'None of these folks need to know our employer has Olivia has made arrangements for the porters and payments.' Watching and listening as the groups share their experiences, Lucian looks to the others, "You thing theirs any chance Falto's telling the truth about a mummy?"
Seeing the adventure team of all females, Lucian gestures their direction, smiling. "An interesting team." When Sigrun asks him if he'd like to share their tale, he smiles and shrugs. "Sorry Sigrun, our employeer has asked us not to talk about it. Maybe once everything is done, we can share notes."
After a couple of drinks Lucian, picks up his gear. "We'll see you gentlemen in the morning at the entrance, shall we say dawn?"
No way. All the pushdug we fought was magical-mechanical. Actual undead, that's nonsense. Edgar spits. Probably cursing us here, I should shut up. Let's buy a first aid kit, and get on to the next one.
See if our doom is there, all wrapped in paper or some such grakh.
hmpf!
Cardshark says A mummy you say. Well that not bad, I guess. But we took on construct warriors, headed by a metal serpent with fangs as large as daggers. Nasty fight. But we won.
Olivia meets up with you in the morning, and hands each of you a stack of bills. "That's $1000, each. We have some more coming, and some of what I sold has to go back to those that gave us the initial funding, but I convinced them to pay you gents first."
Meanwhile, Cardshark arrives a little late, but carrying a couple of boxes of medical supplies.
"You might be interested to hear, we have been assigned our next site. This one is above ground - a mansion that has fallen into disarray. Some claim it's haunted! But it looks like it was once quite posh, so perhaps there are some antiquities to find."
Sandstone walls ten feet high enclose this estate, affording those who once lived inside some privacy. A two-story stone house is visible beyond the walls, adjoining the rear wall of the property. In the center of the estate's southern wall stands a pair of tarnished bronze gates hanging partially open. A pair of statues flanks the gate. Dusty hieroglyphs are carved into the wall at eye level to the left of the gate.
The hieroglyphs read "House of Pentheru" in Ancient Osiriani. The statues depict two men with a regal bearing and dressed in loose, short robes and traditional Osirian.
Smiling Lucian accepts the stack bills. He rolls it up and tucks it in his pocket. Listening as Olivia describes the next assignment. He smiles, remembering the tall tale from the night before. "Someone's house? I doubt if we can pretend we get attacked by a mummy then." Winking at Cardshark, Maybe we can just say it's haunted."[/b]
As they approach the partially opened bronze gates he slows. "So this place may have been broken into." Not able to read the hieroglyphs he asks, "Can anyone read that?" He then starts to examine the gates for traps before he pushes through them, stepping into the courtyard.
Edgar looks around as they approach the manse. To Olivia, he jokes Been to less fancy of these for parties back home. This could have held quite a Caydenalia in its day.
Somehow, with a countrywoman to reminisce with, the sting of the past is lessened. Bet she never attended those parties, probably was studying instead. And better for her too.
"Never thought that I'd have a reputable job robbing houses." Brannin said, as he looked over the place. "Let's be careful with this job. While the haunting is s*%#e, who knows what kind of mechanical creatures might still be within?"
You have no problems getting to the front door.
You have no problems getting to the front door.
'A Caydenalia?' Turning towards Edgar, Lucian smiles, "We just called them 'frat' parties.' as they move through the gate towards the fine old house, he admires the architecture, chuckling as Olivia points out that it's not exactly stealing. Gesturing towards the front door with his 'walking stick' "Brannin's right though, ghosts or not let's be careful."
Moving towards the front door, Lucian pauses, carefully checking the door and frame for anything that might look like a trap.
B2. Dust and sand cover the ground of this small courtyard. To the east and west stand pairs of columns, once brightly painted and now bleached from the sun, which support stone archways leading to other section of the property. Tarnished bronze gates hang open under both arches. To the north, a small flight of steps leads up to a pair of ornate doors in the south wall of the house between another set of columns.
As you move toward the front door, Lucien hears sounds like an angry mob approaching from outside the gate. c a n be heard outside t h e wa l l s . A woman's voice cries out in Ancient Osiriani, "Hold the gates! Don't let them inside the compound!" Powerful blows shake and rattle the gates, and everyone needs to make a Will Save.
What the kark? Edgar looks back at the gate. Where did they come from? We just got here a minute ago.
'Which set of doors?' Pausing, Lucian looks at all three sets of doors, pointing to the middle one at the top of the steps, "I think we should..' Hearing the woman calling in the ancient language Lucian doesn't understand the words, but he does recognize the tone. Turning to Olivia, he asks, as he draws the mauser. "Permission, do you think the woman knows that?"
What?
Branning put a finger in his ear and rubbed around, seeing if it would help his hearing. He wasn't surprised that he would miss the sounds of a mob approaching, but the fact that none of them had heard them coming was worrisome.
:P
Brannin is overcome by fear, and runs out the gate. Everyone feels it, but the rest of you are able to hold on to your own.
Hold on here! If Brannin is running away, Edgar races after him and with his higher speed would be able to catch up.
'Blast!' Turning as Brannin begins to move towards the door, Lucian realizes that Edgar intends to go after him. 'Seeing an old soldier run is especially sad, what could this have reminded him of that was that bad.' Watching the gate trying to get a glimpse of what is approaching from beyond, trying to keep everyone else calm. "Steady, Edgar will bring him back we just need to not loose our heads."
Brannin is overcome by fear, and runs out the gate. Everyone feels it, but the rest of you are able to hold on to your own.
Pistol in hand, Lucian moves a little closer to the gate to see what he can see.
Brannin stood outside, breathing heavily. It was as if though all of his instincts were going off at once. It reminded him of that that time before the enemy's counter battery fire. It was that impending sense of doom which made him climb out of the entrenchment. It was why he had lost an arm when everyone else had lost their life. And now that feeling was going into overdrive. The difference being that nothing was happening this time. It was just an empty house!
Catching himself, he got his breathing under control and then went back inside. "Sorry about that." He said. "Just needed a, eh, a fresh breath of air."
Edgar can tell what it must have been--Like my recalling the ambush, or times with the Irregulars. He must have been through far worse.--and puts his arm around Brannin's shoulder as they walk. No shame. Civilians don't understand what it's like, even when it's over.
He looks back at the gate. Odd...we should be able to see the crowd from here. Where are they?
You don't see anything. And you can no longer hear a crowd. Very strange indeed.
Brannin nodded at Edgar's words and returned the gesture with a slap on the back. He couldn't bring himself to give voice to his thanks, but it was comforting to know that he wasn't alone. It took the edge off of the embarrassment.
"Someone must have realized that we have a good find here. They're probably trying to get into our heads. When we are done here, we'll have to watch for an ambush."
'There's no one here.' Looking from the gate to the house, Lucian asks quietly. "Did someone say this place was haunted?" He paces nervously until Edgar and Brannin, rejoin them in the courtyard. Then very intentionally shutting the gate he gestures towards the northern double doors. "Shall we try this again?"
His Mauser still in hand, he chuckles at himself. 'If it's ghosts even the most well made chelaxian firepower won't help any.' Breathing deeply he holsters the pistol and approaches the double doors, checking the doors, he looks over his shoulders. "Anyone see anything?"
Edwin shakes his head as he returns to the group. No one's outside.
Fastest dispersing riot I ever saw. Unless it was ghosts. Pushdug haunts! He spits on the ground and rubs it with his foot. Let's get in there and see what's worth all this fuss.
This time, it seems quiet. The doors leading inside also are very quiet. Almost too quiet.
Nodding to Edgar, "At least it's quite now." Intent to do exactly as Edgar recommended Lucian opens the double doors leading into the house and steps over the threshold.
I have a bad feeling about this
Lucian opens the door.
Brightly colored columns stand in the four corners of this foyer. Hieroglyphs cover the walls and tiled floors, obscured in places by piles of dust and sand. Open archways lead to the north, east, and west.
You see three human skeletons, probably those of servants, standing at attention in the room. There doesn't appear to be any visible means that are keeping them in this pose.
What! Are we in a horror story? Is the sniffling (something like that) tyrant up next?
Cardshark sounds disturbed by the sight.
Chuckling at Cardshark's joke, Lucian, not seeing any threats, holsters the pistol. Walking toward the skeletons he draws his 'walking stick' out of his pack, intent on nudging one with it's end. "Curious, it looks like they have these things glued so well they can stand on their own."
Edgar gets out his mace and follows Lucian. Any sign of movement and I pop one. He looks around the room for any other sign of the supernatural.
Cardshark draws his revolver, and so he has a clear shot if the skeletons do something.
”Probably to scare away thieves. But if they could make clockwork creations, then they could animate these as well. Be on your guard.” Brannin said.
Edgar sees a skull turn slightly.
Then the skeletons do animate! And they raise their swords and attack you.
Chuckling at Edgar's idea of 'movement' from the skeletons, Lucian raises an eyebrow at Brannin's observation. "Clockwork skeletons, I honestly hadn't considered that." Pointing at one "Where would they put...." Stunned as the skeletons arms jerk up in unison revealing ancient blades, "What the blazes!" Freaked out by the moving bones, Lucian grabs his walking stick in both hands and swings the knobby hardwood handle at the nearest clockwork cadaver.
BOOM!
Cardshark fires at the closest skele.
But shocked that the skeletons actually attacked, the shot goes wild
You can't see ANYTHING that would indicate clockwork gears, so the site of these skeletons coming to life is truly horrifying. They're movements are a little jerky, and given there is no muscle, it baffles you how these things can move at all.
Still, they come... and they attack! Lucien manages to clock one of them as they approach, knocking it's skull off causing the rest of the bones to tumble into a pile on the ground. As the others swing broken khopesh blades at him, he manages to dodge the first, and duck under the second.
"What the blazes!" Lucian loses his cool a little realizing that he saw no 'clockworks' as he crushed the skull and watched the rest of the bones tumble to the ground. Dodging the rusty khopesh, he steps to the side of the right skeleton, out of reach of the left. "Guys I don't see any clockworks!" Realizing he was fighting something not mechanical, he swings his 'walking stick' at the skeleton.
With the skeletons ‘coming to life’, Brannin raised his steel arm and made a fist. The cords that ran from it into the flesh of his shoulder began to pump a strange liquid. This in turn kickstarted his body’s production of adrenaline.
It's not possible!
Edgar steps up and swings his mace at the nearer skeleton. As he advances, he seems to grow slightly taller and broader, and he roars as he swings Not this grakh again!
However, his raging swing is wide and he brings the mace down to the side of the skeleton.
Trying to take his mind off of the fact that their fighting skeletons, Lucian nervously calls out to the gun smuggler. "Nice shot Cardshark! I think you may actually be better with the pistol than I am." Giving a half hearted smile. "I admit, I may be a little jealous." Lucian lifts his walking stick, watching to see if either of the skeletons keep moving.
Cardshak blasts apart one skeleton as Lucien manages to crush another. The threat appears to be over, for now.
Kneeling down besides the now inaniment skeletons, Lucian sets his 'walking stick' down and sorts through the broken dusty bones. He looks up at his companions, his dark skin pale. "There are no 'clock works' parts here. Anyone want to take a guess as to how they were fighting us?"
Eventually he picks up his walking stick and stands. "I certainly hope there's as much gold here as the last place." Pointing north "Shall we continue?" moving between the two pillars into the doorway of the next room keeping a careful eye out. Gesturing into the room, "Cardshark, you see anything?"
+2 to perception
Dunno. Maybe
Edgar gives the skeletal body a kick once Lucian is done with it. Pushdug ancient magic. Forces beyond our comprehension and grakh like that. He turns to Olivia and shrugs. History books coming alive before our very eyes. Exciting, eh?
It is exciting, though. Had enough fighting people, and the world is in crap shape as it is. I daydreamed as a kid about living in the time of legends--if I have to fight things, might as well get to be like I dreamed instead of in a war. Edgar's eyes are a little brighter as he follows Lucian deeper into the structure.