| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
Slowly you’re able to carve off most of the lip of the brass plug and it falls to the chamber below. A second later you hear a loud splash as the plug falls into some sort of liquid 150 feet below you.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
The party takes a moment to mourn the loss of the giant advanced fiendish crystal gray ooze that had over 32 tones of brass dropped on top of it.
After accepting his dagger back from Suzuka, Tim starts producing more rope.
"Um, I guess we need to go down slowly. Suzuka, you're strong, can you hold the rope while the rest of us climb down?"
"I'll fly down and see what's there." Snowball volunteers.
This Deep chamber is roughly circular. The pool lies in the middle of the room, with about 20ft of space between the outer edge of the pool and the chamber walls, at least it would if there wasn’t a large brass plug displacing the greenish liquid out to the walls.
All around the perimeter of the room, white marble statues stand in regal splendor of an unguessable past. Each statue is of a man or woman fair of face and long of limb, dressed like nobility. The statues part only where a silver door shines from the wall, set a few feet into the rock, the only apparent exit. The door is locked.
Snowball’s peery ears can hear whispering babble all around, but can’t make out any specific words. Perhaps the ghosts of forgotten powers still haunt this ancient chamber.
Jorian watches the hole as the cat climbs down to scout, as he does he whispers.
”I can no longer walk on air, a rope would be a good idea.”
11T7 gathers the brass shavings into a neat and orderly pile away from the hole. After a while it begins trying to pull its edges in a bit.
"3√2 > 4" It explains.
It tries to reshape itself several ways with more determination and limited success.
"Re-gnoming."
11T7 puts its hat on and instantly transforms back into the gnome with business attire.
"3√2 > 4" It explains.
“Barely,” says Arty who’s good at math but not really sure what the inequality has to do with anything.
She takes out the grappling arrow, which has a silk rope attached.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
"Re-? Uh... oh. Yeah-" Tim comments, watching 11T7.
"You'll fit better like that." Tim explains, nodding to himself.
The Kid secures her silk rope about her waist leaving only twelve feet of slack (which she can adjust).
She can’t regnome—but her limber body slips through the hole. She spider-steps onto the ceiling and shoots her grappler arrow into a spot about a yard ahead of her.
It sticks!
Her stunt is quite an elegant spectacle, except that Arty’s hyberboreal robe does not defy gravity the way her body does. But before the hem has time to flop gracelessly over her face, the Kid pushes off the ceiling and swings on her rope.
Once upright, with the rope reasonably still for others to soon descend, Arty will adjust the rope so she can lower herself close to the liquid and find out what it is.
Jorian impassively watches, leaning on his staff.
Whatever the green liquid is, it is not natural.
“That green stuff is NOT water. It’s not natural.”
She spider-steps across the ceiling and through the hole, and loops her silk rope so it can drop far enough to almost reach the surface of the mystery liquid.
“Would any of you like to examine that stuff? I’m not sure we can survive being submerged in that, or if we can even safely touch it. Maybe if those elves were a little more conversational…”
She seems angry at them, but truthfully, she’s ashamed of her lack of control. She took a life. That she was first wounded by the guy is little excuse.
Suzuka nods at Tim and will lower down anyone who wants to be lowered.
Wisely the party avoids touching the green liquid as they descend. However there are precious few places to safely stand. Those that can walk on walls or fly in the air are safe but for those that respect gravity they are left dangling like a worm on a fishing line. The regal statues stare ever forward and whispers sound throughout the chamber but you have trouble discerning what they're saying. A silver door is locked, the only other exit.
Suzuka casts Spider Climb again and descends into the chamber after tying anyone off who needs it. She looks around with Aura sight to check for any alignment auras, then will check the door for any traps.
The green liquid radiates faint evil and the door is not trapped.
Jorian decides to endure the indignity of dangling like a worm on a hook over spending more spell power, for the moment, as the others look over the room and the door.
"Hello? Any of you whispering guys know how to open the door?" Tim says, ambivalent about getting an answer.
The gnome walks along the walls to join the group. It puts away its hat and takes out a wand of infernal healing.
"Administering Aid" 11T7 uses two charges on itself and offers its services to the others.
It tries to single-out voices as it listens to the whispering babble.
Suzuka looks at the group from over by the door and whispers, "It's locked."
She may be capable of forcing it open, but if anyone has the skills to unlock it, you're up.
After listening to the whispering for a while 11T7 determines that the whispering is coming from the statues. The harder it strains to hear the words the harder they are to grasp but the experience leaves it convinced that this place holds great knowledge.
11T7 approaches the lock.
It turns to Jorian "Requesting Guidance."
"Prediction: Situational Discomfort."
11T7 interfaces with the lock as only another clockwork can...
As the door opens, an irresistible force flings you into the chamber beyond. You're caught in a maelstrom of wind and energy that must have been created to be a horrific barrier. At the center of the swirling storm, a simple doorway beckons, perched on a 30ft tall column of stone. The door glows with the gleam of an activated portal. But coiled like a sinister scourge around the upper portion of the column is a serpent at least 35ft long, obviously ready to strike anyone nearing the gate.
The snake:
It is a large, powerful serpent with coal-black scales and bright green, glowing eyes. A diamond patter of dark purple bands runs down the center of the serpent's back.
The Kid gets blown around!
“Crud muffiiiiiiiiiinnnnnnnnnnmnmns!”
It’s painful and humiliating, but she’ll charge forward if she can get her boots back on the ground!
"What the-!?" Tim explains as he is tossed about by the turbulent winds.
Snowball sees an opportunity as he's buffeted around the chamber, if he can just move a little bit closer he could get through the portal.
Snowball tries turning into a mist to protect himself, then he sees his chance and tries to head for the portal.
Jorian avoids getting knocked over by the winds while still dangling from the rope. Fed up with this hanging nonsense he taps into his bonded mask and again casts air walk.
Lets go of the rope above the water and starts trying to push through the wind.
"Forecast: Windy."
11T7 attempts to take to the air.
And then attempts to fly to the portal.
Jorian holds his ground (air?) but makes little progress towards the portal but 11T7 and Snowball dive straight for the portal and near the waiting maw of The Wraithworm...
The shilvanshee's gaseous form provide no protection against the magical creature's bite and a chunk of him is bitten off. He feels the life pulled directly out of him. He is then tossed back into the maelstrom without so much as a to do.
11T7, with Snowball providing a diversion, makes it through and disappears into the portal.
Suzuka spends a Transmutation focus point to enact Mind Over Gravity, giving her a 60 ft Perfect fly speed.
Then she flies in, attempting to grab any of her companions she can reach who are being tossed around by the winds.
Arty plants her feet—
—and once she has a solid stance against the wind, she lunges forward!
But how long can I keep this up… and that damned serpent is immense!
After an unlucky start, Tim puts a hand over the lucky clover tucked away in his shirt pocket.
He catches himself and manages to lean against the wind.
"C'mere Snowball!" he shouts, not remembering to call his cat's name by its pronunciation in Celestial.
"In the bag!" he explains, though the roaring of the wind makes it impossible to hear.
before this post
Daily Use Items
. 2/3 Rod of Extend, Lesser
. 2/3 Four-leaf Clover (+2 luck bonus on a single ability check, saving throw, or skill check)
Extraordinary Abilities
. 3/4 Martial FlexMartial Flex (plus arcane Arcane Strike & Combat Casting)
Supernatural Abilities
. 3/3 Smite Evil (swift; +5 attack & +7 damage; bypass all DR; double damage on first attack against undead/evil outsiders/evil dragons; net +4 bonus to AC)
. 7/8 Lay On Hands (3d6 hp + mercies)
. (2 uses of Lay on Hands) Channel Positive Energy (4d6 hp)
Spell-like Abilities
. 0/1 Daylight (or 1d8+5 CLW that deals half the amount healed in nonlethal to the caster)
. at will Detect Evil (or as a move action for the strength of a single person/item's aura within 60')
Paladin Spells Prepared:
. 2nd (1/day) Paladin's Sacrifice
. 1st (3/day) Hero's Defiance, Unbreakable Heart, Restoration, Lesser
Sorcerer Spells:
. 1st 3/5 Lucky Number, Mount
. cantrips (at will) Acid Splash, Light, Prestidigitation, Read Magic
Neither hearing or seeing his master, Snowball nonetheless feels Tim's concern after getting a grievous wound.
As a spectral mist, he isn't blown of course in his brief search. He soon finds his master and lands in his arms.
Jorian puts his head down and again tries to push his way through the wind.
Arty makes it to Suzuka in hopes that the strong silent woman has a plan. Tim circles the spire briefly lifting off the ground but unfortunately doesn't come close to the portal.
Suzuka grabs Arty, picking her up under one arm and attempts to fly towards Jorian.
She grits her teeth and yells "If you come here I can teleport us."
But she's pretty sure he can't hear her.
“Eep!” Arty is not entirely surprised that Suzuka can carry her so effortlessly. But there’s still a difference between expecting and experiencing.
“So I just… stay like this, right?” By ‘this’ she means dangling limply while being carried like a …sportsball.
It takes a moment for Suzuka to realize that Arty is addressing her. She considers the question-a compact and rigid body would be far easier to handle than a jointed and segmented body flopping all around, but that could be a difficult concept to get across. And talking to people is hard. So she just looks down...oops, better adjust that grip...okay, better. Then she nods at Arty and continues trying to fly towards Jorian in these insane winds.