Sithiss slaps the annoyance with a hefty blow, but the ambusher manages to steady themselves against the wall. While their other companion swings at Sithiss, both of Selter's foes raise unholy symbols and unleash negative energy on everyone in the room!
34 Bo
23 Certainly nothing bad
22 Not-Trixie (Damage: 12)
22 Vendalfek
18 Selter (Damage: 25/12?)
18 Purple (Damage: 17, 29NL, Shaken)
13 Narayan (Damage: 25/12?)
12 Blue (Damage: 20)
11 Sithiss (Damage: 25/12?)
10 Yellow (damage: 25)
9 Orange (Damage: 17)
8 Red (Damage: 17)
As Bo enters the room and fires, taking down his target, the original wounded cultist makes his return, stepping from the wall behind Not-Trixie with scimitar raised! He deals a hard blow to the arcanist, laughing maniacally.
34 Bo
23 Green (Damage: 21)
22 Not-Trixie (Damage: 33/26)
22 Vendalfek
18 Selter (Damage: 25/12?)
18 Purple (Damage: 35, 29NL, Shaken, Unconcious)
13 Narayan (Damage: 25/12?)
12 Blue (Damage: 20)
11 Sithiss (Damage: 25/12?)
10 Yellow (damage: 25)
9 Orange (Damage: 17)
8 Red (Damage: 17)
Selter manages to catch the enemy cleric with a slash, not as deep as he hoped, while resisting the worst of the channeled negative energy. Sithiss feels the effects of the first but rallies as the second wave hits.
34 Bo
23 Green (Damage: 21)
22 Not-Trixie (Damage: 33/26)
22 Vendalfek
18 Selter (Damage: 12)
18 Purple (Damage: 35, 29NL, Shaken, Unconcious)
13 Narayan (Damage: 25/12?)
12 Blue (Damage: 43)
11 Sithiss (Damage: 17)
10 Yellow (damage: 36)
9 Orange (Damage: 17)
8 Red (Damage: 17)
Not-Trixie's battering blasts turn the man into a mess of pulped flesh on the floor! From the way the assailants stepped out of the stone, she realizes they have been using meld into stone to hide within the walls themselves.
34 Bo
22 Not-Trixie (Damage: 26)
22 Vendalfek
18 Selter (Damage: 12)
18 Purple (Damage: 35, 29NL, Shaken, Unconcious)
13 Narayan (Damage: 25/12?)
12 Blue (Damage: 43)
11 Sithiss (Damage: 17)
10 Yellow (damage: 36)
9 Orange (Damage: 17)
8 Red (Damage: 17)
Ah, and Narayan leaps over the table to deliver a flying kick to Selter's opponent. He follows up with a lighting-fast jab, knock, punch, roundhouse swing, fouette, spin-attack... I think I lost count.
[
Shatters Defenses when he hits a shaken target, rendering them flat-footed
The yellow and red sashed foes fall to Narayan's fists! As they fall, another burst of negative energy washes over the room!
34 Bo
22 Not-Trixie (Damage: 26)
22 Vendalfek
18 Selter (Damage: 12)
18 Purple (Damage: 39, 29NL, Shaken, Unconcious)
13 Narayan (Damage: 25/12?)
12 Blue (Damage: 47)
11 Sithiss (Damage: 17)
9 Orange (Damage: 21)
, if hits, and
Sithiss slaps her foe to the ground, as another wave of negative energy blasts out from the remaining cleric.
34 Bo
22 Not-Trixie (Damage: 26)
22 Vendalfek
18 Selter (Damage: 12)
18 Purple (Damage: 45, 29NL, Shaken, Unconcious)
13 Narayan (Damage: 12)
12 Blue (Damage: 68, Unconcious)
11 Sithiss (Damage: 17)
9 Orange (Damage: 24)
|
Narayan cannons into the remaining cleric with a sickening series of thuds!
Shatters Defenses when he hits a shaken target, rendering them flat-footed
Medusa's Wrath attacks only happen vs. a flat-footed target, but will happen before other attacks
Medusa's Wrath attacks only happen vs. a flat-footed target, but will happen before other attacks
Narayan pummels the remaining enemy into the wall before letting him fall to the ground!
Bo (Damage: 5)
Not-Trixie (Damage: 33)
Vendalfek
Selter (Damage: 17)
13 Narayan (Damage: 20)
Sithiss (Damage: 27)
|
Not-Trixie shudders as the last of the negative energy washes over her. “An activated effect,” she says, letting her professional persona slide into place. “If that’s the case, it’s probable they bypassed the vault door downstairs entirely and came in through the walls to get whatever they wanted. Let’s see if we can get more information about what they’re up to from any survivors.” She pulls out a wand and starts carefully drawing forth its healing magic, pausing every so often to concentrate.
As Not-Trixie applies the positive energy to the fallen, she finds none of them still breathing to benefit from the healing.
Checking the doors leading from the room, the door to the south opens into storage, while the northern room is a dining room and meeting hall. The northeastern door opens to a bedchamber, unoccupied and dark. The southeastern door is locked.
Not-Trixie finds the lock no challenge at all, clicking open the door easily. A small oil lamp reveals a bound figure wearing a hood and seated in a chair behind a large wooden desk in this office. Several maps and scrolls lie piled upon a nearby table to the north, positioned across from the open doors of a matching cedar cabinet. The smell of lamp oil fills the air as evidenced by several puddles on the stone floor.
Sure enough, Bo spots the telltale etching of a rune in the floor before the bound figure. It looks to be similar to the ones found outside in the garden.
Not-Trixie reaches out with her ranged legerdemain and wipes the rune from the floor.
Removing the hood reveals the battered visage of Venture Captain Norden Balentiir, gagged as well as bound. No further magical auras present themselves.
The venture captain spits out the wadded cloth stuffed in his mouth as Bo removes the gag. "My thanks, Pathfinders. We were assaulted by a cult that appears to call themselves the Followers of Almaut, judging by what they told me as they...persuaded me to cooperate. I’m not sure if anyone else survived."
Norden closes his eyes briefly before opening them again, resolution now showing through his expression. "They claimed I must be allied with Khalfani Zuberi, an Osirani merchant. They believe he poses some extreme danger to the entire Inner Sea region. According to them, he will use the rings attached to the concubine bodies you recovered to undo a curse and restore himself to power." He stretches his neck to relieve some of the tension from his bondage. "Well done in dealing with the murderous cretins. I assume there are no more left on the lodge grounds?"
"The bodies and the rings attached to them were held in the Necropolis of the Faithful. I say were, as they were stolen away this morning. That is why I sent for you." The venture captain frowns at Selter's question. "No, we had no chance to set walls. It must have been the assailants. I'm afraid you know more of the lodges state than I do at the moment."
"So far as I have heard, the culprits are unknown. They could be responsible or it could be this Khalfani they are so desperate to stop. Given their claims, I would guess Khalfani has them in order to perform whatever plan he has that they fear so much. I believe we will need divination assistance to track the concubines down. This man Zuberi is our only link to the attackers and I suspect we have the foci to learn more. You recall the possessions of the concubines you found with their bodies?"
Grim satisfaction crosses the venture captains face. "We have an ally in the Necropolis, a sphinx guardian named Sekhmanu. She is able to divine the location of the previous owners of an artifact, even if they are deceased. She has often helped us locate the burial places of those who made or carried things we have unearthed."
”If you will finish releasing me from my bonds, then we can retrieve the artifacts from the vaults and you can visit the necropolis while I request aid from the city guard.”
Freed of his bonds, Balentiir leads the way downstairs, grimacing at the death in the stairwell. The venture captain unlocks the vault containing the artifacts and turns them over to the party with permission to use them as you see fit. "Speak with Sekhmanu and see if you can track down Khalfani Zuberi and his opposition. Have a care with her, as she is...eccentric. Play along with her games to appease her and secure her help."
Sekhmanu is a legendary gynosphinx who watches
over the tombs of the necropolis, aiding the temple of
Pharasma as a potent guardian. She’s provided this
service for hundreds of years.
20+
of faraway lands and cultures. Outside of conversing on
these subjects, she seemingly resents all other contact.
Rumors suggest she feasts on the bodies of those who
displease her and adds their bones to the burial chambers
of the tombs she guards.
25+
Pharasma with potent divination abilities. Adventurers have
sought her assistance over the years in obtaining information
about people (living or dead) and their artifacts.
30+
states a group of Pathfinders once aided a sphinx named
Sekhmanu hundreds of years ago, rescuing her from a
terrible fate.
As you make your way through the city, there are plenty of people willing to explain the significance of the Necropolis of the Faithful to visitors.
Necropolis of the Faithful DC15:
Built on the original grounds of the High Temple of
Pharasma, the Necropolis of the Faithful has served as one
of Garund’s oldest places of burial for thousands of years.
20+
Living relatives and servants of those laid to
rest in the necropolis o"en pay their respects to the
deceased by leaving gifts and o!erings in their memory.
Pharasmin priests and their sphinx allies maintain and
guard the grounds.
25+
The Necropolis of the Faithful closes at night,
but many have noticed strange, shadowy figures moving
among the tombs. The Pharasmins have allayed any fears
of undead behind these shadows. But, many speculate
about their origin, with some suggesting sphinxes,
cultists, or the Pharasmins themselves moving about the
tombs for some unknown purpose.
30+
A recent visitor to the necropolis saw heavily armed,
black-garbed priests approach the southern entrance last
evening. None wore the markings of a Pharasmin.
|
|
“Alright, treat Sekhmanu with great respect,” Not-Trixie advises as the group makes their way to the temple of Pharasma. “If you have any good riddles, she might enjoy those - or if you can talk about far-away places and peoples in enough detail to entertain her. She’s been doing this for a while, so it’s not a terribly out-of-the-ordinary request we’re making.”
“I heard stories about dark shapes moving through the halls of the temple, but it’s a Pharasman temple. Nobody thinks they’re undead.” The wizard frowns, remembering a recent encounter with dark shapes just a few hours ago. “Let’s be polite, but cautious.”
A steep climb from the Crimson Canal into the sun-blasted cliffs above Sothis finally reveals the High Temple of Pharasma and the Necropolis of the Faithful. Time-worn monuments and obelisks rise from within like silent sentinels marking the tombs and vaults of ancient Osirion. A challenging roar soon interrupts their quiet vigil, however, as mighty wings lift a creature of frightening ferocity into view. With the body of a lion and the head and torso of an Osirian queen, it perches upon the weathered base of a toppled statue with its claws extended. “Who dares trespass here?” it demands with a guttural snarl. “Speak now! Answer Sekhmanu or test your fate!”
|
Bo tries to recall details of the many places he has been. "Do they have to be here, like near the Worldwound, or can it be something like a different place. They said it was a different 'plain'. I don't know though. There was a lot of wind and stuff, but it didn't have much to look at. Not sure how that 'plain' isn't any less boring. Maybe more so. If it weren't for the floating rock, there wasn't much to look at."
|
|
“درود بر شخص قدرتمند,” Not-Trixie answers with a low bow. “We are Pathfinders, friends of Balentiir, and we humbly seek your counsel regarding the location of these items’ previous owners to prevent a tragedy already in motion. My name is Not-Trixie, and this is my companion Vendalfek.”