This time the pathfinders manage to make some progres.. but alas not enough. She falls unconcious, but she is not yet dead.
Round 6:
@Jadger you think that infernal healing won´t help at all with suffocating.
Trusting the luck of the rat, Rinshin walks over and with clever delicate paws manages to clean all her mouth and she takes a long, long breath.
Kazima Rufah is a dwarven woman with dark eyes, deep brown skin, and long braids of hair decorated with horn beads. She exhibits an intellectual and reserved nature. She wears a suit of vented plate mail
tinged blue and embossed with the sigil of Rahadoum—an ornamental shield inscribed with the Laws of Man, bearing two hands with the palms facing out—over a red tunic and bronze-hued pantaloons.
As you bring her to the shelter, she speaks; “To help a stranger in a world where no greater reward can be guaranteed is a noble, dying thing.”
Still you have a feeling she is somewhat guarded!
|
"As the sigil upon your armor would suggest, ours is the power in this world - so why not do Good with it? Might we ask what happened to you?"
Unfortunately, while Kazima cannot be certain, the jewel-encrusted emblem of the Palatine Eye blazing from Alexis's hat comes across as a bit too much of a religious symbol for her to be at ease with her - perhaps overeager - entreaties.
|
"You sure are lucky our caravan managed to pass you in your time of need." Rhinshin says cleaning his hands after touching another being. "I mean you know offense, after all touching is how diseases are spread." The long winded ratfolk gives the dwarf some breathing room and allows the gnome to talk.
|
Bielsi was just about to try another round of first aid, still not quite sure what was wrong with the woman when Rhinsin struck upon the answer and got her properly breathing again.
He remains just as guarded as the woman who seems to share his ancestry. He believes her belief is insane in the face of the direct intervention of the gods and itches to bring her to the loving embrace of Sarenrae. Now is not the time, though, especially when they are entering a place where religion is forbidden and not leaving it.
"All in good time. I cannot save the world, I must save who I can when I can," he says, apparently to himself.
|
Jadger after taking some time to read her lips, tries to allay her suspicions.
"You should give thanks to those who watches over you. It is by chance that we came across you. Are you by any chance hurt elsewhere?"
Jadger with his large nose and crown of flowers looks fully out of place in this desert and present company....
|
"I am relieved to see you awake Kazima. Welcome back to the lives of the living."
Manthos stands and bows, wind whipping his cloak and hat askew. "I am Manthos Iterian, collector of the weird and travelling to the great city of Azir. Once you are feeling better, may we assume you travel in this direction as well?"
With honeyed words Jadger is able to soothe the women.
In the camp the dwarven woman relates her story:
She was investigating the disappearance of Vensali Vuun, a miller who operates a mill along the Jodin River’s northern bank. Not only was Vensali missing, but her family was found torn to pieces in their home. Kazima was returning to Azir from her investigation when the storm struck.
Other than the bloodshed, the only clue Kazima recovered was a small statue of a judge’s gavel made of shimmering gold.
She keeps it wrapped in a black cloth and takes care not to touch it directly when showing it to you.
Jadger and Bielsi can sense that the statue has auras of divination,
necromancy, and transmutation magic.
Shaking her head Kazima replies.
"There was little evidence before and now... after the sandstorm there is non."
|
The dishevelled man looks even more dishevelled after the storm, but as his companion's talk of going to a mill, his impassive expression turns to boredom.
"Can we go now? we have an auction to get too. We saved this dwarf, so we did our good deed for the week, so let keep moving. Also if you ask me a reward is in order..." he pauses for a moment then points at the statue "That will do"
He then starts walking towards the dwarf with his hand out.
|
|
As the minutes pass by, Manthos's faces gets a bit of a sour look as he realizes he's not going to get an answer from the dwarf and the misapprehension may be warranted.
"Well, if it has to be done, let's do it." Reaching out to Kazima, Manthos tips his head. "Kazima, I believe I may be able to discern some more on this item as I am a collector of the obscure. May I?"
Gently removing his gloves, Manthos gestures and then begins to finely handle and touch the statue. Holding it close and looking at each piece of the statue and it's assembly, Manthos mutters to himself and is in deep concentration.
@Detect Magic: The statue radiates divination, necromancy, and transmutation magic.
Manthos touches the statue and instantly is bombarded by emotion.
HATE, SUFFERING, PAIN.
But he also feels that the original owner yearned desperately to earn enough money to pursue a degree in law from Urzeph University in Azir—in
fact, she wanted it more than anything else in the world.
You also notice that the figurine isn’t gold at all but instead seems to be coated with a powdery gold veneer that leaves a residue of golden dust on whatever it touches. Even rubbing at this coating only reveals a hairline veins on the statue that give the impression that the piece the appearance that it’s alive and slowly bleeding gold.
Please make a Fortitude roll.
Kazima remarks:"“Only something connected to a god could seem so
harmless yet be so evil.”
She also wishes to accompany the party back to Azir to rejoin the members of her garrison.
@Bielsi no idea.
Chapter Two: BEFORE THE GODLESS GATE
You arrive outside Azir before dusk on the sixth night of travel. The city’s sandstone curtain wall forces the PCs to seek entrance at one of the massive gates, each of whose arches bears the brass symbol of Rahadoum: a set of open hands, palms out, over an ornamental shield inscribed with the Laws of Man. Each gate has a staff of six guards as well as two Pure Legion soldiers dressed in blue steel armor over white garments, and they collectively question everyone entering Azir.
By the time you arrive, there’s still a line of several trade convoys and several dozen travelers, many of whom are tired from spending several hours standing in the sun and quietly complain about how much time this recent measure is taking.
As you ask around you hear that the Pure Legion is cracking down on some widespread religious disturbance in the city and so has been especially vigilant for more than a week.
Kazima is happy to escort them to the front of the line. This effectively bypasses the wait, and the Pure Legion soldiers hail their captain.
Please make a perception check and a gather information check
|
|
On the remaining trek to the Azir, Manthos has a continuing feeling of dread. The statue contained disturbing imagery, obsession combined with suffering. Truly a damned soul that owned that statue. I would have expected something like that to have emerged from Cheliax, not these lands
Arriving at the City Gates, Manthos carefully studies the crowd and the Pure Legion Soldiers, looking for the reason for their heightened concerns.
|
|
Bielsi is plainly saddened by all the people who so actively avoid the aid of the divine. Which is fortunate, because it means he does not look guilty or suspicious as a follower of Sarenrae.
"Because the gods could help them if they only asked," he quietly continues his conversation with no one.
"I don't think she wanted followers or to help mortals. There are plenty who do," he says, after a brief pause as though listening to someone.
You learn that the Pure Legion has been especially vigilant over the past week following several disturbing tales of aurum death, and this extra scrutiny has drastically slowed the rate at which travelers can enter the city due to the considerable
searches for divine treasures.
Suddenly you see someone approaching you with a black bag, trying to stash it on Jadger.
|
|
Bielsi looks up in time from his thoughts to see the approaching man. It is clear that no one in the group is willing to take the bag from him and he knows that it would be found easily upon his person if he tried to hide it.
He gives the man a simple, scowling look and there seems to be a slight glow to his eyes. "No," he says with great foreboding.
The man falls on his knees, looking at you with pain in the eyes.
"She.. she made me do it!"
Looking at him you can see his body is coated in gold, like an unhealthy rash. You are about to do something as he suddenly starts to heavy, draw a gurgle and vomit blood.