"I'll be okay, just covered in tar."
After a few moments the darkness fades. A stone coffer holds a collection of recently scavenged relics pried from the ruins. They include scrapings of gold inlays, semiprecious stones, ivory carvings, and pieces of decorative wrought-metals.
Jumbled within the rest of the loot is a set of figurines of wondrous power (golden lions). In addition, a large moonstone is pasted into the tar on the walls to serve as the skeletal snake’s eye.
Ilistra helps with the collection of the valuables. She admires the gold figurines. "Beautiful. I wonder why they kept these; i thought they only revered snakes. Maybe just for the precious metal?"
"Interesting.
"Garland, do you sense any enchantment in these items? Or in that moonstone?"
The snake priests serpent skin armor and club appear to be magical, otherwise his companions had a normal club each. He also has an unholy symbol of Ydersius fashioned from small bones and a spell component pouch.
Placidus removes the magical moonstone from the snake skeleton's eye. "Not sure what this is, but we might have need of it later."
"Garland, do you sense any enchantment in these items? Or in that moonstone?"
"...I will need more time to identify these objects," Garland said with a sigh. He then took a moment to mentally review the layout of the ruins. "I believe there is another large structure to the north. Since it is nearby, how about we go there next?"
Placidus nods. "That seems more likely to yield results than the ruined aquaduct that Polyphemous spotted on the western side. Shall we?" he asks Ilistra and Cica.
Cica nods. "I like ruined aquaducts as much as the next gal, but that structure sounds more promising."
The group makes their way north out of the stinking snake temple, through the tar fields. The fetid odor of the burbling black liquid surrounds them as they fight through clouds of mosquitoes.
In the northern section of the fallen fortress rises a tremendous mound of vegetation, barely recognizable as a great, overgrown ruin. Lying beneath the dripping leaves and vines stands a multitiered stone ziggurat of pre-war construction. This must be Taizon proper, where the First Empire hero Savith erected her monument in honor of the gods, using their divine power to show her the way to the serpentfolk city of Ilmurea .
Having sunk into the dark soil of the Serpent's Grave, the lowest tier of the ziggurat is only partially exposed and it is completely obscured by hanging vegetation.
"Amazing...Look! There are the doors." Placidus points out the heavy stone doors hidden beneath the vegetation.
"Should we go in those doors, or try to climb up to a higher level?"
Ilistra instinctively heats up her skin to keep the mosquitos off of her as they move through the clouds of the blood-suckers.
"I can probably climb that. I don't know how much higher, though."
"We may as well use the doors and work our way up then. We won't miss anything that way."
"That sounds good to me," Garland said. Luna yipped in agreement; she seemed relieved about not having to wait behind while her friends climbed something that she couldn't!
"Nice eye, Placidus! And if it's hidden...maybe it's not guarded? Speaking of which, anyone hurt from that last fight?
"I have to admit, between that rock to the eye and that snake bite, I'm feelin' a bit roughed up. Garland, you got anything help me out with?"
"Yes, I do, Cica. In fact, I do not think I have cast a single spell today!" Garland said.
After Cica gets healed, Placidus leads the way into the ziggurat. Almost half of this cavernous chamber surrounds a smaller, inner structure. The ceiling has collapsed in some places, and a tangle of vines, mosses, and other plants grow in the thick mud covering the floor.
The thick vegetation conceals a flight of stairs in the southwest corner.
A loud angry buzzing precedes the entry of several giant wasps swarming over the ceiling and into the room from deeper within the structure!
As Garland chants, Cica feels her cracked ribs and swollen eye mend themselves.
She follows Placidus into the ziggurat...and at the sound of the angry buzzing, she looks around quickly, bow in hand.
(+2 in jungle)
Placidus 15
Cica 13
Garland 11
Wasps 9.6
Ilistra 9
Two giant wasps, the size of small horses emerge fully into the chamber, buzzing angrily and closing to attack!
Cica looses an arrow at the one wasp she has a clear bead on, and then draws another.
With Luna at his heels, Garland drew his scythe and advanced into the ziggurat alongside Placidus and Cica. Upon seeing the giant stingers on the wasps, however, the masked legionnaire opted not to move further and attack; instead, he decided to reinforce his defenses.
Cica's arrow has no trouble punching through the wasp's carapace, starting a steady leak of fluid from inside the giant bug.
Placidus follows Garland's lead, stepping up and taking a defensive posture with his shield. "Quickly please, ladies. I don't want to feel those pokers in my flesh!"
Unfortunately for him the wasps buzz forward with startling speed and attempt to ram their stingers home in the legionnaires.
Both armored imperials are able to fend off the wasps' attacks.
Ilistra shakes her head out of the stupor caused by the sight of the monstrous insects and charges up her flames. She then fires a blast at the one attacking Garland.
Ilistra's blast catches the giant insect as it rears over Garland, incinerating its antennae and lighting its furry chitin on fire!
================================
Placidus' foot lashes out from behind his shield to strike the wounded wasp with an acid blasting kick.
Ani takes a step closer. She shoots and draws another arrow, trying to take down the one she'd injured.
Garland quickly took a mighty swing at the wasp on fire. Normally, Luna would have attacked the same foe. However, being naturally wary of fire, she instead went to attack the wasp that Cica had been using as a pin cushion!
Cica takes down the wounded wasp, while Garland and Luna wound the remaining two further.
One wasp bites Placidus, as the other bites and stings Garland!
================================
Ilistra flings another ball of superhot flame. Her flames seem drawn to the already-burning giant wasp.
Seeing her first target fall, she focuses on understanding the movements of the hornet attacking Placidus.
Whatever she learns, sadly, is no use when her finger slips off the vote string a moment too soon and sends the arrow wide.
She curses and then draws again.
As he feels the poison take hold, Garland suddenly seems a little woozy on his feet. With an angry growl, the masked man swings his scythe at the wasp that just stung him. Meanwhile, Luna keeps biting at the other giant insect.
A massive rope of flame shear-melts the wasp in front of Garland in half! The masked warrior turns to aid Luna. With a single blow of his mighty scythe he cracks the creature's carapace completely in two. Luna grabs a leg and tugs hard, and the insect comes apart at the tear, plopping into a large pile of goop!
"Garland, are you okay?" Ilistra calls out, worried about her companion.
A woozy Garland uses the wall of the building to support himself. For several seconds, it looks like he may pass out. However, the masked man eventually manages to steady himself and then begins casting spells to heal the poison's damage.
"I am alright, Ilistra," Garland finally says. After casting his spells, he seems fine now. "My magic can't outright neutralize poison yet, but it can heal much of the damage."
Cica looks on, growing increasingly worried as the Gallant Garland seems to grow weaker.
When he eventually shakes it off, she sighs with relief. "Do you need to rest for a while? Let us know when you're ready to go on.
"Placidus, you two, do either of you need to be healed?"
"I've got it covered," Placidus says before calling on the power of the Elemental Lords to knit his wounds back together.
Placidus pats Garland affectionately on the pauldron. "Glad you're okay, my friend."
He looks around the large chamber. "Which way should we go?"
"Shall we try those stairs first? Or we could look around for signs of others here before us."
She steps carefully inside and looks around.
"I don't know what of interest would be around these wasps' homes...but we might as well look around here first."
Cica leads the way North and then West, looking for anything of interest.
As Cica approaches the hive area, a menacing buzzing emanates from within.
While looking around, Cica notes large double doors to the east, two doors along the northern wall, and an open doorway leading into a chamber to the west.
Cica quietly backs away when she hears the buzzing.
"Seems like there are more back there, and I'm not eager to tussle with'm."
She goes over to the Eastern double doors instead, and checks them out before opening them.
As far as she can tell, the door is clear. Inside, high walls surround an open air courtyard that’s entirely overgrown with wild brush. From amid the dense vegetation rises a single massive stone pillar, sheared off just above the middle tier of the ziggurat. A crumbling staircase arches over the courtyard, descending from the middle tier. The stairway curves around the pillar, then continues into the brush and through a stone arch into darkness.
This strange plant consisting of four spidery stalks, long green tendrils, and an inverted bell-shaped cap filled with spores scuttles from the shadows, shrieking ethereally.
Plantboi 20
E'rrone else X
The strange creature flexes and twists before lurching toward the group with its open cap. With a shuddering explosive expulsion, a massive cloud of spores floods the surrounding space.
Ilistra is overcome by the spores. She sees and feels herself melting!
Placidus fights his way through the toxins and steps up to attack the strange fungal creature!
He sinks a fist deep into its shroomy flesh, leaving a ragged fist-shaped hole in the mushroom beast
Because of her sensitive nose, Luna finds herself quickly affected by the spores. In contrast, Garland's mask seem to protect him from the initial onslaught. Garland follows Placidus' lead and moves to attack the mushroom beast.