"Perhaps more detail is in order. Cinderwisp heartsparks can be grasped in a few different manners consistent with the style. You can rely on your reflexes, ability to predict where they will be, or trick them into thinking you are letting them get away."
"The Iron Talon grip is difficult and you must power you way through swinging The One-Who-Waits, as many have done before."
"Soaring Ashes Style requires nimbleness or endurance to deal with the flammable alchemical oil as you jump from pillar to pillar."
"The first of you or my disciples to complete an individual style three times will be the winner of that challenge."
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"Right, then. Seems I should give it a go.". Ott claps his hands together then rubs them in preparation. He then attempts to snatch the Cinderwisp heart sparks, using a series of feints to keep his opponents guessing.
He next attempts the Iron Talon grip, not quite able to execute it, but hoping to make a convincing show of it.
Finally, the halfling tumbles into the Soaring Ashes style.
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"I will compete in the Cinderpalm Strike, and I will... WIN!"
Milord claps his hands as his fellow Halfling leaps with incredible ease at the cinder-wisps.
"You are so good!"
Milord's reflexes then snap in, and he tries to grab those pushed aside by Ott--
--and thinks he manages pretty well.
"OH NO!"
Milord hurts for Ott when he seems to really fail with the Talon Grip.
Milord keeps on trying to grasp at the cinders flying all over--
--and then even some more!
He stuffs some cinders into his mouth: "Just like snowflakes!"
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Meleeka announces, "First, the Cinderpalm Strike then." She snatches out at an ember floating through the air grasping it with ease.
Ott taking a slightly different tactic punches left and grabs right, easily grasping a cinderwisp on his first try. Meleeka's disciple attempts the same maneuver, but clumsily misses. Jakob follows Ott's lead and grasps a cinderwisp of his own. Uskrani does better than her companion and is able to gather a wisp. Having already grabbed one wisp, both Ott and Jakob are able to grab a second.
Meleeka concedes the first contest, "Very well. You have proven your ability to best my disciples in the Cinderpalm Strike, but will you fare as well in the Soaring Ashes Style?" She leads you into the open room to the north. She lifts a small stone bowl full of a glowing liquid from a niche at the side of the room. She deftly jumps onto the nearest column and moves from column to column across the room, without spilling any of the liquid, before using it to light a torch on the other side of the room. She jumps off and hands one bowl to Aeinquel and another to one of her disciples.
Aeinquel has no trouble balancing the bowl as he jumps between the first couple pillars He stumbles as he is about to leap to the final pillar, spilling a small amount of the fluid on himself getting a minor burn and disrupting his timing. Meleeka's disciple redeems himself, as he is able to keep pace with Aeinquel and jump to the final pillar, while Aeinquel stumbles.
Meleeka looks pleased, "You see it is not easy to master the Rain of Embers kata. There is one more chance for you to demonstrate your skill - the Iron Talon Grip." Meleeka leads you back to the room you were practicing in, before taking the key from around her neck and unlocking the door to the east. She walks through and closes the door behind her. She is gone for 30 seconds or so, before returning through the door holding a sizable stone statue. She takes the statue and swings it hard against the face of the gong, without the statue moving in her grip or even a grimace.
Ulfgar tries to replicate the motion, but he drops the statue. Uskrani, drops the statue into the gong making a terrible noise. Ulfgar's second attempt is successful as he maintains his grip. Uskrani again drops the statue into the gong with a clatter. Ulfgar barely loses his grip on his third attempt, while Uskrani again nearly throws the statue at the gong.
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Jakob's first attempt at the Iron Talon style is also not successful, while Uskrani is finally able to maintain control and properly hit the gong. On his second attempt, Jakob does better and strikes the gong properly. Uskrani is unable to replicate her success, but Jakob is.
With the final gong strike, Meleeka gives you a nod of her head, and comes over to take the statue from you. She returns it to the locked room to the east and comes back. "You have done well. You have earned the right to learn the secrets of the Rain of Embers kata." She takes the key from her neck and hands it to you. "Everything you seek is in that room." She gestures to the east.
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Jakob watches her cross the room, replace the statue, then return. "So, what's the final test?" He motions to the door, "If it were so easily done you would've handed us the statue."
As he waits for Meleeka's response, he takes the key and moves cautiously nearer to the door. He mutters a few words under his breath with his back to Meleeka, enacting a spell to sense magic auras.
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Surreptitiously, Ulfgar rubs the palms of his hands with his opposite thumbs, trying to sooth some of the sting from the vibration out of them.
He does not stop to question their fortune as much as the others might have. Instead, he gets his axe and javelin ready and heads to the door.
You begin to suspect he might walk into a grocery store with axe and javelin out.
"There is more for you than just a statue.", Meleeka says.
Jakob determines the door is not magical as he unlocks it and you move in. After passing through a short hallway, you round the corner to a larger room. This room looks as if it was once an bathhouse, a number of 5 ft. deep bath wells are spread through out the room, each containing 2 ft. of stagnant water. Against the northern wall, you see the statue sitting above a wooden trunk on the floor. As you move forward in the room, Jakob detects magic in the area ahead.
Ott determines that the real danger is not the water, but rather a nearly impossible to see rune 30 ft. in front of Jakob.
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Milord will follow Ott's concerned look... and try to creep up to the rune he discovered, without setting it off.
If he manages, he will then take some picks and other small tools from his bandolier... nearly dropping one on top of the rune!
But he catches the tool... and then tries to deactivate the trap...
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Milord successfully sneaks up to the rune and erases it from existence.
The trunk sitting below the statue contains several relics, including an iron scepter topped with a sculpture of a talon clutching an orb that continually glows white-hot as if it is still being tempered in a forge and functions as an everburning torch; two leather bladders containing minor elixirs of life; Meleeka's journal; and a set of six scrolls that describe various occult and martial art techniques developed by Meleeka’s ancestors. One-who-waits is quite large, weighing 4 bulk.
Meleeka's journal describes her discovery of the scrolls in the Monastery of Unblinking Flame's archives that described the ancient forbidden martial arts techniques of her ancestors. When she took the scrolls to her master, she was commanded to destroy them and forbidden from using the techniques they described during the Challenge of Sky and Heaven. She instead burned forgeries of the documents and kept the originals for herself. She refrained from using the techniques in the competition, but was easily eliminated. She stole the relics and statue and fled her to teach her students.
The scrolls are sufficient for you to learn the Rain of Embers style,
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Milord successfully sneaks up to the rune and erases it from existence.
"I was plannin' on doin' that meself." mutters Ott.
Aeinquel skims over the scrolls and the journal. "Most interesting. I expect the Venture-Captain will want to know about this."
"More than just the Venture-Cap'n, I suppose. Well, do ya reckon we just 'aul all these nicey-things outta here?" he asks.
Jakob spots an additional source of magic, and Ott locates another of the runes located just to the south of the door on the opposite path from the one you entered.
Ott sneaks close to the remaining rune, and is able to erase it. Jakob and Aenquel do not detect any further magic in the room.
As you leave the room, you see Meleeka and her disciples watching both exits to the room you just left. Meleeka calls out to you, "Did you really think I was going to just let you walk out of here with the heirlooms of my ancestors? That I don’t know why you arrived at my temple in the first place? The Monastery of Ignorance and its Pathfinder lackeys will never take anything that rightfully belongs to my family ever again. They’ve already stolen too much!”
Initiative
Brogag
Milord
Ulfgar
Meleeka: frightened 1
Aeinquel
Ott
Jakob
Blue
Pink
Green: stupefied 1
Orange
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Milord sees things go as south as his Wayfinder had predicted, so, since his enemies still have not acted, he launches a Surprise Attack, knowing he can catch them flat-footed.
He moves up to where he can have a clear shot at Meleeka, and fires at her once--
--seemingly hitting her right in the throat, with a critical wound.
And then firing at her again - unless she fell, in which case Milord will aim for the Blue-clad enemy.
