"Well, that's taken care of," Horven says, shouldering the crossbow.
Yamyra nods distractedly, clearly both taken aback by the degree of ferocity displayed by the creatures & also possibly morbidly fascinated by their evident inhumanity and warped biological focus toward violence.
Gared appraised the contents of his pack to see if any would become damaged by being submerged in water before wading forward into the water and searching for any submerged objects of interest.
At Ganer's reassurance of the pool's lack of further threats, Yamyra begins the ritual to once more reunite with her companion.
After a minute's incantations & mystic gesticulations, Fancy coalesces, among the party once more.
"So...shall we make our way across then?" Horven asks before realizing he had several items that did not go well with water. "Well...if there's a safe way of getting our belongings across."
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"Now that this threat is taken care of, perhaps it would be best to explore the rest of this level before we risk our equipment?" Ganer said, expecting Yamyra to react badly, but he'd never been pushing the idea of them continuing this way, just that they should eliminate any threats that might attack while their backs were turned.
With an aggrieved glance & compressed lips, Yamyra nods agreement at Ganer's words, silently directing Fancy to pull the corpses from the water before once more turning back the way they had all come.
Horven looks to Ganer, then Yamyra. The halfling shrugs and follows.
"Why don't we try that curved door?" Horven suggests.
Considering Horven's words, Yamyra nods. "While we've already seen multiple instances of passages circling back upon each other, there is no guarantee that they all do. In fact, our resting place last night is evidence they don't."
Nodding once more to herself, still clearly a bit shaken by the encounter with the fleshcrafted creatures, Yamyra mutters. "Beter om zeker te zijn. Om grondig, rigoureus zijn. Ja."
Gared nodded and returned to the dry land before gingerly gathering his dry pack and belongings. "Aye, I want to take a quick look in the pool that had the ooze in it, now that I'm already wet. See if there's anything valuable in it."
Horven smirks at Gared. "Why not?"
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After Fancy pulls the corpses out of the pool, stacking them in one of the corners, you all exit the room and backtrack to the cavern where you fought the ooze. A quick search shows nothing of value left behind so you all continue to the curved door. A quick listen shows no noise coming from the other side so Fancy pulls the door open.
On the other side illuminated by Yamyra's torch you see the walls, floor, and ceiling of this curving corridor are sheathed in rusty plates of iron that have been bolted in place. Scorch marks mar this armor plating at periodic intervals, and the gnawed fragments of blackened bones are scattered here and there. Row after row of tiny runes have been etched into each iron plate.
As you continue looking around the maze-like corridors, you all hear the sound of claws clicking along the stone floor, coupled with growls along with the occasional howl echo ominously through the maze.
Upon seeing the various signs of trouble, Horven takes the lead, his everburning torch firmly in hand. He keeps a lookout for any traps.
Eyes wide at the vista spread before them, Yamyra takes it all in. "How odd." She murmurs, seemingly oblivious to the sounds of bestial occupation within.
Not so oblivious, Fancy cocks her head as she attempts to pinpoint the possible threat.
Gared listened as well, whispering to his friends. "Why don't I take up the back with Carmina, and Fancy and Ganer can take the lead? We can move alongside the outside wall for a while and see if we can't deal with what ever danger's show up."
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Yamyra studies the runes carefully as your group proceeds slowly down the curved maze corridors. as she studied them more closely, she is convinced this entire room is a complex magical item,of a kind not seen in millenia. She deduces the entire chamber is built to be some sort of device to focus planar energies, with the layout of the walls and their rune-infused iron plates designed to create a thin spot between the planes at the center of the maze. The entire room is known as a Rift Siphon.
As Yamyra continues studying the runes, you all hear the echoes of the creature, a canine of some sort by the sound of it.
Ganer took his place as he was asked, leading the pack. He kept an eye out for anything threatening, that he might have to throw himself at for the good of the group.
A sudden feeling of unease wafted over Ganer as he walked. "Is this a portal of some kind? If so, this might be how our associates came to be here, because it is attuned to Hell.
"Well, is there anything we can do to close it?" Horven asks, his tension rising.
With her companion's revelation that the structure they were presently exploring was some manner of machine for accessing Hell, Yamra's eyes grow wide & fearful. "I...
don't know..."
"Then we'll find a way," Horven says with a light touch on Yamyra's shoulder. "We've got danger around here, so let's handle that first."
"But why would anyone build a huge thing like this just to connect to such a boring plane? Man, some people just have too much free time on their hands," Carmina muses idly as she examines the place.
Gared nodded. "If we can't shut it down ourselves, if we can secure the area I'm sure the pathfinders might aid us in taking it apart, or keeping it from harming anyone."
"Yes. We aren't' the only team Venture-Captain Heidmarch oversee's. Certainly someone in Magnimar will be able to decipher it's purpose."
Reassured by this conclusion, Yamyra once more sets to investigating their present environment.
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Initiative
C
Gn
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H
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HH
As you discuss your options, you notice the echoing sounds of the canine suddenly grow quiet for a moment, before suddenly being shattered by a loud howl! Carmina, who had been guarding the rear of the party, sees the source of the howl: a thin, lanky wolf with reddish-brown fur, white claws, and burning, fiery red eyes. It appears around one of the curves in the maze corridor and readies to attack!
"It's a Hell hound! Ganer announced when he got a good look at the creature.""Attack it with ice! And not fire." The last bit was added after a short pause when he realized that some members of the group might not make that logical leap.
"Are you blind?" Carmina calls out to Ganer. "That's clearly a Hound Archon! We need to blast it with... uh... something before it makes us question our life choices! Was it garlic? I never remember..."
Having said that, Carmina casts a quick spell, enchanting her natural weapons with necromantic energy, and prepares to face the hostile outsider.
Gared raised an eyebrow at the back and forth between the tieflings before launching a barrage of arrows at the devilish creature.
"Well done, Gared!" Horven exclaims, surprised by how quickly the beast went down.
Gared allowed himself a grim satisfied smile for a moment before moved to retrieve his arrows, pulling out his whetstone as he went, muttering a prayer to Erastil as he did so in dwarven.
"The last one was lucky shot. The thing ran right into it. Let's be on our guard, there may be more."
Horven nods and looks around the maze-like room. "Which way should we go?"
"Hmm..." Yamyra, examining the walls of the central chamber, withdraws her notebook & begins quickly jotting down observations.
'Be a dear and see if I'm right, would you please? It to be a series of broken concentric rings.'
Nodding in acknowledgment, Fancy gives an amused snort as she pursues evidence in support of her anchor's newest suspicion.
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Yamyra notes the walls, floor, and ceiling of this curving corridor are sheathed in rusty plates of iron that have been bolted in place. They seem to cover the entire maze complex.
Fancy explores the maze thoroughly and does find another exit in the south portion. Following the passageway further, the eidolon is barred from further progress by a stout iron portcullis; its winch stands to the side. A skeleton, still in the scorched half-plate armor it wore in life, is slumped over the winch.
Horven looks around the winch for anything suspicious.
"Well, we won't be able to move that physically," Horven says.
"What's important is that we have cleared this chamber." Yamyra replies as she finishes her notes. "At least for the time being."
"We are developing a thorough picture of what is down here. Later teams, with better resources, will be able to use what we have learned to better understand & hopefully permanently disable this construction." Her arms swing wide to indicate the chamber around them.
"We know there is at least one other passage we have yet to thoroughly explore. Considering what we have encountered so far, it wouldn't surprise me if the other side of those bars was to be found there."
"Fair enough," Horven says, admiring Yamyra for a moment. "Let's go."
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After being stymied by the portcullis, you all backtrack through the rift siphon and then through the room with the warning plaque which led to where you fought the fleshdirges. Yamyra's guess proves accurate as the winch room is connected to that room by a short passage.
Thus finally able to reach the winch, Horven is easily able to disengage the locking mechanism, allowing the portcullis to be raised.
An inspection of the corpse shows the ancient skeleton’s masterwork half-plate is rusty but still usable. The bones themselves crumble to dust as he moves the armor to one side. A quick search shows nothing else of interest here.
Consulting your maps, you have determined the only place you have not explored is the passage at the opposite side of the underground pool.
"Huh," Yamyra sighs as she examines the pool between them & the far passage, "I could grow Fancy & probably Gared...
They could ferry the rest of us across?"
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"Aye, let's have Fancy get the spell and take us across." The dwarf paused thoughtfully. "Before we continue, I think we should make a quick treck up to that statue and see if we can't get another of it's blessings. It shouldn't take too long to determine."