Angahaar heads into the room, getting on the other side of Olapa to flank the scythe wielding cultist.
Angahaar’s angry swing unfortunately misses, as the cultist’s evil protective magic deflects the blade at the last second. A smug smile spreads across her face as she notices her magic working.
With one cultist down, and the other bleeding and in bad shape, Wenduag apparently seems to think better of fighting.
”I see you are strong, perhaps you might yet have more to offer than these demon worshippers.” she sets her bow aside, and takes a step away from the combat, watching the last cultist’s fate.
Raban urges his loyal companion forward, joining her in an all-out assault to bring the final cultist down. He feels heartened by Wenduag's seeming surrender, hoping that it's not mere words.
With the combat winding down Anastasia drops her shield and takes her warhammer in both hands, seeking to end the fight in one brutal strike. An inarticulate scream coming from deep in her chest as she does so.
Ana's last rage-filled swing is enough to pulverize the second cultist, leaving you in a room with the two bodies and the surrendered Wenduag.
"Ah, you are so very strong. I have chosen correctly, I think." Wenduag says, nodding satisfactorily. "Where did you come from anyway?"
Elise picks up Wenduag's bow. "You chose incorrectly by joining these cultists in the first place." retorts Elise,. "How can anyone trust you after you so willingly left your people? Explain yourself!" Dust from the cavern seems to swirl around her as she glares menacingly at the surrendered foe.
With two cultists mauled, Raban lowers his bloodied weapon and calls Olapa to stand down. The tiger settles into the corner, watching Wenduag while she licks blood off her paws. Raban tries to play good cop to Elise's (completely justified) bad cop. He waits for the blue, spider-leg-laden mongrelwoman to respond and then tries to soften the proceedings by answering her questions.
"Aha...most recently we came from Neathholm, where we met Lann and the tribe you left behind. But we are from all over Golarion, from Kenabres above to Andoran on the other side of this continent and across the Inner Sea on the continent of Garund." He pauses. "We have all experienced the depredations of demonkind in one way or another. Thus, we oppose them and their allies."
Anastasia huffed and steadied her breath as her rage melted out of her, but she didn't take her eyes from Wenduag for a second. "Regardless, we should not allow her to go unbound." Anastasia cautioned.
He scowls at Wenduag, his blade still out and fresh with blood.
"Some of my companions would advocate for mercy once the initial offer of repentance has been spurned. I am not one of them. Be grateful that I will listen to them."
"Ah, so you have met Lann and the tribe. Then you must know how weak they are. They are so afraid to take the power they need to defend themselves!"
She sighs, hearing the more vengeance-oriented party members talking.
"I've only ever wanted what's best for my tribe. Sull and his weaklings sit in the dark corners of their caves, praying for some other force to protect and save them. You are strong, take me with you and we will free our lands from these demons the correct way: with strength and blade."
Raban shakes his head. "You were until moments ago allied with these demons. Given this, I am afraid you would abandon us at the first sign that we face a superior foe."
The dwarf shifts his balance. "When we left, the tribe was prepared to follow us to the surface and lend their aid to Kenabres' defense. Their only reticence was the fear visited on them by the surface-dwellers in generations past. This does not sound to me like weakness. Why abandon them when you could help to lead and strengthen them?"
Angahaar scowls.
"You would turn on us in a heartbeat if we showed even a moment of weakness. You want what is best for yourself, and have deluded yourself into thinking you seek the gain of all."
Turning to Raban he speaks, making no effort to conceal his words from Wenduag, "You are most concerned with mercy of all of us. If your heart is not set to redeem her, let us cut her down here and now."
"Wait--let this Wenduag prove herself!" interjects Elise. She twirls Wenduag's bow around and looks at its former owner. "You won't be getting this bow back--not while we battle these demon worshippers. But even if it's just for your selfish survival, if you can tell us about our foes and how we can defeat them, then perhaps you might still live."
Raban nods sagely at Elise's interjection. There was wisdom in this fiery young nephilim. The dwarf offers a brief anecdote.
"My people tell many stories of the Ten Magic Warriors: disciples of the great Old-Mage Jatembe. They helped guide the people of Garund out of the Age of Anguish and into the Age of Destiny. Some believe that the Ten Magic Warriors were always allies of Old-Mage Jatembe, but one of my favorite tales is of Carmine Jaws, also known as the Hyena Who Looks Between. This Warrior was originally a servant of Grandmother Nightmare: Lamashtu, and defied Jatembe fervently. At their greatest confrontation, rather than striking Carmine Jaws down, Jatembe saw fit to invite her to his side. It is a story--one I would be happy to tell in full later--that reminds us that no one is beyond the pale. Even our greatest enemies can become friends. Yet trust is not built overnight. Wenduag: if we build an allegiance, it must be assembled brick by brick from the crumbled ash of mistrust and betrayal."
Wenduag waits as the group discusses, listening to the words each person is saying.
Finally, after the apparent decision is reached, she smiles genuinely.
"You'll be able to trust me, I am not a demon worshipper. I don't know that much about Hosilla's capabilities, but I know she gets divine power from her god. Baphomet, I think she said it was? She prays each morning to her bull idol. The previous tribe leader was sacrificed to that idol, extremely bloody affair." she says, shivering as she remembers.
"That's how she got this half of the tribe under her thumb: she scared them into it."
Raban listens as Wenduag relates her tale. Rule through fear was often the providence of tyrants. "Then help us rescue them from this blood cult. You can serve as our guide here and tell your tribesmen to stand down when we encounter them. Can you lead us to Hosilla?"
Ana was distrustful of this spider-woman, but she stayed her hand as the group leaned toward trusting her. At the mention of Hosilla getting power from a god she brought her warhammer down on the head of a felled cultist. Making a sickening, wetted crack of bone. "Baphomet is no god. Only a deceitful demon lord." she corrected angrily, "A real god, even a demigod, surpasses him with ease."
Looking to Elise, Ana has a new train of thought to draw her away from her anger. "Can I see that bow of hers?" she asks, "I want to see what this huntress considers a good weapon."
Wenduag nods, and points to the door in the eastern wall of the cavern.
"That's a trash room, we keep an underground creature that dissolves our leftovers there. The way to Hosilla is down there, through the hole with the ladder. She doesn't let any of the mongrels down there anymore, besides those in her inner court. They won't listen to me anymore."
Raban decides that now is not the time to engage in theological discussions with Anastasia about the nature of godhood. Detecting magic on Wenduag's bow, his eyes light up. "Unless one of you cares to use it, I will carry her bow."
Wenduag had a long way to go until she would earn the trust of the four of them, but this was a start.
"If any of you has a buckler and wants to exchange for my wooden shield," he begins, before realizing that none of them had one. He stows his shield.
Before going into the laddered hole, Raban takes a few moments to search the bodies of the cultists for anything useful.
Anastasia frowned, but handed over the bow to Raban. "I still think we should tie her..." she noted, but let it go at that for now. She would look to Wenduag for a moment, and then pull out a long, slender vial of some pinkish fluid.
"We need to move quickly if Hosilla is below." she explained as she reluctantly popped the stopper from the vial, "This doesn't last forever, but it should last long enough if we do not linger." Without further explanations she lifted the vial to her lips and drank her mutagen.
Despite it's color, the draught was bitter and cloying like medicine. Ana had to force herself to continue to swallow, taking deep draws of it until it was gone. There was a weight in her belly from the brew, and this worked it's way through her body. Hey feet feeling leaded and her arms heavy as she made her way to the laddered hole and began to climb. Despite the somewhat lethargic feeling though, when she grasped the rungs of the ladder the group could hear the wood creak and the leather of her gloves strain.
Elise nods at Raban's suggestion of keeping the bow for his use. "We'll find a buckler for you when we return to the surface!" she adds, feeling more confident about the path forward. "All we need to do is defeat Hosilla."
She looks to Wenduag. "Is this trash creature aggressive? Should we distract it with leftovers?"
"Aggressive yes, it wouldn't be distracted easily. Its room is a dead end and there's nothing of interest in there, so no real reason to go in there."
Wenduag laughs dryly as she hears you discussing keeping her weapon.
"If you're keeping my bow, I will be of no use to you against Hosilla. I don't have any intention of facing her empty handed, so I wish you all the luck in your confrontation."
"Will you wait here for us to return, or go back to Neathholm? I do not intend to steal your bow--only maintain it until we are certain we can trust you."
Anastasia looks back to Wenduag and glared. "Don't let her distract us from our purpose, I meant it when I said time was limited." she noted, "If you're not coming with I had better not see you below. I won't hesitate to swing if I do."
"Which would you prefer me do? I can head back to Neathholm and get my tribe ready to head to the surface, if that's what you want me to do."
"Aye, return to your tribe. We've sent others back before you, so they should be aware by now," Raban says. Thinking briefly, he takes his shortbow and offers it to Wenduag, ignoring the dirty looks he is almost certain he is getting from Anastasia. "It is not as effective as yours, but I would not see someone walk through these caverns defenseless. When we next see each other, I will return your bow to you."
Raban takes one of the cause fear scrolls and one of the comprehend languages scrolls. He pilfers through one of the spell component pouch to refill his own. But he otherwise leaves the cultists' gear alone. Some things might be able to be resold when this was all said and done, but Raban doubts that even Abadar could make a sale in Kenabres at the moment.
The women pauses a moment on the ladder. Her features stern and hard, but she takes a few pointed breathes to settle herself. As if she was angry with herself or the state she was in. "Sorry, mutagen riles me up." she offered as explanation before holding a hand out for one of the potions, "Really hoping I get to break this Hosilla in half."
"With the stories we've heard of her so far, I don't think I'll be inclined to stop you," Raban offers. Olapa purrs, her maw and paws coated in blood as she bumps into Ana's hand, urging her forward and down.
Ana begins climbing down after a brief press of her palm over the top of Olapa's head. The woman having a hard time remaining her tough edge with the gorgeous big cat being like that.
"I'll meet you back in Nealthholm, then. I wish you luck in killing her." With that, Wenduag returns back the way you came in, towards her people.
Olapa will have a tough time climbing down the rope ladder, but with enough time she should be able to do so. However, the next room below is not unoccupied. The air in this cavern smells of damp and mold. Water glistens on the walls, and collects in a stagnant pool along one wall.
Standing behind the two barriers (on the map) are two mongrels with crossbows at the ready. They loose their arrows at Ana as she climbs down.
The two bolts miss Ana's armored form, one bouncing off the wall behind her and the other striking a glancing blow that accomplishes nothing.
Hearing the double twang of crossbows going off while he is still climbing, Raban cries out for his tiger to get moving. Olapa scrambles the rest of the way down the ladder, down past the front line, and straight into the fray. The little tiger already has enough of the presence of mind to skirt around and leave openings for others coming behind but leaps up to add a bit more blood to her collection.
Raban scurries after his furry, bloodthirsty companion, drawing out Wenduag's bow at the bottom.
Ana flinches as the first bolt shatters on the wall just past her head, but doesn't even pause as the second one thumps in under a shoulder blade. Thankfully, her armor also broke the momentum of the bolt, but she growled in her throat in response.
As her feet hit the floor she turned, rushing at her attackers and drawing her warhammer out as she went. She was not furious now, but the mutagen in her veins made her heart hammer in her temple. The stern look on her face as she hefted her weapon up to try and strike past the barrier certainly made her look mad.
Elise joins the fray and, seeing the strong members of the party capably attacking the nearer foe, attempts to disrupt the senses of the foe that's further in the back!
Angahaar advances forward, bringing his blade to bear in a vicious arc that's equal parts deadly and graceful.
The mongrel in the back shakes off the mind magic of Elise easily enough, but the one up front is absolutely eviscerated by Angahaar's rage. The second cries out in anger and rushes forward, drawing a club and swinging it at the dragonheir.
Unfortunately for the mongrel, its plan of revenge does not stand up to the armor his target wears and the club bounces off harmlessly.
Raban nocks an arrow and watches in surprise as Angahaar and Ana make short work of the mongrelmen. He doesn't even have to guess whether the two are alive after that brutality. He sighs and murmurs a brief prayer in his native tongue.
<"Magrim, these souls were forged beneath the soil. I commend them now to your watchful eye, great Taskmaster.">
He relaxes the string on his bow, striding forward, kneeling down, and closing the eyes of the slain to give them a modicum of repose. Then he nods to the next door, encouraging them to form back up in their marching order with brief hand signals.
Ana will quickly roll the bodies and then move on to the door. Inspecting it for details. Was it simple, did it show any sign of being trapped or alarmed, and could they simply open it an proceed. She couldn't be silent to save her life, but she did her best to not be exceedingly loud as she sought to push on as soon as everyone was ready. The threat of more combat and the time on her mutagen ticking away keeping her tension high.
Elise does the work of disarming the mongrelmen (and keeping anything of worth) as Raban tries to save them. "We can't save them all," she says, a bit too callously. Those foolish enough to fight were the enemy, in her eyes.
She then check the doorway forward.
Unfortunately for Raban, neither of the two mongrels are alive. The damage done was too great.
Nothing in terms of traps on the door, and its not locked. Three copper bowls filled with glowing coals hang from the ceiling of this long, natural cavern. The braziers fill the chamber with warmth and soft orange light. In the center of the chamber stands a block of stone that serves as a table, lined with wooden chairs. An enormous bloodstain, maybe a week old, darkens the stone’s surface.
Standing in front of the table are two massive rats, about the size of a small dog. Behind, two more mongrels hold crossbows at the ready, and let fly when the door opens.
Cats and rats have a long evolutionary history together, and so Olapa rushes into the room with only one thing on her mind.
Meanwhile, Raban sees the rat and tries to place what sort of Avistani breed it might be.
It's certainly a rat, but it doesn't look like one he had studied. With Olapa focusing on the rat, Raban takes a breath and looks at the rightmost mongrelman, drawing up Wenduag's bow and trying to thread the needle between Ana's head and he door frame to hit them.
Anastasia was surprised by the first bolt, and then rocked by the second as it caught her with her shield out of position. He shoulder tightened to bring her shield up properly, and she grit her teeth from the seizing pain.
"Rat. Bastards" she cursed in a low growl, "You're next!"
Now she was mad, and she was not looking to waste time on these rats while more bolts came in. So she squared herself up, grit her teeth, and stepped into the doorway to try and stave in a rat head.
Moving past the rats while the opportunity presented itself, Elise focuses on one of the hot coals lighting the room. Suddenly, it leaps out of the bowl and launches itself at one of the bowmen!
;
Anagahaar heads in past Ana, trying to give a mighty swing into one of the rats.
With all of the attacks flung their way, only Olapa and Raban connect, scoring hits on the dire rat and the mongrel they targeted.
The enemies, for their part, manage to miss more often than not as well. One rat does strike true on Angahaar.
Sensing increased difficulty, Raban reaches for the silvery butterfly hanging around his neck and utters a brief prayer. A radiant burst extends out from the dwarf, filling the room with a warm glow and filling each of the dwarf's allies with additional guidance.
Fresh from having bitten out a chunk of the rat, Olapa continues her assault, perhaps a bloody treat for doing well awaiting her in the future.
Elise decide her bet bet is to disorient the bowmen while the other dealt with the rats. She starts with the one nearest to her.