The path winds through the forested valley for several hundred feet before it ends at a short peninsula extending out towards the lake. The foliage here has been trimmed back and sculpted into a beautiful garden with sweeping curves of flower beds, pleasantly sculpted fruit trees, and at its heart a sparkling marble fountain filled with crystal-clear water. A stone plinth at the fountain’s center supports a faintly glowing statue of a peacock. Yet for all the garden’s beauty and majesty, the sight of the cathedral-like temple rising from the lake’s waters to the north easily overshadow its grandeur.
Strange shapes are carved into the fountain; they seem to shift and flow, and looking at them for too long causes the viewer to get a mild headache. The peacock statue looks to be another Peacock Shrine.
Flik approaches the fountain cautiously, then attempts to disable the glyphs that power the shrine.
As Flik approaches the fountain, the air ripples as two creatures suddenly appear, floating in the air! These strange creatures look something like emaciated children with clawed hands. Catching you by surprise, they fire beams of burning light from their hands! Their bodies begin to glow, emitting a nimbus of brilliant light!
"Eeek!"] Maddie exclaims as her world turns white, and she clasps invisible hands over her eyes as she tumbles blindly away from the shining child.
"Gah!" Remy cries out as the light blinds her! "Dammit, I can't see! Maddie, give me flight!"
"Ack, I can't see!"
Hoping to even the odds, Flik starts performing and casts invisibility sphere.
Though blinded, Remy charges into the fray, hoping to take out these dangerous beings!
The shining child Remy hit strikes back, reaching out to corrupt the positive energy within her into burning light! The other one waves its hands, dispelling Flik's invisibility sphere!
"Drat these creatures." Unable to be of much help if he can't see anything, Flik casts echolocation and continues to perform.
Borgol takes to the air, moving toward where he saw the creature, swinging out with his shield, hoping to knock it to the ground -- but his attack passes through empty air.
Maddie manages to muddle her way through her casting of Fly, well-practiced fingers tracing out the spell formulae and directing it at Remy.
Fergus sees a flash of light, but is still able to see.
Not being able to reach the flying creatures, Fergus will launch a bolt!
Crying out in pain, Remy drops into a defensive spin as she unleashes her ki. She manages to land four hits on her foe!
Remy pummels her foe, but it resists the stun. Fergus scores a good hit with his crossbow, while Borgol's swing goes wide. The wounded creature continues to attack Remy while the other one reaches for Borgol!
Seeing how well the first one worked out, Fergus will shoot another bolt.
Feeling the heat of the creature still near him, Borgol once again lashes out, trying to knock the thing out of the sky to Fergus.
for
Instead of giving into dispair at the scene before him, Flik trusts to luck and casts good hope.
Maddie's fingers trace out well-practiced motions, pulling the future a bit closer that much faster.
Unfortunately, Maddie makes a crucial error in the spell's construction, not noticing until it's too late, and accomplishes little beyond a lightshow that nobody can enjoy.
Borgol's shield slam sends the other shining child flipping backwards head over heels. It reorients itself and shrieks, blasting the vindicator with a burning beam of light!
Remy spins again as she continues her assault. She delivers three powerful kicks, the third of which is a critical strike that finishes off one of the shining children!
Borgol calls on Erastil to mend his wounds, his faith making the spell more effective.
Flik sprays the remaining creature with glitterdust, hoping to even the odds with some blindness.
Fergus will continue to shoot his crossbow.
Maddie keeps fumbling blindly with her spells, trying to speed up her allies.
Unfortunately, her best flailing does nothing to force the laws of reality to bend to her will.
Remy launches herself through the air to pummel the second shining child! It reels, and Fergus spears it with another crosbow bolt, finishing it off!
With his enhanced perception of the scene, Flik "sees" the enemy fall. "They are down! The shining creatures have fallen."
Borgol drifts back to the ground, then nods, "If you give me some time, I can ask Erastil to restore our sight... I can do up to three people today. I could do anyone else tomorrow -- unless this is likely to fade."
Fergus can't believe that his crossbow finished the creature off. He looks down at it in disbeliief.
"It's been a long day," Remy says, finding a place to sit by touch. "I think we've earned some donwntime. Let's make sure it's safe, then rest here tonight. We can continue tomorrow morning once everybody's sight has been restored."
"A solid plan! I could use some time to recover."
Flik chants a brief spell and the ground glows under each momber pof the group, restoring some of their injuries.
Fortunately, nothing disturbs your rest in the fountain plaza. The next morning, you disable the Peacock Shrine contained there as you prepare to head to the Temple of the Peacock Spirit itself! You feel like your recent experiences have prepared you for the challenges that lie ahead...
Borgol takes a moment to sit and clear his mind, trying to reach for the Light within him, despite the darkness.... and then calmly asks for Erastil's aid, then smiles as he feels his head fill with magical patterns. He offers his thanks, and before even standing, casts Remove Blindness on himself.
His sight restored, he smiles as he catches sight of Remy, amazed at her grace even without sight, before moving forward, "Here, let's fix that," he says, and casts Remove Blindness. He squeezes her hand, and then moves to restore Flik's sight.
Remy squeezes Borgol's hand back as he restores her sight. "Thanks. Those things were tougher than I'd expected. I imagine we're only going to face even greater foes as we enter the temple. Let's make sure we're prepared."
You head through the forest and to the lake at the center of the valley. A deep-blue stone building straddles a river as it flows languidly out of the high-valley lake. A single thin, delicate spire reaches fifty feet toward the sky from the structure’s vaulted roof, while stained-glass windows depicting ornate peacock feathers with open eyes in their centers peer out from the sides in every direction. An overgrown path leads up to a wooden walkway built along the building’s east facade. On the opposite side of the building, a ten-foot-wide bridge extends to the west toward a towering cathedral in the middle of the lake.
The doors to the building are locked.
Borgol produces a set of picks, "I can probably make this work, but let's make sure it doesn't try to kill us first," and takes a moment to concentrate on his senses before searching the door.
The door does not appear to be trapped. With his heightened senses, Borgol can hear muffled voices engaged in quiet conversation on the other side of the door.
Borgol picks the lock on the door and opens it up. This simple chamber is flanked by two sets of doors decorated with a stylized peacock feather. The ceiling rises fifty feet amid a tangle of support beams for the narthex’s central spire. The tiles are warm (but not hot) to the touch, as if heated from within. A cone of incense burns in a dish on a small table in the northern corner, giving the room a pleasant aroma.
Eight men and women in blue-and-green robes stand at attention. One of them steps towards you with open arms and greets you warmly. "Welcome to the Temple of the Peacock Spirit, pilgrims. High Priest Zurea would like to speak with you. Please, follow me."
The eight cultists escort you out to the bridge over the lake. The 260-foot-long causeway connecting the narthex to the nave is 10 feet wide and features a low stone railing. The causeway itself is positioned just above the lake’s surface, supported by long stone pillars that drop into the depths of the lake below.
Looking into the waters, you catch a glimpse of something immense and tentacled swimming beneath the surface, but it does not bother you—perhaps due to the presence of the cultists.
The entrance into the nave consists of a pair of immense granite doors that swing open easily on well-kept, counterweighted pivots. The walls of this chamber are painted a deep blue and are lit with rippling lights from above, giving the impression of being underwater.
The lead cultist stops before a set of doors to the west, saying, ”We now step into the glorious presence of our high priest, Zurea.” He then opens the doors.
The high walls of this vaulted chamber are decorated with images of peacock feathers and whorls of light forming into an indistinct humanoid shape. Above, the ceiling is open to the sky, with the sun shining down from a boundless vault of blue. Dozens of brightly colored birds whirl and swoop in the air above, their calls filling the chamber below with music. To the north and south, flights of stairs lead upward to side buildings overlooking this plaza-like space. Rows of benches fill the room, all facing a ten-foot-square pillar of indigo stone that rises up to the west. Two stone bridges cross to this pillar from the northern and southern side buildings, converging at a pulpit some twenty feet above the floor. A resplendent statue of a peacock stands atop this pulpit. A set of stairs rises up from the far side of the pulpit to a double door set in the side of a steep spire that rises up to impossible heights, its apex vanishing into the blue sky above.
Four priests await you here, standing behind a fifth woman clad in resplendent finery. ”Greetings! Your arrival is our arrival is most welcome, indeed. We get so few visitors these days. I am High Priest Zurea. I assure you, there is no need for violence. I hope we can talk like civilized people.”