the light of the cathedral for a brief moment.
Will Save:1d20 + 19 ⇒ (18) + 19 = 37
Initiative:1d20 + 22 ⇒ (17) + 22 = 39
Having weathered her own spell, and briefly become visible again, Sevia then cast Invisibility on herself - hiding once more during the moment of explosive fireworks as she advanced towards the lattice and the northeastern gems. The beauty of it all was that her unwitting cohorts were all looking away and would never be able to tell that she had warned both sides.
Olvan's men began to make their move the moment after the pyrotechnics spell went off, but screams filled the cathedral a moment later - as you moved towards the northeastern gems, an arrow shot through the air from the eastern balconies and slammed into Galen's chest.
Fortitude (DC 17):1d20 + 13 ⇒ (5) + 13 = 18
The head priest staggered (but recovered), and most of the priesthood had been blinded, but a few of them looked like they'd managed to overcome the lights and react based on their own designs. Meanwhile, the energies within the lattice continued to grow in power, even as several men jumped over both the western and eastern balconies. Several of them appeared to be doing it entirely blind, and at least two of them looked like they'd broken their legs in the attempt, their screams adding to the noise within the room.
However, nobody was reacting fast enough to stop you from moving again before they could do something else.
'Eastern balconies? That wizard and his cronies must be up to something then!' Sevia wondered, as she looked over the lattice. 'Nothing to do but suck it up and grab as many as possible!' She thought to herself as she removed the northeastern-most gem, then moved toward the set of other four, counting on Thangrim to get the western ones. If she grabbed as many as possible, hopefully she could bring the lattice below its necessary threshold and stop the ceremony - though she prayed it didn't result in an explosion.
Epyon meanwhile flew out from behind the pew to the southern gems and removed one of them as well.
I'm assuming it's a standard action to remove each gem?
Yes, it's a standard action to remove a gem from the lattice.
As you reached for the first of the gems, a sphere of energy appears in the air above the lattice, shifting slightly as you wrestle the gem out of its socket... and the purpose of the design becomes more clear. The positions of the gems seem to represent alignment influences, with pure law (in the west) holding the strongest influence at the start.
As Thangrim's men moved, however, a bolt of fire - apparently a Scorching Ray spell - shot down from the eastern balconies and crashed into one of the gems on the western side. The gem promptly exploded, the wave of force damaging the gems closest to it and throwing two of Thangrim's men backwards. Seventeen gems remained in the lattice, with one destroyed and two removed thus far, and shouts from other men suggested that they planned to destroy more, even as others were moving in to try and protect the gems... rather ineffectually, since most of them were blinded and would still be for several seconds more.
Would you like to continue removing gems, or do something else?
"Oh hell, someone's trying to destroy the gems?! I'll deal with him! Protect the rest." Sevia whispered to the other people in her message spell. Christ she hadn't expected that. Was that wizard insane? She removed another Eastern gem, giving her two, and then began running toward the balcony. It wasn't that far up, she could make that jump and pull herself up.
Acrobatics:1d20 + 32 ⇒ (19) + 32 = 51wow holy crap. I jump 13 feet in the air, and whatever else amount of space my natural reach is. Do I even need to pull myself up?
Climb:1d20 + 8 ⇒ (11) + 8 = 19
As she finally got up on the railing she kept moving forward, running towards wherever the wizard was as she drew her sword. After locating him, she attacked.
Epyon meanwhile, stowed the first gem he'd acquired into the bag Sevia had tied onto his leg, and moved over to the next closest gem - removing that one as well.
I think we can call that a success for getting up with ease. XD
Two gems seemed to be about the limit Epyon could manage, even with the bag - and your assault on the wizard easily went through, cutting deep into his flesh a moment before he sent out another ray of fire towards the gems.
He sent the bolt of flames towards you instead, casting from a wand instead of by memory. "Get out of my way!" the wizard bellowed.
Scorching Ray:1d20 + 14 ⇒ (5) + 14 = 19
Rather unfortunately for him, the spell completely missed you despite the close range. Meanwhile, energy continued to crackle within the sphere down below as the ritual seemed to take on a life of its own and something began to appear in its depths. On the floor below, the members of the church seemed to have organized into three groups - Galen and Olvan's people, who seemed to be protecting the north, Tarngrim's people, who were moving around to the east, and what seemed to be the wizard's people, who looked intent on smashing every gem they could get to... but were being held back as Tarngrim's people intercepted them. Shouts, battle cries, and magic filled the cathedral as the two sides traded blows, but at least for the moment, it wasn't at all clear who was winning.
At the wizard pointed his want at her, Sevia attacked back, not allowing him any leeway to cast and pressing forward. Though his spell seemed poorly aimed anyways.
AoO:1d20 + 18 ⇒ (14) + 18 = 32 vs AC Damage:1d6 + 10 ⇒ (1) + 10 = 11
"Are you crazy! Do you realize what destroying those gems would do?!" Sevia shouted back as she continued attacking him. She needed to kill him immediately and get down there to make sure no more gems were harmed! Meanwhile, Epyon - laden down with the two gems he had, flew up towards Sevia intent on offloading them to her.
Not sure if that killed him. If it does, Sevia takes a move to grab the gems from Epyon and will send him down to the lattice next round to keep collecting
Attack:1d20 + 13 ⇒ (12) + 13 = 25 vs AC Damage:1d6 + 10 ⇒ (2) + 10 = 12
My iterative if he's still up, which will be followed by a Ki attack if he doesn't die, otherwise I use my swift to burn a ki for invisibility
I'm fairly sure wands don't provoke - unless I missed an ability of yours that would allow it? If so, I'll need to keep that in mind for balancing future encounters.
The wizard looked hurt, but he didn't fall after your first attack - and then your second caught him right in the chest, before he could reply to your question... and out fell a holy symbol you don't recognize, though iconography of the sun and devils are obvious to your knowledgeable eye. There were reasons wizards were often referred to as 'squishy', and his body crumpled to the ground as a shockwave from the sphere of energy shook the cathedral.
At a certain point of acrobatic skill, even violent upheavals posed little problem, though most of the people down below were tossed up and down like ragdolls. Within the floating sphere, thick silver tendrils seemed to have wrapped around whatever was forming, while along their side could be seen more than a dozen blue circles that might have been eyes. Whatever was forming there wasn't radiating as evil, though it was probably a good thing you couldn't detect whatever it was giving off, given the amount of energy still flowing through the lattice and pumping into the still-growing sphere. At this point in its development, only one other thing was certain: that definitely wasn't Aroden.
Epyon managed to pass over the two gems a moment later, clearly trying to protect them from further damage. Most of the screams below were of pure panic now, but Galen could be seen staggering towards some of the remaining gems on the western side despite the blood seeping down from his wound. "Oh divine one... protect us! We will never lose faith!" he managed to cry out, raising his holy symbol high even as every single one of the blue circles turned towards him in response to his words. Behind him, one of the men who seemed to be working for the wizard crept forward, a jagged-edged knife held in one hand. At this distance, it was possible (if only just) for you to intercept him in melee (or at range, of course, which was arguably easier - he was sixty feet away). It was also possible to further interfere with the ritual, or simply run away with your collected gems rather than risking them in the fighting... or do anything else you chose.
This is not an alignment-affecting decision, given the ease with which it could be argued in any direction.
No you're right, that's my mistake, still it wasn't a lot of damage done anyways
Sevia dragged her blade from the man's body as he crumpled to the ground, his heart cleanly pierced. She didn't know what his goal had been, but it was better off that it hadn't come to fruition. Hey eyes widened as she suddenly felt the entire cathedral rock under the force of the quake. Turning to...whatever was forming in the lattice.
She...could not have predicted that. At all. But she knew it wasn't Aroden, and she didn't know if she should...try to stop it from forming. At least it wasn't evil. She had four of the gems, that was more than the Keeper had even asked for. But she couldn't just leave. Using her last bit of mythic power, Sevia lept down from the balcony and charged the would-be assassin.
Fleet Charge:1d20 + 24 ⇒ (1) + 24 = 25 vs AC really? Attack:1d20 + 22 ⇒ (3) + 22 = 25 vs AC Damage:1d6 + 10 ⇒ (5) + 10 = 15 Attack:1d20 + 17 ⇒ (1) + 17 = 18 vs AC nope again
Yet, as she barreled down on him, her hastily swung blade merely nicked the stone next to him. But she swung twice more, at least one blade hopefully finding its mark against her prone opponent.
"Galen! Stop this madness! That is clearly not Aroden! I knew Aroden, I watched his ascension! He never would have wanted this! Pull the soul gems out before it's too late!" Sevia called out desperately, hoping she could convince Galen, and anyone else listening - to remove the soul gems and end the ceremony.
At least one of the attacks managed to strike the man, despite what was either atrociously bad luck or simply trying to do too many things at once. Still, it was enough to stop him from stabbing Galen in the back. Even as the priest turned to look at you, the growing sphere of energy shattered and every soul gem in the lattice went dark. Those you'd managed to retrieve pulsed a moment later, and the concentrated belief of the souls that had created the gems poured into you.
For gods, belief - in any form - was power. Galen's unwavering dedication and heartfelt prayer, the concentrated essence of the gems, the power of the ceremony, and your own actions in responding to his prayer all combined in one moment... and renewed power surged through your body as another barrier on your return to godhood broke.
You've reached Mythic Tier 3 and may upgrade immediately. Your uses of mythic power have been fully restored.
The silver tendrils whipped backwards, somehow shrinking or pulling back, until finally a surprisingly petite figure, about six inches shorter than you, dropped down and landed on the platform before looking down and around the area. "...Well, this is interesting." she(?) said, glancing down at her hands. The members of the Church of Reborn Glory - from all factions, including the one in melee combat with you - quickly began moving back from her, even as she looked at you... and curtsied. "I'll explain when we're done, because we don't have much time, but would you please come over here? I need your help to stop that." she raised one finger and pointed upwards to where, through the damaged roof of the cathedral, you could see the form of Groetus. The god-moon looked... bigger. The newcomer lowered her hand a moment later and held it out, palm outstretched.
Sevia looked away as the sphere shattered, cringing at the howling as something climactic seemed to be occurring. The gems seemed to have been sucked dry, but the ones she was holding onto suddenly glowed brightly. And then, she felt her body spasm as the massive surge of energy shot into her. Sevia's eyes glowed white and for a second it probably seemed to everyone else she might explode, when everything stopped with a sudden stillness and she nearly collapsed.
As her senses came back to reality, she found herself staring at...a person yet not a person...'Did...did the ceremony just create her' Sevia wondered, looking at what she assumed to be a godling. Her face scrunched up as the girl curtsied...she hadn't been expecting that. "Who-?" she immediately asked, but stopped short as the girl pointed upwards, Sevia following her finger.
"Oh no...Groetus..." That almost shocked her still, but she shook it off. "Right. Whatever you need." Sevia said with steel in her voice as she sheathed her blade and marched forward, her hand sliding into that of the other girl's.
The newcomer firmly gripped your hand, then looked upwards again, focusing on the Harbinger. For just a moment, you could see the universe the way it was - indeed, the way you'd normally been able to see it before your fall. The figure next to you was a paradox of power - both belief and disbelief were mixed within her, and she practically blazed with newfound energy. The problem, which she seemed to recognize, was that she had very little control over that power... and that was where your energy and experience came in. You were mortal now, but countless centuries of manipulating a full god's power weren't easily forgotten, and that was the guidance this newcomer badly needed. As she supplied the power, you were able to shape it to her design, forming the tool needed to send Groetus back to where he belonged. A timeless moment after you'd begun, the air pulsed and a long rifle appeared in her hands. She offered it to you a moment later. "Would you care to do the honors?" she inquired, looking up at the falling god-moon. "Don't worry, it won't destroy him or anything - just kick him back to where he belongs."
It was odd, for a moment she felt whole again. With this small girl supplying the power necessary, she could feel her full divinity again - each acting as a conduit to the other. An old god and a new working in harmony. She probably hadn't felt this connected to another being than when her creation had sprung life from Sarenrae.
And then...the godling conjured the rifle. A long ornate thing that practically radiated power - and at the same time looked wholly unsuited for any practical purpose. Smiling, she received it with both hands "Sure." She looked it over, before kneeling down and aiming straight up into the sky. There wasn't really much need to aim - the target was literally too big to miss. "The world is not yet ready for oblivion Groetus! Not while I still live! Now baaaaack!" She yelled, somewhat unsure whether her message would be convey to him as she pulled the trigger.
As you pulled the trigger, a single bullet shot out of the end of the rifle and towards the moon. It didn't seem to be going any faster than a bullet normally did, but while distance and direction were always strange in the outer planes, pretty much everyone agreed that Groetus was 'above' Pharasma's tower, and those same people acknowledged that said tower was mind-bogglingly tall. That didn't seem to matter here, as the bullet crossed the intervening space anyway and slammed into the moon, pushing it backwards and higher in the planes. The goddess next to you wiped some sweat off of her forehead as she saw things be put back in order. "Whew, that was a bit tighter than any of us were comfortable with." she said as the rifle disappeared. She curtsied once more, a wide smile on her face.
"Thank you for your help. I am Yidhra, the Goddess of Paradoxes." she said politely. "Your assistance there was most appreciated - I'm still getting the hang of this form, and I didn't want to break things. If you have any questions about what just happened, I'll answer them as best I can."
"Agreed." Sevia sighed, standing back up and looking down at this...new goddess? "Hmm...Goddess of Paradoxes? That makes sense...you are a god born from the strength of...non-belief? It is a paradox that reality does not collapse on itself from your very existence." Sevia chuckled morbidly, the world did come a little too close there to ending.
"Allow me to properly introduce myself then Yidhra. I am Sevia, the Goddess of Death. Although at the moment I am merely a mortal." She wasn't exactly whispering, so she was sure that some of the watching cultists might have heard her. "To begin with...were you really born from that ceremony? How much can you remember of it?...It seems like those soul gems were drained during the process though." Sevia said, pointing to the hunks of crystal. "And...how exactly did you force Groetus back?"
"Less 'born' and more 'summoned'." she explained cheerfully. She waved a finger slightly, and the air in a circle around the two of you seemed to ripple slightly - perhaps a barrier blocking sound, given there were some things mortals didn't need to hear discussed. Of course, that wouldn't stop you from explaining it later if you really wanted to... "Actually, summoning my body was the easy part. Most gods aren't very good with non-belief - in fact, that principle is what was used to repel ol' shiny, but the plan was always a lot more precarious than people thought. I mean, what if you didn't have any truly dedicated atheists for awhile? Poof, no more universe." she shook her head sadly.
"It's an insane plan that relied solely on probability theory, so of course I love it, but I came here to help. Pushing big and round back was the easy part - he doesn't do anything as long as a field of disbelief is in his way, which is what the gems used to be shot up for. Those were only temporary, though, because there's a limit to the disbelief of any one mortal when a crazy god is staring them in the face - I've taken over that job and created a permanent field powered by my own energy, so he's not going to fall early. Of course, nothing can stop him when it's actually time for the universe to end, but the long-term futility of my work amuses me."
It was... entirely possible that she was at least somewhat crazy. Rather, it would have been more surprising if she wasn't a bit mad, given her apparent portfolio. It didn't seem to be a malicious madness, though, so at least there was that.
Sevia raised an eyebrow, she...was certainly strange. But in a cute way? "Well, you only saved the universe from an early doom. That is about as good a start as any for a new goddess, regardless of how it all ends. Though, what exactly would your portfolio and domains be?" Sevia seemed to genuinely congratulate her, though somewhat curious of the new? goddess. Then off offhandedly turning to the side and looking back to Galen. "Though that does bring up the question...who was it that inspired Galen to gather these gems? They were never pieces of Aroden's soul - even the very essence of a god cannot grant spells like Galen claimed, and if they were not fragments of Aroden then how did he receive visions of that dead god?" Sevia said with puzzled tone as she gestured to the priest.
"Oh, that." she said. She wiggled a finger and the field around you dropped. She cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted towards the northern wall a moment later. "Don't make me come in there and get you! I'm not mad or anything!"
There was a moment of silence before a serpent-like creature twenty-five feet long teleported into the chamber.
Knowledge (Planes):1d20 + 12 ⇒ (17) + 12 = 29
It took you only a moment to identify the creature as a Keketar, one of the ruling caste of the Protean race - and the sworn enemy of all of Axis. Yidhra hopped through the air and flipped over, doing a hand-stand on the creature's head as she came down. "You're fun - I might keep you." the Goddess of Paradoxes said, grinning widely. "Now tell the nice mortals what you did, okay?"
Rather than looking upset, the Protean laughed. "Why not?" it mused, snake-like tongue flicking out. "I thank you all for your participation in my little game." it said, bowing towards the members of the church. "Your visions were illusions of mine, and your divine magic was nothing but the power of the gems redirected into you - 'twas why you could never cast when too far from them. I simply sought to bring a little more chaos to the cosmos, and I must say, it worked out rather splendidly, since you did most of the work for this yourselves." the priests - and especially Galen - looked stunned at the Protean's claims, and the creature smiled even wider. "Perhaps we shall see each other again someday, perhaps not. Either way, the Malestrom will eventually return all to proper chaos." Its tongue flicked out again as it glanced towards you. "As for you... I'm not entirely sure who or what you are, but I suspect your mere existence will contribute greater chaos within the universe. As such, I wish you the best of luck in your endeavors." It bowed to you this time, a little more deeply than it had to the others, though the effect was marred by the young(?) goddess still posing on its head. "Does that adequately answer your questions?"
This...was...typical. 'Truly, they belonged to each other' Sevia thought, somewhat morbidly realizing that the universe had almost ended just so this protean could have a little fun. "You...put the entire universe at stake for...for a game? Even if for the greater good-" Sevia clearly was using the word sarcastically "-of chaos, the premature descent of Groetus would've consigned all the planes not even to chaos itself, just, just...nothing!" Sevia pinched the bridge of her nost to calm herself. "Of all the utterly foolish and...oh, what am I saying? Trying to argue against the nature of a protean is like..." Sevia just...simply ran out of words at that point. Well, originally she had a similar perspective after all, she'd been fairly chaotic in the beginning; but not to the extent of the protean though, in fact - her alignment had bounced quite around over the ages.
"Well...I suppose it had all worked out in the end, hells the universe is probably better off with this...fountain of contradiction protecting it from Groetus, which is contradictory even in of itself. I am not sure whether to be complimented or offended to have the goodwill of a protean though..." Though, the protean never could have noticed the subtle shift in her alignment brought about by the surge of power which had coursed through her a moment earlier - the product of her non-detection spell. This ceremony clearly at least had a profound affect on her. She had no doubt though that her eventual reascension would put the pantheon into chaos for some time, at which point he would cackle with glee.
Well. That answers all but one of my questions then...What will you do now?" Sevia asked somewhat tiredly, clearly more mentally exhausted than physically.
The serpent-creature just chuckled. "We are what we are. For now, though, I think I'll simply watch the ensuing chaos - I suspect the Godmind will have a meeting about this, and I'm curious to see what kind of logic they'll compare to the very essence of paradoxes. Reason has limits - chaos does not." It raised one hand, but paused and winked at you. "Should you ever want to find me, ask for Song of Poison." The protean vanished, and Yidhra remained balanced in the air for a moment. It was only when she looked down in surprise that gravity took over, and she spun around to land on her feet.
"Aww... well, maybe I'll find him later." she said, sighing in disappointment. "I should probably get ready to meet everyone, though. They're going to be asking questions about what happened here, and I'll see if I can keep them too confused to worry about you until you're ready to get their attention again. You can contact me through the usual methods." With that, she whirled around... and tripped, falling flat on her face. "...YOU SAW NOTHING." Yidhra, too, vanished... and the magical pressure within the cathedral instantly lightened, even as the members of Aroden's faith just looked... lost. Everything they'd planned, bled, and in some cases died for had come crashing down in just a few minutes of madness, and it was clear most of them had no idea what to do next.
Sevia harrumphed and rolled her eyes as the protean teleported away, clearly annoyed by its interference. Though, she'd keep his name in mind. It always payed to have strong allies to call on. She turned to Yidhra next, marveling somewhat at her...ignorance of the laws of physics. Sevia bade her thanks to the petite goddess for her promise to...confuse the pantheon, which again seemed paradoxially impossible yet completely certain. She was more surprised when Yidhra tripped and burst out laughing for the first time in a long while.
"How interesting that one..." Sevia muttered to herself as she wiped a tear away. Then, straightening herself out, she turned around and walked over to Galen, looking the cleric over. This was probably devastating for him. "I tried to tell you Galen. I did not know of the protean, but perhaps if I had been given the time I could have uncovered his hiding place. I knew though those gems were not Aroden's soul...I hope this...experience has helped you to understand where blind faith can lead. And, for what it is worth...I am sorry things turned out this way, I admired your dedication nevertheless, I too have experienced some of that pain of yours. That was why I tried to be diplomatic...At least the whole universe did not end for this folly." Sevia extended a hand to him sympathetically, offering to help the poor man up. "If...you have questions, I will answer them as best I can." she offered.
"Age of... lost omens... indeed." he whispered hoarsely, wincing as he pressed a hand against his arrow wound. By this point, a number of the church's followers had fled, and those who'd survived no longer seemed interested in doctrinal differences. His other hand shook as he stared into your eyes... and it took no effort to see the fear within them. "What... what are we supposed to do when the universe is broken and can't be fixed?" he whispered.
"Nothing. When it is our time to go...it is our time." Sevia said grimly, remembering the words of another goddess of death she had met not too long ago. "But! That will not be for a very long time indeed. Only when all mortal life has finally been snuffed out will that day come. It is...a matter for the gods to worry about, not you Galen." Sevia said with a little more upbeat tone as she pulled him up and gave him a pat on the back. "Here, this spell should help with that." Sevia said as she cast Infernal Healing on him. using my 3rd level spell slot
She also called out to her familiar for him to come back to her. <"Epyon. Go check that wizard's body."> she instructed him.
Galen looked a bit nervous at the casting - it was a spell that drew upon outright evil power, after all - but he was neutral himself. Several others looked rather more concerned, though a few - including a certain Sir met earlier - didn't seem bothered. The high priest didn't look entirely reassured, either.
Epyon hopped over a moment later and dropped two items into your hands - a well-used wand (used to cast Scorching Ray earlier, though it wasn't immediately obvious how many charges were left) and a necklace of beads that took on a golden glow as they dropped into your hand...
A Wand of Scorching Ray, and a full Necklace of Fireballs (type II).
"I would use a good aligned spell but I can only cast what I have access to." Sevia explained with a shrug, hoping to mollify him. Grasping the items Epyon returned with, she looked them over and was suddenly quite glad that she hadn't dropped them - wondering if she should keep or sell the items. She also figured she should check the body herself as well.
"Would you be able to tell me who that wizard up there-" She gestured to the balcony where he had been. "-was? Whatever his goal, he came very near close to obliterating reality." Sevia grimaced, then looked around for any of his associates.
"His name was Nataru." Olvan said, staggering forward. "He claimed he was from the river-city of Nantambu, and traveled to Axis to learn greater magics to protect his city against the depredations of the reavers of Angazhan. I don't know how much of that to believe, though... probably never find out." He shook his head sadly.
Moments later, deep in your mind, you could feel a nostalgic sensation...
<Oh Raven Queen, grant me your blessing so I may destroy these abominations!> The voice was unmistakably that of Fhanys, your greatest (and probably only) cleric. There was a surprised edge to the end of the prayer, followed by a moment of pause... and that odd feeling, like a pleasantly scratched itch, when magic was granted to someone else. <Thank you!>
"That is-" Sevia spoke up, just about to reply to Olvan, when she suddenly heard a feminine voice cry out in a way that only she could hear. What happened next was an odd yet welcome sensation, which brought a smile to her lips. "So that ceremony restored more of me than I thought..." Sevia murmured. She was concerned that Fhanys seemed to be in danger, but from what she had briefly heard, the girl seemed to have things in hand.
"Well, it seems the worst has passed. Perhaps you should seek out the church of Iomedae? Aroden may be dead...but his legacy still lives on, that is...more than some gods can say." Her last few words sounding somewhat bitter. Regardless, I will need my possessions. It seems that some of my own followers are in trouble, so I must be leaving now." Sevia told Olvan.
Sevia retrieves the rest of her possessions and checks the wizard's body for anything else
The mid-ranking priest slowly nodded, and it wasn't long before a few of the injured managed to haul out the chest that everyone's items had been stored in. Most were quickly retrieved, but a few items were left unclaimed. The wizard's body, meanwhile, didn't seem to have much else on it aside from the wizard's spellbook. That was minimally useful to you, but might serve as a good trading item at some point, or even a respectable resource for your church to study from.
The dead wizard's spellbook contains the following spells, not counting the cantrips:
5th—baleful polymorph, feeblemind, hold monster 4th—animate dead, bestow curse, enervation 3th—blink, dispel magic, vampiric touch 2nd—eagle’s splendor, invisibility, see invisibility, web 1st—chill touch, color spray, jump
Sevia stowed away the spellbook for later use, she figured it might be useful to...hold onto it for some time before she sold it. After collecting her items, Sevia bid Galen and Olvan goodbye, "If you are in need of guidance, there is a Paladin of Iomedae in Axis I would suggest searching out." Sevia offered before producing the Keeper's map and tapping the location of Axis, quickly gating back to the city and returning to the keeper. She might not have a soul gem, but she should probably return the map.
Well, you do have the gems you grabbed earlier - those are still functional.
When you arrive back in Axis proper - you'd never truly left the plane, which may have been why it took so much less time for the portal to appear - the city seems... quiet. The Keeper is where she's been the entire time, but staring up into the sky with what seems to be a feeling of confusion. She looks down as you approach, though, patient and serene. "You have accomplished your mission." she observed, extending one hand to take the gems from you.
"Yes, I recovered four of the soul gems that the Cult of Aroden had in their possession. Though there were sixteen others that were...otherwise depleted." Sevia said somewhat cautiously, producing each of the four soul gems she'd managed to acquire and handing them over to the Keeper. "Also, your map." She retrieved that next. "Pharasma must be occupied for you to look so confused. That is not surprising. I was...unable to prevent the Cult from conducting its ceremony to resurrect Aroden. Though they merely succeeded in summoning a goddess, who named herself Yidhra - Goddess of Paradoxes. She is the one who pushed Groetus back. I suspect most of the pantheon is busy dealing with her at the moment." Sevia reported, filling in the Keeper on what had just occurred. She imagined very few would actually know what had just happened, despite the very obvious near miss with Armageddon.
The Keeper looked up towards the distant god-moon again. "Few among the gods want to see Groetus fall. Your efforts are appreciated." the Keeper said as she retrieved the gems. Then, in a rare moment of individuality, she added, "Still, curious that so perfect an answer would arrive just when the plot to bring him down reached its climax. I must seek instruction." With that, the Keeper turned and moved through the air, heading towards Pharasma's spire and, presumably, the vault where the souls would normally be housed. They did not seem needed at the moment, but who knew when this tenuous new barrier would be destroyed?
The Keeper paused, just as she was about to leave the area, and her head turned a fraction back towards you. Another scroll shot through the air, easily caught once it neared you, and rolled open to reveal a dimensional portal spell that would bring you back to Golarion. It wasn't the only way back, but it was probably the fastest - assuming you wanted to go, of course. There were plenty of things to do both here and back on Golarion, so all that mattered was what you wanted to do and where you wanted to go.
Sevia bowed to the Keeper in thanks and retrieved the scroll, nodding at its contents. This would be...useful in her endeavors, and as she recalled, her cleric had been in apparent dire need of her power some time ago. Even if she used the scroll now, whatever battle she had been in would be long over by now given the time that had so far passed.
It seemed thusly that she should seek out Hawkins and confirm that he had seen to the prisoners from Abaddon. Some of them might even wish to accompany her back to the material plane. She assumed she should also find her Westcrown contact and report back...which would probably be a lengthy amount of talking. Sevia returned back towards the point where she first arrived in Axis set on finding the Rogue she'd met who had guided her to the Keeper.
It took a little bit of probing around, but eventually, you were able to find the woman who'd originally guided you up to the safer areas of the surface city. Before you could even speak, she raised one hand to stop you. "I don't know what happened with your mission or the devils, I don't want to know what happened with either of them, but since you don't look desperate to go somewhere, I'm assuming you're not in desperate need of a place to hide at the moment. That's good, because I wouldn't give it. What'cha need?"
"Hrm. That is inconvenient. I suppose I will have to go to Taibhill himself. Well, if you do not know...actually, would you happen to know of a Paladin named Hawkins who recently came here? I am looking for him and would rather complete my business with him sooner than later." Sevia asked, clearly somewhat frustrated by her 'contact' apparently being out of the loop. If she guessed the woman must just be a hire.
Sevia will pay any fee below or around 25gp for the info, if not she'll just find Hawkins herself. Which is what she'll do after talking with her
"Ain't many Paladins coming down here. Haven't heard of him. Why, does he owe you something? There are ways of... encouraging... even a Paladin to pay up. Mostly, you just lean on their sense of obligation and they'll rush to do whatever you want." the woman said thoughtfully. Well... this was Norgorber's domain, after all. There were plenty of perfectly safe locations for civilians up in the main part of the city - few Paladins would come down here except on business, and never with civilians unless they literally had no other options.
Truly a Rogue. Sevia resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "Nothing like that. You could call him an associate I need to keep an eye on. I will merely have to locate him myself then." Sevia nodded to the woman and left her behind, frankly she didn't want to stick around anyways. Her next destination some other part of the city, spending no more than a few hours to track Hawkins down.
After a bit of wandering around, you finally manage to get some information from one of the construct residents of the city, and are directed to a mid-sized church. The gods of this place are understandably careful about what other faiths are allowed in, but even so, the temple is a splendid affair - the most elaborate of Iomedae's faith you've ever seen. Hawkins was inside, as were a number of other prisoners you recognized, though not quite all of them. Several priests were in deep discussion with a number of Axis' robotic servants, and piles of books had been stacked around the room.
It takes a few moments for the Paladin to see you, but he waves in greeting, looking much heartier now than he had before. "Ah, there you are - how did things go?" he inquired. It didn't seem anyone in the church had seen the earlier events - but then, in truth, most people wouldn't have recognized it for what it was. Groetus rose and fell on a fairly regular basis, and seeing such things happen again was no surprise to the residents of the city - few paid him the god-moon mind at all.
