medlii's Curse of the Crimson Throne

Game Master medlii

Mery joins the conversation. "I'm well enough to go on my own. I'm going to go back to my apartment, to fetch a few things. Then, I'll go stay with my brother. He lives at the northern end of the island. We'll be safer, sticking together." After Trey mentions getting out of Old Korvosa, she looks pleased. "Oh, I'd hate to take you away from such important work!"

Unless intercepted, Cama, the woman who had been recruited to the Gray Maidens, warily backs away from the group talking, having no interest in sticking around.

.

The remainder of your journey to the Arkona Palace is uneventful, though you pass more Korvosans, out doing errands, visiting, and going about their lives. Now that you are closer to the palace, you occasionally notice a patrol of two or three Arkona guards, easily recognized by their brilliant orange capes. Perhaps because of their presence, you do not encounter any other groups of Gray Maidens.

Palace Arkona is perched at the highest point atop Old Korvosa. Two outbuildings occupy the grounds, which are open, decorated here and there with tiny copses of trees and flower gardens. The palace is a breathtaking structure built in Vudran style, with golden pillars, high windows that rise to tapered points, minarets, and domes decorated with
slender spires.

Once you enter the grounds, you are intercepted by a patrol of six house guards who inquire to your business. "Ah! Miss Darksong! Captain Oros sent word that you'd be stopping by. What brings all of you to Palace Arkona?"

Having calmed herself by the time they reach the palace, Lantressa curtsies to the guards, "I am just sorry it took us longer than expected, we ran into a group of Grey Maidens forcibly abducting women from the streets to join their ranks if they will not join for money. We dealt with the group we found and freed two captives, a third was there willingly and likely ran straight to them to inform them of our actions. As to why we are here, Oros told us that Lord Arkona would like to speak with us, so we have come to make good on his request."

One of the guards volunteers to take Lantressa's information to Captain Oros. "I'm glad you've arrived safely. If Lord Arkona's requested to see you, I won't delay your audience." The five remaining guards lead you through the grounds past shrubs trimmed to resemble elephants, snakes, and tigers, elaborate flower gardens, and exquisite fountains. The main entrance is magnificent - a mahogany door carved with image of a six-armed, four faced giantess riding a tiger with human hands for paws. The door is crowned with several fist-sized brilliant red stones.

The interior is just as elaborate. In the entryway, a black marble arch depicting dozens of elephants standing one atop the other frames a great ebony door in the south wall of the wide and airy hall. Above the door, a single one-eyed elephant looks out over the hall, its eye a glittering bloodstone the size of an apple. Tall windows grant a commanding view of the palace grounds, and a rich red carpet, ten feet wide and luxuriously thick, provides a pathway between doors to the west and north, and around a corner to the east. Each of these doors, including a few smaller ones just west of the northern pair, are decorated with images of a six-armed, four-faced woman who rides a tiger with human hands for feet.

The guards enter the front door, where he introduces you to a tall, pleasant man who wears an eyepatch. "Master Carnochan, these visitors are here to meet with Lord Arkona, about the Emperor."

"Excellent, thank you for delivering them safely to the house." Carnochan says, turning to bow to you as the guards take their leave. "Good morning. I am Carnochan, the palace majordomo, as you may have surmised. Miss Darksong, it is a pleasure to see you again. Any friends of Miss Darksong are welcome here, as are any enemies of Pilts Swastel. He shakes each of your hands politely. Please, Uncle Glorio-er Lord Arkona is upstairs, let me take you to him. He insisted that you meet with him as soon as you arrived."

Carnochan leads you down a hallway with ebony walls carved with depictions of elephants, tigers, monkeys, and peacock, all with simmering mother-of-pearl eyes, He opens a door, this too decorated with the eight-armed woman, and leads you up a flight of curved mahogany stairs to the second floor. Here, you can see into a beautiful courtyard garden below, the sounds of birdcalls and the babble of trickling fountains meet your ears. The coutyard hardly seems to be part of a palace—it seems more like a clearing at the heart of a vast jungle, teeming with life, brilliantly colored flowers, and and fluttering birds. Stopping in front of a door, Carnochan raps politely. "Lord Arkona! Miss Darksong and her companions have arrived."

There is more to come, just want to give you an opportunity to react to anything that's happened so far.

Trey follows along, this is not her home, and she intends to respect acquaintances of her new friends.

She takes in the surroundings, but the religious markings are beyind anything she has ever learned of.

DC 30 is not possible for Trey

Trey greets Carnochan, Trey Merosa, priestess of Sarenrae.

Unlike what has been her normal mode of traveling through the city, Lantressa throws back the hood of her cloak and lets it open, not concerned about concealing what she is from the people around her. When Carnochan speaks to them Lantressa walks to him slowly and almost seductively and plants a kiss on his cheek, "It is good to see you again Carnochan. I am glad to say that enemies of Swastel are going to be non-existent, since we killed him, I clawed his throat out to make sure myself. Good riddance to him." As Carnochan leads them to see Lord Arkona, Lantressa loops her arm through his as they go and walks along side him.

Ty follows the others, carrying two packs. His Owl garb tucked away once again.
Holy crap this is one rich bugger. Don't care what Lantressa says, can't have this much money and a title n still be a good guy. Damn I wish Vencarlo was with us... He' d know what to do....
Looking like he expects to be mauled at any moment he trails to the rear of the group.
what the heck is with that many armed four faced woman? Creepin me out!

Cephelo walked behind Lantressa and found it hard to keep his concentration at the task at hand.

The distractions were everywhere and to an animal lover like Cephelo the strange beasts (both in artistic and real life) were calling to him.

He wanted to ask a myriad of questions but held his tongue. Perhaps he could come back at a later time and talk to the groundskeeper of the place.

Carnochan wraps his arm around Lantressa's shoulders as they head upstairs. "At the risk of sounding bloodthirsty, good riddance. We had no idea Mr. Swastel could be so dangerous, and I hate to admit, we did not take him seriously enough until it was too late. Uncle Glorio is quite pleased."

"My cousin, Avishandu, tends to the gardens. He's imported many of the plants and creatures from Vudra, so that Uncle Glorio might feel more at home, especially during the harsh winters. He has quite the eye for beauty, does he not?" Carnochan narrates as you pass the gardens. The centerpiece of the garden seems to be an immense, life-sized jade statue of an elephant, a howdah perched on its back, its tusks and trunk raised high in greeting.

When visiting someone, you might expect to meet them in a sitting room, or perhaps an office. But when Carnochan opens the door, you are greeted by a blast of warm, humid air. Steam rises from an oval bath set in the floor to the southeast, where Glorio Arkona lounges amidst a sea of bubbles. The walls, ceiling, and floor are set with polished marble tiles of alternating blues and greens, giving the entire chamber a pervasive aquatic feel. Three lacquered wooden benches sit just north of the bath itself. An ordinary looking glass, seemingly out of place due to its lack of ornamentation stands about five feet tall and two feet wide reflects the light of several everburning torches.

"Congratulations!" Lord Arkona says excitedly, sitting up in the bath. "I apologize for not meeting you in the lounge, but I told Carnochan that I wanted to hear the news at once, straight from the horses mouth, if you'll pardon the expression." The apology sounds more like a formality, but Lord Arkona's excitement is genuine. He looks to be about middle-aged, though fit and attractive, with a thick black mustache, golden skin, and flowing hair that reaches his shoulders. "My neice, Vennashti, worked closely with Captain Oros to combat the Emperor's men. Sadly, their numbers simply overwhelmed us. And now, after you've taken care of Mr. Swastel, Oros reports that the area is clear of his thugs. Without a leader, they've gone into hiding or suddenly changed their ways. Many of the people are still reluctant to leave their homes, but I'm sure that will change quickly, now that they realize they are safe. I'd like to give you this as a reward." He waves for you to retrieve a gold ring set with a deep green stone sitting on a nearby shelf, with the air of someone who is used to being obeyed. It is a ring of evasion.

"But that is not enough compensation for such a heroic deed, and you cannot share one ring amongst yourselves. Whether it be wealth, favors, information, or something else... Tell me, what do you wish of me?"

The encounter map link is updated with some pictures and maps.

Trey stays close to Ty, she seems nearly as uncomfortable as he does in this place. the occupants seem quite enthusiastic over Lantressa's presence.

We seek two people, one, the man known as Vencarlo, he should be known to you. the other, Neolandus Kalepopolis.

trey is rather blunt, to the point they were here for a mission, not personal pleasures.

Lord Arkona smiles ruefully at Trey's request. "Ah... handing over these guests might be... a trifle complicated. Please, allow me a moment to explain. When I married Vimanda, nearly fifteen years ago, I thought she was a politically minded woman. I thought she might take up some legal position, or serve in King Eodred's court. But she soon revealed her true nature. She is extremely powerful and cruel. For every drug smuggler I put out of business, she finds two more. For each gambling den I uncover and turn over to the Korvosan Guard, she starts another. Over the years, she's forced me to continue our charade of a marriage, while I manage our trade accounts. My businesses bring in gold to fund the torture chamber she's built below the garden, among her other activities. You can only imagine, when Neolandus, and then Vencarlo arrived here, Vimanda spirited them away at once to the Vivified Labyrinth, as she calls it." Glorio looks rather ashamed at admitting his wife controls him, and his voice hardens with anger as he explains the horrible things she's done.

Taking a breath to compose himself, Glorio continues, now sounding pleased with himself. "While I cannot retrieve either guest for you, I can do the next best thing. I've watched Vimanda, to learn anything I could about her Vivified Labyrinth. The elephant statue in the garden stands on a stone platform. Directly in the center, between the elephant's legs, is a pressure plate that will open a passage to a flight of stairs leading downward. Just after pressing the button, you must utter the passphrase Chamidu is blind."

"The Labyrinth is not a maze in the traditional sense. Vimanda bragged of her ingenious construction to me. Mind you, I've never been inside, but from what I understand, it is comprised of four circular chambers that rotate. Each room contains a lever which causes it to rotate clockwise or counterclockwise. Let me show you." Glorio scratches a rough diagram on a scrap of paper, his wet hand smudging the ink. "Pretend you entered in room A, and the guests were kept in room X. You could rotate the room clockwise to get to Chamber B. Then, you would have to rotate Chamber B counter clockwise to reach Chamber X. You can see how easy it is to become lost in such a place. Does that make sense? She's also asked me to import all sorts of terrifying creatures and mechanisms, which I'm certain dwell down there to prevent anyone from escaping."

Does his explanation of the Vivified Labyrinth make sense? If not, let me know and I"ll try to explain it another way. I put a picture in the encounter map to illustrate...

With all the sumptuous riches surrounding him, Cephelo's greedy Sczarni upbringing almost got the better of him when asked what he wanted as a a reward for something he would have done anyways.

Luckily, Trey intercepted asking what they were really here to do.

The young man cleared his throat but waited for an answer.

Sauntering up to the tub where the ring is, Lantressa's tail carefully picks it up and drops it into her hand. She curtsy's to Lord Arkona and says, "It is good to see my Lord. I am glad to see that you are doing well despite what has happened." She nods in trey's direction, "My rather abrupt companion has stated what they are after, I have already accomplished part of what I came to the district to do." She repeats for Lord Arcona why she came to the district and what Auntie Halvara wanted her to do, "I suspicion that the other two girls are in the Grey Maidens recruitment center, willing or otherwise. I do not know if they are there or not and if they are, I doubt there is much I can do about that. If you happen to hear any word of the two girls, please let Halvara or myself know." Lantressa gestures to her compatriots once more, "They are working to try and stabilize the city, and I think I will be giving them my assistance in their work," she looks worried, "I already lost one home, I do not care care to lose another."

Figures I missed getting this in by 4 minutes, oh well. Adding a reaction to what was revealed.

Lantressa listens in horror, and with a strange longing, to the story of Lady Vimada. Her voice is full of both revulsion and a tad bit of yearning, "She has been doing what down there?! I never realized it. Hmmm, I guess I should have listened to that incessant feeling of darkness around her, it must have been my darker nature recognizing her actions." Getting a worried look on her face, "This is not good, we had better get down there, and fast, if we are to have a hope of saving them. What kinds of traps and creatures has she had you import for her? I think it is safe to assume they are all down there."

"It is good to see you again, Lantressa, and in good health, despite both of our circumstances." Lord Arkona purses his lips, thinking on what Lantressa said about the Gray Maidens, but changes the subject instead of answering her question. She's familiar with this tactic, which he often uses to keep his guests off-guard, or to gather some other scrap of information before making a reply.

Looking at Trey, he asks " Tell me, Sister of Sarenrae. I've heard rumors that the blood veil plague was not a natural disease. Do you know if that is just gossip or based on some shred of truth?."

Lord Arkona absently drums his rough sketch of the labyrinth with his perfectly manicured, uncalloused fingers. "What dwells within the labyrinth... My nephew, Avidexu, keeps a pair of poisonous emperor cobra. You may find him tending to them in the labyrinth. There is also a blood cobra. Most of the supplies, I can only guess, are for building torture devices or traps. Needles, poisons, hundreds of swords, iron maidens, I have no idea what she's constructed with them, but they must be very dangerous. Of course, you are welcome to keep whatever treasures or valuables you come across. We are alike in that we enjoy the finer pleasures of life..."

"However, it is Vimanda herself you should be concerned about. She is far more dangerous than any of the creatures in the dungeon. I've procured several magical kukris for her, though I do not know why she would need more than two. She wanted a kukri and a javelin that came from a merchant who specialized in creating weapons with lightning magics. She has some sort of arcane powers herself, though I cannot say if they are for crafting illusions or to somehow influence the behavior of others. She's been able to convince the entirety of Korvosa that she is simply the wife of a powerful merchant," he concludes grimly, shaking his head.

Cephelo frowned at the news. Routing out a rat in a hole was difficult enough and this Vimanda sounded like a major rat.

He nodded at the information received and looked at his companions, "Well, I'm ready as I'll ever be. We may as well head down there."

He adjusted his new cloak and belt and thumbed his axe as he waited for his companions.

Trey answers him, Those rumors are true, but I was among those that created the cure, and have seen to its distribution in the rest of the city.

I agree with Cephelo, we must be going, it may already be to late.

"Holy.....! Vimanda, the one who gave Verik the human meat to spread to the populace." Ty blurts out with a sickened look.
I don't belive this Lord is any better than his wife....

"That is wonderful! You must have saved the lives of thousands!" Lord Arkona smiles at Trey. He looks at Lantressa and opens his mouth to reply to her question when the plain-looking mirror hung on the wall begins to glow, emitting a silvery light. Lord Arkona frowns as it interrupts whatever he was about to say. "Vimanda has been kind enough to give me this mirror, allowing me to keep an eye on Queen Ileosa and the rest of Korvosa while she tends to her prisoners. You will want to see whatever it is about to show us. Vimanda may be cruel, but she is certainly intelligent enough not to kill Mr. Kalepopolis if he might still provide some use to her." Glorio snaps his fingers and the image in the mirror changes. It does not reflect the room any longer.

.

Now, the mirror shows Eodred Square, normally a busy market in the heart of Korvosa. A wooden platform has been erected to hold several important guests. Breathtaking and intimidating in her suit of Gray Maiden armor, Sabina Merrin, Queen Ileosa's personal bodyguard, announces "Attention! Queen Ileosa Arabasti, First of Her Name, will be making a public address." The crowd applauds politely. Behind Sabina stands a hideous, fat mage clad in red robes, commander of the Korvosan Guard Field Marshall Cressida Kroft , and the commandant of the Sable Company Marcus Endrin, and rumored candidate for the position of Seneschal. Both the field marshall and the mage look calm and focused, but Endrin is ill-at-ease, alternating between staring at his feet and the crowd presumably gathered before him. Sabina's face is expressionless, as if she is taking care to mask her emotions.

Queen Ileosa takes the stage, wearing a beautiful green robe that accentuates her green eyes and red hair. Gone is her daintly golden circlet worn at previous announcements. Upon her head is a strange crown of black spikes, reminiscint of the sharp teeth of a large beast. She speaks with confidence and conviction to the audience before her. "Citizens of Korvosa! I am pleased to inform you that we have triumphed over the plague! It is defeated, even with individuals like Doctor Davaulus thwarting our efforts at every step. As you well know, the Doctor was punished for his crimes against Korvosa. Yet our city remains wounded! We have no Seneschal to guide us. Therefore, I appoint the Wizard Togomor as Korvosa's new seneschal." The obese wizard steps forward, and bows, accepting a badge from Queen Ileosa and pinning it to his red robe. The crowd begins to murmur in dissent at this. It is well-known that only the Field Marshall can appoint a seneschal, who traditionally rises from the ranks of the Sable Company.

But the queen's magically enchanted voice drowns out the muttering. "Furthermore, the Hellknights of the Order of the Nail have shown their true colors and fled, like cowards. Worse, both the Korvosan Guard and the Sable Company have suffered terrible losses over the past weeks. Neither group is fully capable of continuing as Korvosa's protectors, and thus, to shore up this fault, the Gray Maidens will serve as the new protectors of Korvosa. Sabina Merrin is offically appointed as the new General of Korvosa. Furthermore, as we will need more women to protect Korvosa, any able-bodied lady over the age of fifteen may be required to join the Gray Maidens, no matter her background or social standing. There is no greater honor than serving your community, and all recruits shall undergo training such that they can fulfill the duties of their stations." Ripples of concerned whispers spread through the crowd. Field Marshall Kroft looks simultaneously surprised and confused, but quickly surpresses her expression, while Togomor smirks. Commandant Endrin looks furious, doing nothing to hide his rage. Hesitantly, Sabina steps forward and bows, though only Field Marshall Kroft and Togomor applaud.

Queen Ileosa continues in her calm, decisive tone. "As such, the Sable Company will be dissolved and the remaining marines will be folded into the Korvosan Guard. Commandant Endrin, step forth and surrender your badge of office."

As Endrin does so, he trembles. He reaches for his badge, but instead of handing it over, he throws it at the queen, striking her in the ckeek with it. Everyone, including the queen, is shocked into paralysis for a few moments, long enough for Endrin to bellow out "Your shameful reign ends now! Korvosa will be free again!" An instant later, his crossbow is in his hands, aimed at the still-shocked queen. Endrin pulls the trigger. His aim is true. The crossbow bolt strikes Queen Ileosa in the temple.

Yet she does not fall.

With incredible speed, she regains her composure and yanks the bolt from her skull. Before the blood from the wound has time to run all the way down to her shoulder, she's standing before Endrin. Her free hand whips out and seizes him by the throat, lifting him off the ground as she holds him up for all to see. An instant later, she buries Endrin's own bolt between his eyes with a single powerful blow.

As Endrin's lifeless body crumples to the ground and Ileosa imperiously shakes his blood from her hand, she cries out in a strong, clear voice - "This shall be the fate of all enemies of Korvosa! Mark well his death! It is only the first!" A split second later, Togomor steps forward, taking Ileosa's hand. With a crack like a whip, they both vanish.

The resulting riot is quelled quickly and brutally by the Gray Maidens. Stunned and horrified, Field Marshall Cressida Kroft flees. Reluctantly, Sabina closes the visor of her Gray Maiden uniform to join her troops, but does not draw her sword.

"What just happened? Did she or did she not take a bolt the head and shrug it off like nothing!?! The Queen isn't human!"
Gripping his dagger tightly, unaware that he had even drawn it, Ty struggles to not sit down in shock.
"Without a doubt we need to retrieve the Senechal and Vencarlo as soon as possible!"

Not sure what to make of this, Cephelo knows one thing. That was not the Queen he had seen in the past. He looked at Glorio and asked, "When did happen? Just now? Is this something in the past or a vision of the future?"

Lantressa, startled at what is being shown, can't believe her eyes. When the show ends she says, "What in the ABYSS is she?! Most demons wouldn't survive a wound like that. I agree with you Typhon, we had better move and rescue them as quick as possible."

"That happened just now," Glorio explains, he too looking shocked at the mirror's revelation. "Yes... I think there is more to the Queen than meets the eye. Our twenty-four year old queen took a cross-bow bolt to the head, lifted Endrin off of his feet, and then used his own bolt to kill him. The crown is also unusual. Queen Ileosa always dresses in the latest fashions. This is more than a petulant girl's attempt at ruling a city, if she's drafting young women to enforce the law because the Hellknights aren't strict or brutal enough for her."

"If you have no further questions, I'll inform Carnochan that you are not to be disturbed in the garden."

There is a picture of the scene with Queen Ileosa in the encounter map.

"Thank you Lord Arcona." She looks to her companions, "Shall we? I think we had better hurry."

Trey was silent, visibly stunned by what she saw. the news that it was happening right now, made her even more worried.

the Temple of Sarenrae? what about...Is it safe? what about Her? questions flooded her mind, question she knew that nobody here could answer.

now faced with dealing with yet another butcher of lives, as well as a queen with soul even darker than she imagined.

She looks to her companions, the look on her face, she wonders about them, she knows she can trust Ty, but the others are new. there is a touch of concern there but she does not voice it.

after a second she turns with a determined look, need to make the best of it, I have no choice but to trust.

she heads out, there is work to do.

Carnochan leads you back downstairs, to the first floor of the Arkona Manor. "Per Uncle Glorio's wishes, no one shall disturb you," he promises, unlocking the grand double doors, these too depicting the many-armed woman riding a tiger. "These doors will remain unlocked, so you may return to the house whenever you'd like."

This chamber hardly seems to be part of a palace—it seems more like a clearing at the heart of a vast jungle, teeming with life. The sky above is a deep, cloudless blue, while in the distance, hazy towers of distant structures rise above the verdant canopy. Exotic bird calls fill the air, the scent of dozens of unfamiliar flowers and plants assault the nose, and everywhere a riot of color demands the eye, be it the wing of a tropical bird, the petals of a brightly hued flower, or the glittering multicolored tiles that make up a round fountain to the north, its central plume a stone pillar around which entwine two cobra statues that clutch green gems in their fanged maws. Opposite the fountain to the south stands an immense, life-sized jade statue of an elephant, a howdah perched on its back, its tusks and trunk raised high in greeting to the southeast doors—doors that, from inside the room, look more like gates set into a wrought iron fence that encircles the garden. Other gates set in this fence doubtless lead to other parts of the palace, and after a bit more observation the somewhat static nature of the jungle and landscape becomes apparent—the walls of this garden are in fact an incredibly realistic and clever painting of a Vudran junglescape.

Once in the courtyard/garden, Ty will empty his second pack and don the Owl garb, stuffing the now empty pack into his other one and sliding it over one shoulder, tucking his cloak back on that side.
Drawing Vencarlo's dagger and one of his newly acquired magical ones, He looks about and shrugs...
" Now what? Is the entrance to the place we are going in here?"
Shaking his head.
" Still cant believe old Endrin is gone. His family have real history in Korvosa. And Marshal Kroft, good woman and leader. Hafta make sure she is ok when we're done here."
He mumbles as he looks for the unseen...
perception: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (7) + 13 = 20

Looking on this garden with new eyes after the revelation, Lantressa can't seem to believe what lurks beneath, "So much beauty here, and to think it is marred by the evil that is Lady Arkona."

Just as Lord Arkona described, a pressure plate is hidden between the legs of the elephant statue. The platform that the elephant is standing on is a hinged trap door mechanism, triggered by the pressure plate.

Inspecting the fountain, Typhon finds that the water is constantly replenished by pressure or a hidden pump. Each of the cobras carved into the fountain have valuable bloodstone gems in their mouths. All of the doors leading out of the garden are unlocked, except for the set of double doors to the south.

Not fully trusting the entire set up, Cephelo carefully goes forward checking for traps as he goes along.

Is Ty the 'trap monkey' and therefore going first?
Who's with us? Lantressa, Trey, Typhon, and Cephelo. Anyone else? Yrsa?

heh. Knife master with some points thrown back into disable device, so no trap monkey here. Good perception though.
Not trusting his host or surroundings, Ty ignores the gemstones and focuses on the trap door....
perception : 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (20) + 13 = 33
"I mean honestly, if he was any better n her he would have fled or sought help or somethin'! Woulndn't just hang out n be horrified by her...."
He mumbles as he inspects the area under the elephant.

I haven't heard anything from Yrsa, even after sending some PMs over the last 6 weeks or so. Everyone else (Cephelo, Typhon, Trey, and Lantressa) are still with us. Assume Yrsa escorted the women you rescued from the Gray Maidens home.

If you have a particular marching order, let me know.

Typhon recalls what Lord Arkona told them earlier about the entrance to the dungeon below his garden.

I've watched Vimanda, to learn anything I could about her Vivified Labyrinth. The elephant statue in the garden stands on a stone platform. Directly in the center, between the elephant's legs, is a pressure plate that will open a passage to a flight of stairs leading downward. Just after pressing the button, you must utter the passphrase "Chamidu is blind."

Typhon suspects the platform will swivel to reveal something underneath, even if he does not utter the password. Although Typhon may not have encountered an elephant before, the statue looks incredibly realistic, the stone of its ears remarkably thin and smooth, its legs wrinkled and calloused, and the muscles of its trunk are carved in painstaking detail. His intuition tells him that the password is important and is somehow linked not to the trap door below him, but to the elephant.

Upon pressing the pressure plate and speaking the phrase "Chamidu is blind," the entire disk supporting the elephant statue rotates as if it were an immense cap unscrewing from a container. The platform then swivels to the side, and as it does so, a curved opening appears, granting access to a flight of spiral stairs that descend into the ground.

Proceeding down the stairs, the air in the vast underground grotto is cool. The stairs lead into the northwest section of the room at the top of a semicircular ledge. The ledge winds down along the cavern's inner wall to a series of rope bridges that descend even lower from ledge to ledge. The upper ledge, before it reaches the ropes, is a strangely breathtaking beauty - a garden of all manner of strangely colored fungi, lichens, and molds. The fungi have been cultivated, shaped into all manner of symmetrical patterns not normally seen in nature, transforming the ledge into a sort of underground fungal garden. Here and there, flickering torches burn in sconces above the fungi, while from somewhere in the darkness below comes the soft splash of water against an unseen shore.

If that doesn't make sense, take a look at the encounter map - you are on the upper ledge that runs along the north, eastern, and southern walls where the fungal garden is. A series of rope bridges lead down starting at the southwestern corner of the room.

Descending the stairs and looking around the area, Lantressa says, "Well, this is interesting, I wonder which way we should go?"

I can't recall...did we rest since our last combat? need to know for replenishing spells and such

Trey follows behind. surveying the area. she looks to lantressa. that way she says pointing toward the descending ledge and walkway.

trey cautiously proceeds along the ledge, hoping that it leads them to where they need to go.

perception: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (10) + 8 = 18

Still overwhelmed by all the new sensory input, the bloodrager is even more wary as makes his way down.

Growing up with sczarni, he was no stranger to trickery and illusion but it just didn't sit well with him.

he turned to his magically inclined women companions, "Ladies, any magical auras? Anything we should be aware of?"

Looking a bit abashed at not thinking of that, Lantressa chants and gestures briefly then begins looking for magical auras.

Yes, the party went back to the Silken Cloud to rest, so Trey should have all of her spells available. There was a brief combat while you were on vacation, but Trey was tending to an injured combatant and did not expend any spells.

Looking around, Trey sees that the rope bridges connect to other ledges lower in the chamber, closer to the water. There is a cave exit leading from the southeastern-most ledge about fifty feet below your current position.

Within the carefully sculpted rows of fungi, Trey glimpses torchlight reflecting off of a bit of metal. Studying the area, she notices three unmoving skeletons on the ground, tiny red mushrooms having grown over most of their remains. Forgotten shields and scimitars lay scattered next to the skeletons' bony hands, these covered in a blue mold that glows faintly in the dim cave.

Lantressa's spell turns up six weak auras, all in the same area where Trey noticed the skeletons and their moldy equipment. She is able to identify three of the auras as belonging to the abjuration school. Of those three, she determines that one is emanating from a skeleton's forgotten +1 light steel shield, and another is emanating from a skeleton's rusting +1 chainmail.

Map is marked to show location of remains of three skeletons and magical auras.

Cephelo chuckled, "The remains of the last intrepid explorers..."

He turned to Trey who he was hoping understood more about the dead than he did, "Can you tell what killed them? That may allow us to avoid whatever it was."

While Trey looked at the skeletons, he busied himself with the rope bridges and tried to determine how safe they were.

The only exit from the cave is below us from the SE ledge, correct?

Correct, you can exit out of the stairs where you came in or the cave from the southeast ledge. I'll give people another day to respond since it is the holiday.

Examining the auras, and identifying those she can, Lantressa passes the information along, "This shield, and this armor, both possess magically enhanced protection. This one is also an abjuration of some kind, and the rest I am not sure of yet, I'll have to examine them in more detail another time." Looking at the only path forward, "Shall we?"

Trey and Typhon, you may take an action before this if you'd like

As you near their location, the skeletons shamble upright, grabbing their weapons and armor. Their entire bodies are covered in mushrooms, and dusty yellow spores waft through the air around them.

Initiative order: Fungal skeletons, Typhon, Trey, Lantressa, Cephelo. The skeletons go first, then the party can act in any order.

Scimitars in hand, all three skeletons grow in size, reaching nearly ten feet tall. Slowly, they levitate off of the ground and float towards the party.

Preparing to continue into the depths, Ty switches his lesser magical dagger for a flask of acid.
"What the heck?" He exclaims as the skeletons grow and start to float.

Is there a round to act before they reach us or are we in 'initiative mode' (i.e., is their forming and floating toward us their action?)?

^ What he said.

We are in combat. The skeletons went first in initiative and their action was to grow larger and float closer, but they have a very slow movement speed.

-Posted with Wayfinder

Seeing the undead form up and float towards them unnerved the bloodrager. Barely able to contain his fear, he allowed that emotion to take over. And it fueled his change. And he grew, almost as large as the skeletons themselves.

The bloodrager had enough sense to protect himself for the upcoming battle. He invoked an invisible shield to counteract those large scimitars.

start rage as free action with enlarge and cast shield of faith (AC=25)

Seeing the monstrous undead creatures rise, Lantressa says, "Let us see if they will burn!"

Fireball DC 19: 7d6 ⇒ (2, 2, 2, 6, 3, 3, 2) = 20
I'll place it in such a way that I avoid my allies, I imagine I can get all three and do that.

not much chance to really do anything before hand, (without metagaming), but the question was asked of Trey to take a look, so most likely she would have moved closer to see what she could.

knowledge religion: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (10) + 8 = 18
heal: 1d20 + 17 ⇒ (12) + 17 = 29
perception: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (2) + 8 = 10
knowledge planes: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (4) + 6 = 10

Trey never got close enough to tell anything, but the fact tat they arose leads her to believe they are undead (this is probably wrong but I failed the checks so Trey has failed you as a cleric).

almost out if instinct trey channels her divine energy to disrupt the undead.

channel damage?: 4d6 ⇒ (2, 3, 5, 2) = 12 DC 17 will for half?

That's fine if Trey was going to be closer. Giving Ty a chance to post, I'll progress to the next round tomorrow.

Trey recognizes that the creatures are not any sort of undead she has ever studied. The mushrooms and fungi hold the skeletons together, and they lack the sort of necromantic energy that bind undead into being. I'll allow that knowledge: religion would tell Trey that they are not undead, if you would like to adjust your action.

Desipite their slow speed, the first and last fungal skeletons are quick to dodge Lantressa's fireball, and do not seem to suffer any ill effect from it. While the middle one is not as fast as its companions and takes the full force, the damp fungus does not burn much.

Typhon hurls his vial of acid at the foremost skeleton, though he aims high in an attempt to splash the skeleton behind it as well. His throw falls short, only splashing the closest enemy. The acid sizzles as it burns away fungi and bone.

Typhon's touch attack: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (1) + 8 = 9
damage: 1d6 ⇒ 6
Technically, a 1 always misses, but these things have terrible touch AC. So I'm ruling it hits, but Ty misses hitting the skeleton behind it with the splash damage.

The fungal skeletons hover forward slowly, but there is only enough room for one of them to reach Cephelo and Lantressa. As it nears you, it releases a cloud of yellow spores that linger in the air. It raises its scimitar, readying an attack.

For each round anyone is in the poison, the character needs to make a DC 19 fortitude save or suffer 1d2 constitution damage.

Initiative, Round 2: Fungal skeletons, Typhon, Trey, Lantressa, Cephelo.

Lantressa holds her breath, quickly moving away from the cloud of poisonous spores. Once she has reached a safe distance, she sends a volley of arcane force into one of the creatures.

Magic Missile: 4d4 + 4 ⇒ (4, 1, 1, 3) + 4 = 13

Move away and then target the missiles on which ever skeleton gets hit the most.