Working together, all of you manage to scare off nearby wildlife and get some basic barricades set up to block off the room.
"Good work Pathfinders" V-C Jirneau says. [b]"I think tha'ts as good as its going to be. Now get ready: something tells me it might get tricky shortly.
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The Eternity Arch pulses with energy as Heraxia and the Pathfinders congregate near it. Venture-Captain Armeline Jirneau calls for silence. “You’ve done well, Pathfinders, but our mission isn’t over yet. We have to send Heraxia home if we want to go home.”
“That’s right,” Heraxia cuts in. “I have a few more tweaks to make to the stasis pod. Then I need to attune to the Eternity Arch—it should only take a few minutes. Then I can climb in the stasis pod and ride the Eternity Arch home.”
“This is where it gets tricky,” Armeline continues. “Once Heraxia is sealed within the stasis pod, we’ll have moments to get back into the Maze of the Open Road. As soon as she leaves this time, the Eternity Arch’s connection to her will be severed and the Maze will realign—that means this path to the Maze will no longer exist. Anyone who doesn’t make it through will be stranded here, on this distant planet. It should go without saying that the chances of rescue are slim. I want all of our support staff to retreat to the Maze immediately. Bring what supplies you can. In the meantime—”
Armeline’s words are cut short by an eerie howl that issues from the Eternity Arch. Heraxia races back to her stasis pod. “The hounds are coming! We’re out of time!”
Armeline’s face hardens as she draws an alchemical bomb. “Steel yourselves, Pathfinders! We must protect Heraxia!”
“Incoming!” Urwal shouts as purple glowing cracks in reality spread like spider webs across the chamber. Reality shifts and flickers wildly, leaving behind blurred afterimages of people from other times and places. The unstable reflections screech in confusion and surge forward, arms raised to attack.
Meanwhile, one of the cracks widens, tearing open a massive time rift in the floor. Pathfinders leap out of the way, grasping at stone to avoid tumbling through time. “Help them!” Janira shouts. “Hurry!”
The six of you turn towards the massive rift in the floor.
Jagged and vaguely oval-shaped, the crack in reality is forty-feet long and twenty-feet wide at its center. Six Pathfinders cling to the tiled floor along the rift's edges, grasping to hold on the prevent falling down into the roiling purple energy void below. A seventh agent dangles below them partially in the rift itself - she is clinging onto a rope attached to a grappling hook, though the hook's edges only barely snagged onto a gap in a stone tile nearby. Finally, and eighth colleague is fifteen feet in the air atop a stone pillar - but the pillar's base has disappeared into the rift below!
As the temporal energy swirls around, you each feel oddly invigorated by the power churning in the chamber. Less invigorated is the rope-dangling Pathfinder, as her hook slips off the tile before catching momentarily another gap closer to the rift's edge!
Lynn moves up and gets a good grip on the rope. The Pathfinder is not longer falling further into the void, but still needs a good yank to be pulled back enough to get to safety.
Othello meanwhile uses his head. The piller-trapped Pathfinder catches the rope and ties it around him nervously. All right. Just let me know 'when'
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"Moldy Onions, we gotta move quick!" Miladistra ponders for a moment. "Nicki the >Nixie< owes me."
Seaweed and swamp gas permeate briefly as a small, blue-skinned fey appears near Othello. "Nicki, help Othello pull 'em up."
Nicki shrugs, takes hold of the rope and tries to pull yellow to safety.
Deroff moves toward Lynn, sensing she needs assistance and the Missus is safe back here.
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Seeing Othello and Miladistra get to work on saving the person on the pillar but the one that Lynn was helping still need assistance, Amiri moves into place next to her companion. Once there she gives the rope another big pull to help!
But teamwork pulling has never been her strong suit and keeps bumping into Lynn making it difficult to make more progress.
Let no one ever say size is all that matters: the buff Amiri races over but for now both she and the equally large Lynn aren’t quite able to get the dangling agent up and away. But the tiny Nixie surges with unexpected strength, and with them and Othello anchoring the gnome Pathfinder is able to swing from the pillar and land safely on solid floor!
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"Keep helpin' Othello, Nicki! You got this!" Miladistra calls out to Nicki, who grins and keeps pulling.
Miladistra calls out "Deroff, get to the end of the pit. I'll meet you there." Deroff moves past Amiri and Lynn, stopping at the edge.
Deroff moves up and feels the pull of the pit. He looks to Miladistra as she approaches. Miladistra stops short. "Danger? Got it. Well, bite onto this rope." She puts the rope in his mouth and calls to the person in front of Deroff.
"Deroff can haul yer up, just grab the rope, alright?"
throw rope (roll required?)
Othello and Nikci prove to be quite the combo as they drag another Pathfinder to safety. The dwarf is quite thankful and joins the gnome in safety.
Amiri gives one more good yank and gets the dangling agent to safety! She then casts the rope towards a new struggling PAthfinder, but can't quite haul that fish in yet.
Lynn rushes forwards, resisting the rift's slowing energy for now and getting to colleagues out enough they can scramble out.
Milaidstra and Deroff prepare to use the wolf's size and strength, even as the doggie feels somewhat sluggish.
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Nicki is having a lot of fun pulling on a rope. Miladistra gets Nicki's attention. "Just focus on pulling 'em out, okay? No time for pranks."
Another Pathfinder yanked, Nicki unties the rope for them so Othello can speed things up.
"Okay Deroff, pull!" She looks at her wolf and Deroff fights against the Pathfinder's weight as well as the pit itself.
"Good job, boy." She unties the rope from the Pathfinder and moves over to the other side of the pit. "Alright, come over here, Deroff. Er, when you're ready."
Lynn yanks and moves and Deroff pulls, while Fey-thello continues to be this year's 'it couple' as several more Pathfinder agents are freed from a...well you're not fully sure exactly what falling through a time rift would do to someone, but it would definitely be a bad fate.
And as those Pathfinders catch their bearings, they move to help too. Togehter, the now 10 of you are able to pull the last two agents to safety!
While the other Pathfinders scramble for cover and gear, you see the dragon Heraxia finish her prearations over by the statis pod and run acriss the chamber to the Eternity Arch.
Just then the yawning purple crack in the floor widens and then explodes into dozens of smaller rifts. Each rift reveals a vision of some distant view. From stone walls of unknown architecture to verdant jungles, each vision is entirely different. The ground in the chamber shakes and heaves as a massive bug skitters into existence from the rifts!
“Now there’s a challenge!” Calisro Benarry boasts. “Come on: let’s show them what Pathfinders are made of!”
“The rifts are pulling us into the past,” Jirneau counters as the V-C eyes the artifact in the room's center. “We need to force the Eternity Arch to seal these rifts, or we’ll be stranded here!”
While the rescued Pathfinders run for cover, the agent who had been dangling into the rift itself quick rushes up to Lynn. Hey, thanks for saving me good luck gotta go! She continues fleeing, but not before pressing a token with the Open Road's symbol into the half-orc's hand. Across the room, the pillar-stranded agent does the same to Othello Ditto
As you ready for battle you see a huge arachnid gets its own footing upon being disgorged from a time rift. The creature's shaggy chair and massive size appears wild, a relic and offshoot of an earlier time. A smaller insect detaches itself from the larger one's back and clmabors to the ground beside it as Amiri is the first to react...
Initative
Amiri 39/50 HP
Amiri races forwards and bashes two of the massive spider's legs!
The smaller bug rears back and shoots out a web at the barbarian.
The webs wrap around her and stick her to the floor! . It then skitters forwards and bites at the ensnared kellid.
for
The larger spider, squealing by its injuries, limps away from the big lady with the big sword two instead bite down on less dangerous looking prey: Lynn
for
The fangs sink deep into the orc as she feels her veins pulse with dangerous venom. It tries to chomp down again, but Lynn's slumping from the first injury causes its aim to miss.
Initiative
Amiri 39/50 HP
Miladistra 22/26 HP
Lynn 18/58 HP, need Lynn Fort
Othello 51/60 HP
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Probably are... but if I can cut them up before they posion me, then it doesn't matter, right! Amiri says as a ball of webs slams into her and the small spider moves in. Well you weren't the one I was trying to take down, but I will happily do it! She swings down at the small spider. Then again! And a final time.
Amirir only lands one strike on the small spider, but that blow leaves it terribly bleeding. Othello meanwhile strides forwards to reinforce Lynn and lands a solid strike of his own
Initiative
Miladistra 22/26 HP
Lynn 18/58 HP, need Lynn Fort
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"That spider's bigger than the bedbug that scared Ma! She ran it out of the house on horseback!" She casts >Magic Fang< on Deroff.
Deroff runs over to bite the big spider.
It did indeed hurt, though Lynn digging deep resists its toxins. Meanwhile Ezra approaches the fray and Deroff manages to get a solid chomp on the bug.
In response, the massive spider bites right back at the wolf, connecting twice and bloodying his fur before skittering slightly back.
for
for
By Amiri, the smaller bug snaps twice to try and sink its fangs into the stuck barbarian as it skitters away from the approaching Othello.
for
for
Initiative
Amiri 39/50 HP
Miladistra 22/26 HP, Deroff 29 damage, needs 2 Fort saves
Lynn 54/58 HP
Othello 51/60 HP
Deroff howls as the bites sink in.
Deroff holds steady, growls and charges ahead.
But the pain is too much.
Deroff manages to resist the posions as Ezra's peck leaves the spider reeling...but still alive!
Initiative
Amiri 39/50 HP, immobilized
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Amiri grits her teeth as she is still struggling to finish off the weaker of the two spiders and tries to cut it open again!
Amiri then gets frustrated she is still tied up so begins to try to burst out!
And against all odds, she manages to free herself from the webs and moves into melee with the bigger spider.
Amiri slays her eight-legged nemesis and breaks out of its webbing. Striding up to the massive threat, that spider lashes out at the enemies surrounding it!
for
for
for
Initiative
Amiri 26/50 HP, need Fort save
Miladistra 22/26 HP, Deroff 16 damage
Lynn 30/58 HP, Ezra needs Fort save
Othello 51/60 HP
While Othello softens the blow to Ezra, Miladistra lightning-and-fang combo finally drops the prehistroic pest!
You looks around and see other Pathfinders holding their own and finishing off other time-displaced threats, while others are quelling the worst of the Eternity Arch's pulses. Heraxia is at the arch and seems to have finished her final adjustments as you see the dragon rush back to the stasis pod.