Hyo Soon shakes her head, 'That was no spirit. It was a hungry fog, a rare type of floating ooze." She sounds quite excited as she goes on, at length to describe how this mist-like creature hunts in graveyards and shipwrecks, using negative energy. The wizard notes that many victims are driven mad by weird visions in the mist. 'As I said they are not common, it is really interesting to see one in person, don't you think?"
"Hmm," Sevak replies, noncommittally, as he starts down the passageway once again, wary of more traps. "Are they intelligent enough to cooperate with trapmakers? It seemed to know about the area of darkness."
'Hmm, unlikely." Hyo Soon ventures, 'oozes are not very intelligent, perhaps it just like the dark...oh, look at that!" she points a thin, wavering finger to a corpse slumped against the wall. Apparently some thief or bandit had not been as lucky as Sevak and had paid the price. The remains look dried and gnawed on, as if the hungry fog has chewed for many months on these remains.
The passageway leads down on a smooth grade, wide and well-kept. Keeping his eyes open, he pauses when he sees a chance. Farther down the passage, the floor is broken up by panes of glass. At this angle he can't see down into them, but they there are five of them, evenly placed. At the far end of the passage is a staircase spiraling downward.
Sevak looks around warily. "A perfect place for another trap," he comments.
He advances slowly, watching for anything out of place.
The nagaji, wary, moves forward slowly, sword extended. He doesn't see anything dangerous, no triggers, traps, or pressure plates. Slowly he edges toward one of the glass panes on the floor. Fairly close he finally gets an angle to look down into it. What he sees takes his breath away.
The wealth of empires.
Literal piles of gold, overflowing chests of jewels, stacks of expensive silks. Shelf upon shelf of embroidered books and manuscripts, each meticulously labeled. At the corner of his view he spots a row of ceremonial armor, glinting with shining silver and bronze...He cannot see walls or door of the vault below but it must be large.
Sevak gazes on the wealth for a long moment, then shudders slightly.
"A man could destroy himself in pursuit of such wealth... and for what?" he murmurs. "Are those with power truly happier? Why then do they seem so obsessed with gaining yet more?"
He shakes himself from his reverie after a moment. "We must be yet warier still," he tells Hyo Soon, more loudly. "Here is where the best locks and traps would have been, and given that such wealth yet remains, it seems they yet hold."
He cautiously advances.
Sevak walks farther down the passage. He notes the second pane reveals nothing, and is just a filmy gray, as if the window opened onto pure fog, endlessly swirling. The third pane reveals more treasures in the vault below, including jeweled weapons, stacks of gold bars as well as priceless artworks packed into tidy piles.
The ex-druid still senses no traps, and the stairway leading down reveals itself...
Sevak slows, then stops. "Hyo Soon... do you detect any magic here? Particularly illusions?" he asks.
The wizard looks closely at the panes, before nodding, "Yes, illusions....Do you think these panes depict an inaccurate vision? The vault is not truly below us?" She points to the foggy one, 'The aura is much weaker on that one, the spell must be fading. amazing it has lasted this long, to be quite honest. The workmanship is quite superb."
"It seemed suspicious to me to have windows into a vault," Sevak agrees. "The question is, are these a trap, or simply a way to awe visitors without giving them access to anything valuable? Do we truly need to go down, or is there a secret way onwards to the true vault?"
He looks around carefully for secret doors.
Sevak doesn't see anything and Zhengyi intones The Imperials were much enamored with over-awing visitors. You saw the entrance hall.
Hyo Soon helps him look for secret panels or magically hidden doors. They find nothing.
Sevak nods at Zhengyi's words. Indeed
"Downwards it is, then," Sevak states, warily approaching and then starting down the stairs. He moves slowly, looking over everything for signs of traps.
Together they approach the stairs when Hyo Soon stops him, 'Wait!" She peers at the stairs, 'The first three have a spell on them....an Alarm spell." she pauses and smiles, "I guess that isn't a big concern anymore since the place is abandoned."
'Sorry for stopping you, I thought it might have been something dangerous!"
"And alarm could be dangerous here. What if there are more golems or spirits?" Sevak points out. "I might be able to dispel the alarm..."
He focuses on the magic within him, trying to draw out a magic-canceling spell.
Sevak reaches into that well of magic within him. Carefully he plumbs the depths then turns it outward in a rush of the arcane.
Hyo Soon's eyebrow goes up, "The spell is gone, but I think it will return. It seems to be linked some some sort of artifact. We should hurry."
Sevak nods and hurries down the steps, though he slows once past the alarmed area and again stays wary of traps.
The stairway is short, only taking them one floor down. At the base, there is a small landing of flat stone. Against one wall is the remains of small desk and other office supplies.
'A check point, perhaps?" Hyo Soon wonders out loud.
Soon however, both see the true center of the room.
Along the far wall is a massive vault door, that reaches from floor to ceiling. The round, shining steel looks to be three feet thick at least, and hangs on giant hinges. Everything looks as greased and shining as if it was polished that morning.
The door is ajar, revealing the vast treasure trove inside. The rows of books, the shelves of magical items, the sheer piles of gold, all as Sevak saw from above. Except one new thing.
Near the door there is an iron stake, set deep into the solid stone of the vault floor. A massive rusty chain leads into the vault chamber. Sevak's eyes follow it and soon arrive at a hulking figure tied to it.
The beast is bigger then an ox, big as an elephant. from his angle Sevak can see the body of a lion and the head of a dragon. two vast feathered wings rest on the back of it.
A pixiu..." Hyo Soon breathes, barely a whisper, "I never would have thought..."
The creature is resting on the floor curled into a ball, obviously sleep, vast chest slowly rising and falling.
"What do you know of them?" Sevak asks, keeping his own voice low. "Can they be reasoned with?
Hyo Soon shakes her head, whispering, "No, they are animals. Long lived and dangerous ones, but not intelligent. Why one is here...could it really date back to Imperial times?"
She stares at it and says, "They eat ghosts." Seeing his confusion she goes on, "They can devour the restless spirits of the dead, destroying them for all eternity."
Then she nods, 'We could use it to destroy the ghost that dwells int his place! We could break the chain and release the pixiu, and let it devour that horrid spirit!"
"If it did not decide to snack on us instead," Sevak quietly cautions. "Or do they eat only spirits? Regardless, I would rather send spirits on to the afterlife than destroy them for all eternity."
He eyes the chain. "With all of that rust, I am not certain that chain could hold it any longer if it tried to escape. Is there any magic on it? It seems it could not have lived here so long without some magical means of sustenance."
Hyo Soon sniffs, "That ghost tried to kill us, you know."
She looks at the thick chain. While rusty, it is so large and heavy, the center is surely still strong enough to hold the large beast in check. Or so it appears.
"They eat flesh but gain no sustenance off of it. Pixui also eat...of course." She waves her hand at the sleeping area of the creature, which is bereft of any gold or treasure, "Pixui also were rumored to eat gold and other valuables. It has been living off treasure!"
Sevak frowns. "It seems an odd way to guard treasure..." he comments.
He looks around, searching for signs of more-recent tracks.
Hyo Soon shrugs, "I doubt it was a guard. I'm guess it was a pet or something from the Imperial days."
Sevak scans the ground but sees no footprints or disturbed dust here.
The beats sleeps on, snoring slightly, a long cat-like tail twitching in sleep.
Sevak considers it a little longer. "I suppose, if let loose, it would be more interested in the contents of the vault than us?" he half-asks, half-guesses.
Hyo Soon shrugs but says, "Probably. They are viscous, or so the stories say, but prefer to devour gold and such things. There is certainly enough here to distract it from us, at least for awhile. Unless it thought we were stealing any gold?"
"We had best stay far away from the gold," Sevak says. "I suppose there is nothing for it but to try. At least it probably cannot fit up the stairs, yes? It would be best if you have magic ready for fleeing in case it turns towards us instead of away, however."
'Do you want me to sneak with you?" Hyo Soon says, nervously.
Sevak shakes his head slightly.
Zhèngyì in hand, Sevak cautiously slips forwards, hoping to avoid waking the beast if he can.
Sevak moves to sneak around the chain and post, keeping away from the sleeping creature. However, as he walks, he trips and catches his foot on the chain. Instantly the room is full of a rusty clatter.
With roar the pixiu rises to it's feet, instantly turning to face the noise. The massive jaws drip with foam as the massive creature snarls and gathers itself ready to pounce. Sevak has one moment here to either sever the chain or choose to fight.
Sevak brings Zhèngyì up to a ready position and starts backing towards the stairs.
"Prepare yourself!" he shouts to Hyo Soon.
As Sevak backs up, he sees Hyo Soon begin muttering a spell. Instead of running away however, she runs up and places a long-fingered hand on his shoulder. Instantly he feels a burning sensation spread out from that spot, searing along his scales and into his muscles.
Ah Zhengyi says knowingly.
Then Sevak can feel his muscles growing, ripping, stretching to a new size. From head to foot his body grows firmer, stronger. He feels stronger now then he ever has.
The spell brought bitter memories of when he could have called upon the powers of nature to strengthen himself, but he pushed the thought aside as he prepared to meet the monster.
Sevak would rather not charge the beast, so instead he calls on magic, trying to aim a blast of fire at the creature.
Sevak taps into that well of still nearly unknown internal magic, and summons a potent fireball. A great heat rises off of him, as he were a stoked furnace. A ball of fire erupts from his sword arm, flaring along Zhengyi then shooting toward the pixui.
It lands directly on the hairy, snarling beast. It roars with pain, loud enough to send small avalanches of coins rolling deeper in the vault. Despite the obvious pain and damage, the beast lunges at Sevak, claws tearing.
"Back to the stairs!" Sevak gasps. He waits for Hyo Soon to run, then follows.
Sevak and Hyo Soon sprint for the safety of the staircase, kicking up old dust from the floor. Behind them the pixui growls and gives chase, claws digging into the stone.
The ex-druid gabs Hyo Soon and helps the tall woman up the stairs as the creature snaps behind them. As they climb the third stair, Sevak turns and sees the chain suddenly go taunt, as the slavering beast throws itself against the chain. There is a loud clanging sound as the massive chain goes tight, and rust flies off in a cloud. For one moment Sevak is worried either chain or post might give, but the Imperial smiths knew their business. The chain holds and the creature is tuck at the base of the stairs, growling and swiping at the air.
"That...was close./" Hyo Soon says and glancing at his wounds add, "Not your best day, eh?"
Sevak shakes his head and pulls out his wand.
"We still must get past. Can you do anything to it from beyond its reach now?" Sevak asks as he starts patching up his wounds.
She purses her lips, running over a mental list, "Do we have to conserve anything for the bandits later? Or do we plan to sleep first?"
She looks down at the beast, which is now standing quietly, staring at them.
"I could try and sever the chain from here? If we retreat it would probably go after the gold." She makes a face'Or maybe not."
"I think we shall have great need for rest at this rate," Sevak responds.
"After that fireball I fear it would pursue us out of anger, even were it not for my reluctance to unleash it upon a captive spirit."
He shakes his head slightly. "Fighting it is clearly folly... perhaps it could be fooled or distracted long enough for us to get past? Have you any magic for such things?"
"I mean, you did hurt it. A bit." She says consolingly while pondering her spells. "We could try that fog horn again..." She looks in Sevak's pack for it and then holds up a bright red cloth, "A Cape of Bravado? I've never seen on in person."" Then she blushes, "I guess now is the not the time. Anyway, that would just make it attack us more..."
"As for illusion, nothing I have ready. We used our invisibility this morning, crossing the river. Besides, that thing might smell us. I do have Stone Call which will hurt it at range, but it will also make the floor hard to cross and just might collapse the roof."
She shakes her head, making her short black hair dance, "I should have perapred Sleep this morning!"
"I would not trust the fog alone," Sevak states. "I do have one thing that might give us an opening."
He explains the working of the fungal stun vial. "If it succumbs to the effect, we would have a brief opening to run past it--assuming we can get it to back off enough for us to get off of the stairs. That would, however, leave the question of how we were to get back... but likely the staff or something else in the vault would aid us with that."
Hyo Soon nods, "I'm not sure exactly what the staff can do, but I think it will be a powerful tool." Then she says, 'And if it doesn't succumb?"
Sevak sighs. "Then we figure out something else. Think you that we have enough coins to distract it?"