The second elemental also collapses and disappears into the ground.
Surprising change of mind.
Leto goes around, tenderly shaking everyone out of their slumber.
Y´all had a good nights rest yes?
He smiles.
Not the best time for that.
We should be careful and attentive, that create might come back and surprise us. Setesh it seemed you had less trouble to resist her powers. In case she should catch us all, our survival would lie in your hands. Please wake us up then!
Almathea will search around the courtyard and kick apart any little piles of sand that she see.
"Well, I think all these haunts and elementals being so active likely mean that this area should be undisturbed by human hands. Hopefully we can get a decent haul here."
"If everyone is back awake now, shall we continue onward?"
"Not exactly what I'd call a restful sleep. Everyone gather up and I can take care of those injuries."
Nevai also tapped himself with a wand before holding it up, offering more healing to anyone that needed it.
Sifting through the sand you find quite a few buried objects. A fine suit of scale mail, a well made light crossbow, five cold iron crossbow bolts and ten regular bolts. You also find a holy symbol of Sarenrae, 3 platinum pieces and 37 gold pieces.
Tunar relunctantly raises his hand when Nevai offers up the wand, bringing his waterskin out and taking a swig of ale to calm his nerves. "I'd take one.
And I'd be happy to hold onto anything anyone doesn't want out of that lot until we can make it back. Shouldn't weigh me down too much."
Setesh nods to Leto, and winks.
"Certainly; if you fall asleep again, I will be happy to give you a swift kick to wake you up!"
He then turns to Almathea.
"Is any of this stuff magical?"
Almathea casts Detect Magic and looks over the stuff found.
"Both the armor and crossbow appear to have magical auras."
"Looks like the enchantment on the armor adds to its protective abilities. I can't quite make out what the crossbow does yet though. I can check again later if no one else wants to take a look at it?"
Well that was interesting.
He takes a look at the non-magical items and shrugs, This holy symbol can probably fetch about 25 gold.
After looking around, Nevai shrugged and began putting on the new scale mail. "If no one else is going to use it, might as well not let it go to waste. My old scale was serviceable, but not nearly as fine as this."
"A nice little haul. Come on - let's keep going."
He then heads through the archway to the east of the central room.
---
Hieroglyphs and images of fantastic beings cover the walls of this small room. A small stone shrine, dusty and thoroughly defaced, stands against the eastern wall.
---
The shrine was defaced by someone...or something.
---
To the south of the room with the shrine you see a stone privy built into one wall of a tiny room, and a stone table with a basin standing against the other wall. A large mirror once hung above the table, but it was shattered ages ago. The floor is covered in broken glass and dead scarab beetles. A headless corpse sits upright on one of the privies.
---
---
To the north there's a small hallway and beyond another archway you can see two stone tables sitting against the western wall of another room, while a third occupies the southeastern corner. A small, square wooden butcher’s block stands in the northeast corner, now almost collapsing under its own weight. A stone oven sits in the middle of the north wall. A humanoid skeleton lies beneath the northwestern table, surrounded by smashed crockery. There's a door on the east wall in the room.
---
Setesh conducts a careful searches the rooms (and waits patiently for Almathea to conduct a Detect Magic sweep), keeping a careful eye on the skeletons when he searches their room.
"This shrine has been badly damaged. I'd like to spend some time setting things right. We should also move the remains of these people with the others for their eventual burial." Nevai moved to the stone shrine and began working to do what he could repair the damage.
Almathea will cast Detect Magic as she helps look around the rooms.
"If we are gathering bodies for proper burial, has anyone found the head that goes to the corpse in the privy?"
The damage is easily repaired.
---
The headless body sitting in the privy makes no move as you search the room.
There is a pitted and rusted dagger in the skeleton beneath the table in the kitchen, but again, it does not move and there is nothing else in the room.
---
South of the small privy you see a large tiled pool sits in the center of a chamber, surrounded by sloping tiled floors. A few steps descend into the basin, which has accumulated a deep layer of sand on its bottom. Faded murals on the walls depict scenes of life along a river, with recurring themes of running water and aquatic life running through the artwork. In the northeast corner, a tarnished bronze spigot juts from the wall just above head level. There are stone doors in the eastern wall leading outside.
Without moving into the room it is difficult to see anything else.
---
The room west of the kitchen is a small dining area with a stone table. It looks plain and probably meant for the servants.
"This body is much too fresh to have been one of the original members of the household. More likely, it's the body of a would be looter from a few years ago, who apparently forgot to take care of business at home. Still, looter or not, a decent burial is important, even if it is only to prevent the rise of the undead. We should try to find his head if we can. For now, perhaps he has some useful equipment with him." Nevai said as he pulled up the man's pants, and searched the headless body for useful items.
Setesh carefully searches the dining room, and once satisfied that he has cleared it, continues to move west.
"Keep an eye out for a head in need of a body. Don't want anything coming back to say hello if we can help it. Right, got it."
Grumble...Magic...Grumble.
Tunar will help move the bodies if bodies are getting moved. Otherwise he follows Setesh, keeping his distance to allow the Half-Elf to scout ahead when necessary.
There is nothing useful on the body and neither of the bodies move as you search the rooms.
Almathea makes sure to check the rooms for any secret doors or hidden safes in the walls.
As you move into the room to the west:
---
An enormous stone table, the marble top polished and smooth, runs parallel to the west wall of this large room. A much smaller stone table stands in the east side of the room. Splintered piles of dust and wood lie in the corners and along the walls—the only remains of chairs after untold years. A strong, fetid stench pervades the room. An open, sand-filled hallway lies to the south.
The room is now a scene of horror. A dozen human skulls have been set upon the western table. Each skull is polished clean and balances atop a tarnished silver goblet standing on a tarnished silver dinner plate.
As you enter the room the skulls rise off the table and silently hover in the air turning their eyeless sockets in your direction.
---
"Oh, skulls. I bet one of those belongs to the guy from the privy. Though I have no idea why they are floating about on their own right now."
"Yeah, that doesn't look ominous, at all..."
Tunar wrinkles his nose in disgust at the smell before seeing the skulls float up.
"Come on... really?" He groans.
The jaws of two of the skulls open wide. For a moment only the sound of the wind through the old walls is heard. Then, four other skulls burst into blue flame as ear-piercing shrieks fill the air.
The four flamings skulls along with their non-flaming allies fly forward and split up attacking different members of the party.
One flaming skull and two non-flaming heads attack Tunar.
One flaming skull and two non-flaming heads attack Setesh.
One flaming skull and two non-flaming heads attack Nevai.
The final flaming skull holds back with the screaming skulls, waiting for anyone to push forward.
Wincing at the shrillness of their shrieks, Almathea draws her quarterstaff and swings at the flaming skull on Setesh.
"Be at rest and bother us no more," Nevai trembled as he raised his holy symbol.
As the burst of energy goes out skulls begin crumbling. Only a single flaming skull and three normal skulls remain.
Erei will attempt to stab the nearest creature with his longspear.
Erei will continue to attempt to stab the nearest surviving creature.
Round 1:
Setesh avoids catching on fire, and attempts to whack one of the remaining skulls .
Tunar lets out a growl and moves to slash one of the remaining skulls with his sword
Round 1 after Nevai.
Flying skulls? What kind of abomination is that?
Leto targets the remaining skulls.
The remaining skulls are shattered by mace, sword, and arrow. A search of the room in the aftermath of the fight reveals nothing more than the silver goblets and plates.
Setesh frowns.
"This room is very clean - look; there's nowhere near as much dust in here. Someone, or something, has been keeping this room clean..."
He then smiles.
"On a more positive note, I think that if we sold this stuff as a set, it would be worth about 750gp."
After Almathea has done a Detect Magic sweep of the room, Setesh then proceeds through the archway to the south, to explore the room beyond.
Erei will wait while Setesh searches.
Thea will search the room as well, casting her usual Detect Magic, just in case.
"I agree with Setesh. Someone, likely a living person, has been here fairly recently."
Heading south into the southwestern room,
---
A large staircase climbs to the second floor from this room. Sand and dust cover the floor, and painted columns stand in all but one of the corners. Pieces of broken wood, shattered pottery, and disintegrating fabric litter the room’s perimeter.
---
With a thorough search of the debris in the room you find a small ring. As soon as the ring is touched, a ghostly scene superimposes itself over the ruins of the room, as translucent furniture and decorations like potted palm trees and richly upholstered divans waver into existence.
In the center of the room, a ghostly young man clasps the hands of ethereal young woman. They speak in Ancient Osiriani, but all of you understand them somehow.
I’m so sorry, the young man says. I can’t find the ring I bought you anywhere. I just had it!
It’s all right, my love, the girl replies quietly. It’s not the right time to tell my family anyway.
Come with me, Ariseti! Come across the river where we’ll be safe!
Not just yet, darling. My father says we’ll be safe here. You go, and when all this is over, you can come back for me, and we’ll announce our engagement then.
She pauses, and reaches out to touch the man’s forehead.
Are you feeling all right? You’re burning up!
With this the vision ends, as first the figures fade from view, followed by the room and its furnishings.
back of the neck.