"Can you not talk?" Bronwyn looks curiously at Amn. "I'm sorry, I don't know any signs. If we end up spending enough time together I'll try to learn some."
Strae translates Bronwyn's words into Sign as well as his response, "Amn reads lips well but your common is different than hers."
He adds several more gestures.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Edér stares at his hands in genuine horror. ”You’re right. How can I pet anything like this?” It’s the first time he’s seemed upset about his status as a ghost.
”We’ll figure something out. Some ghosts can hit things, right? They must be able to interact with the physical world somehow.” Bronwyn tries to comfort Edér even though her mind is clearly elsewhere. ”My Common is different? I didn’t really think about how we were all able to understand each other despite coming from different worlds. I wonder…” Her accent changes. ”Does it sound any different when I speak Glanfathan? Or is it any closer to the Common you speak Amn?”
Amn nodded to Straehan. She knew he already explained, but looked to cute-fuzzy and put it into her own words.
"I am Amn, and it is nice to meet you. I can speak, and I'm sorry, but I can't hear. And your lips, I don't know what you're saying... Sorry. But Straehan hears, and knows how to sign! He can help us communicate."
Once more she made the simple heart symbol to Straehan.
Strae returns the symbol and then embraces his role as interpreter, keeping up a stream of Sign translating Bronwyn's (or anyone else's) speech.
"It is unfortunate that the effect that translates audible speech for us does not do so for other methods of communication," Rahlmaat comments. She gives Bronwyn a slight nod. "I am now speaking in my own native language . You will likely detect that there is a change, but that you can still comprehend me."
The sphinx grins over at Kiya. "Which makes the *other* fellow Golarionites here a fascinating riddle," she adds. "Now, I have proposed that we should be allies at least of convenience for the present time, and none have yet spoken against it. Are we then agreed?"
The little sorcerer nods, "I prefer allies over needless enemies, nine times out of ten... Agreed."
”Have any of you learned anything about what kind of dangers this world may have? I got kind of distracted and forgot to ask the Weeping Widow about that."
”I did. Even in this ‘exceptional’ part of Kisarta – according to the Widow – there are too many threats to list. But she made specific mention of the ‘machinations of the Houses of Limbo’, the ‘Guardians of each Dominion and their Legions’, and the dangers of dying here until undeath takes you. This Dominion is an exception because there is no ‘Guardian’ per se. Rather, it seems the ‘Circle’ fills that role to some extent. I inferred that the Widow is a part of the Circle, but it has other members as well.”
"I also prefer allies to enemies." Bronwyn's brow furrows. "Especially if there are that many dangers around."
"‘Machinations of the Houses of Limbo’ sounds like politics. I hate politics." Edér's shoulders are slumped, either because of the prospect of politics or because of his inability to pet things.
"You and me both."
"Large groups of people mean politics, now matter their species. Perhaps that is why we sphinxes so often perfer to be alone," Rahlmaat comments with a grin.
She looks at those who have not yet answered her question about working together. "You who have not yet spoken agreement to our alliance of convenience, do you have anything against it? I would assume your agreement, but I did not live so long previously by making such assumptions."
"I've already committed to traveling with Bronwyn, Edér, Kiya, and Daisy. I see no reason a few more couldn't join us." Vol replies to the sphinx's question.
He turns then to their deaf companion. "Oddly, there is a nation where I am from that shares your name. It is known as the 'Merchant's Domain' and is one of the more wealthy countries in all of Faerun." He says, by way of their translator.
Machinations? Sounds like you'll be going home. Daisy turns to Kiya letting out a small giggle.
Ugh, as long as they have soft beds, we can figure the rest out in the morning. And you'll be along for the ride too?
Daisy shrugs with a smile. I ain't got nowhere else to go.
Amn nodded softly to Volgroruth. "Ah. Well, I am Amn because it is short for Amnesia. I don't remember very much at all." She shrugged.
Amn looked up to Rahlmaat afterwards with a smile and an affirming nod. "I'm okay with these guys. Are we exploring this place before we get back on the road to Limbo?" She asked, gesturing to the village-sized mausoleum.
Rahlmaat gazes at the mausoleum, then turns her head back towards Amn. "It does stand out from the rest, does it not? I for one am in no great hurry to reach Limbo, and more information can only do us good."
Bronwyn tilts her head up to look at the tall structure. "I guess we're not in any rush either. Especially not since time's all weird here. Volgroruth, mind setting me down? Mausoleums usually have undead. Or cultists. Or weird insectoid monsters that are way too big and make you wonder what they normally eat when there aren't random adventurers wandering in."
"Or all of the above."
"Or that." Once on the ground, Bronwyn briefly mourns the loss of her perch before testing her bowstring. "Combat talk. I like to scout far ahead of everyone else. Once I spot something I tell everyone what it is so we can prepare, then hide behind the armored people while I shoot things full of arrows. What about the rest of you?" Up to this point Bronwyn has been extremely relaxed. They've been walking in open ground where they could see (and hear) things coming from a mile away. Besides so far no enemies have been spotted, only new companions.
Mausoleums always have enemies though. Always. At this point she's not certain why anyone bothers building the things except as homes for the aforementioned creatures.
"I usually hang out towards the front of the group and keep the bad guys away from people who can't take a hit." Edér looks at his hands again with a rueful grin. "Not sure if I can hit anything like this, but I also don't think I can be hit, so that's a plus. If nothing else I can distract stuff away from the rest of ya."
Rahlmaat nods slightly at Bronwyn. "Foreknowledge is always of value. As for myself... once I could have merely waved a paw and destroyed most opposition. Now, I am..." She grins. "Merely dangerous. The magic I have retained is more useful for supporting my physical abilities than direct destruction, though appropriate application could still prove lethal. Many of my defenses remain intact, meaning I am well-suited to the front... particularly with my sensory enhancements."
She looks to the tomb. "It does not quite seem constructed with beings of my bulk in mind, does it? Fortunately I have a solution."
The sphinx rears up on her hind legs... and as she does, her form shifts, shrinking down and shifting limbs until she stands roughly six and a half feet tall, her forepaws turned to arms and (somewhat paw-like) hands, her bipedal stance comfortable rather than a strain. Her great wings still adorn her back, but sometime during the change a finely-crafted linen garment (that probably no one recognizes as being from a style popular in Osirion rougly a thousand years ago) appeared to cloak her body. Leonine fur still covers the ends of her limbs, a tail peeks out from beneath her clothing, and sheathed claws are obvious at the ends of her fingers.
Rahlmaat gives herself a quick examination. "Yes, I should be ready. Now, shall we enter?"
Straehan looks to Bronwyn, his body and arms in constant motion as he signs everything, ”I wouldn’t mind assisting you with scouting. I may not be quite your caliber but I’m used to sneaking, peeking, and occult havoc-wreaking." He expands his next question to include the entire group, "Apropos of that… are any of you fire-proof?”
You going to start a bonfire for us? Daisy asks, hardly expecting an answer.
No, we are not fire-proof. Kiya clarifies. She points a finger up and makes a circling motion with it, to which Daisy grumbles before flying off. I deal in poisons and other manners of death-dealing. I care not whether my quarry is beside me or some distance away. She pulls out a beautiful fan which she unfurls and starts to fan herself with. The fan is made of silk and steel, with intricate images of crimson flowers adorning the black silk.
Daisy flies around the mausoleum, making sure she can see the roof, looking for any alternate entries whether they are big enough for the rest of the group or just her tiny form.
You fly through the air and survey the mausoleum further, taking in the full scale of it. The entire building seems to cover nearly a mile and it's elegant shingled roof betrays no points of entry. There are, however, three other entrances spaced evenly around the the rectangular building's four sides.
After a short time searching, it seems there is nothing more worth noting and you make your way back. As you flit back, you notice something interesting: the twisting paths, iron fences, and red rose bushes seem to form the image of a massive, stylized rose in full bloom from an aerial view.
"I can be fire-resistant, with warning and enough time to cast the proper spell. Fire-proof, no." Bronwyn raises an eyebrow. "Please keep that in mind before casting fireballs in my general direction. I'm not opposed to a sneaking buddy, but can anyone else translate for Amn if you're up front with me? Unfortunately the cantrip I use for communication transmits sound, not meaning."
Once everyone else has completed their basic preparations, (she herself has none), she heads for the doors along with everyone else. They look big and heavy; she might need help getting them open. She'll start scouting once they're inside.
A couple of glyphs on Rahlmaat's upper arms start glowing a silvery hue, spreading a soft radiance around her.
"It's easy enough for me to do this. Anyone close to me will be partially protected from fire, but scarcely fireproof," the currently-humanoid-shaped sphinx says.
Straehan smiles earnestly, ”Just to level set… I have never torched an ally but I’ve threaded the needle a few times. My immolations are self only.”
”…but can anyone else translate for Amn if you're up front with me?”
He tugs at his beard, considering. ”Amn lip-reads Golarion’s common tongue. She understands Rahlmaat. That said, I’m fine backing you up or staying with the group… your choice.”
"I am capable of both withstanding a lot of punishment, as well as dishing out just as much. I also have some fair bit of resistance to fire." The fel orc says, in reply to Bron's question.
He strides up to the doors and assists his tiny companion in opening them.
This place is massive! And not just for me. Daisy takes a seat on Kiya's shoulder, catching her breath. There's an entrance on each side. Also, when viewed from above it seems as though the fencing, plant life and paths have been arranged to look like... a rose flower?
My first guess would be that someone had this place built. Somebody rich and powerful. But we don't really know enough about these lands to say with any certainty. Assuming it is a rich man's tomb it would no doubt contain things of value. Which means tomb robbers. Which means assurances. The last part is said as a warning, Kiya making sure to meet everyone's gaze with a stern expression.
When they reach the door Kiya will look it over, her eyes alert for traps.
"Oh? Such a spacious structure does seem suspicious," Rahlmaat purrs, her eyes alight with curiosity. "I had pondered if the buildings as well as the graves were created by the land itself, but why would the land build such a grand ediface? For that matter why would one of the denizens of this place? From what we know of death in Kisarta there are no corpses to bury... though there may be maddened beings to contain..."
She eyes the doors thoughtfully. "But the door was not sealed... quite the riddle, is it not?"
The sphinx eagerly strides towards the doors.
Rahlmaat studies the construction of the ediface as she approaches it, trying to discern if it was wrought with manual labor or magic, or perhaps materialized whole in one piece.
...Rahlmaat has constant detect magic...
The door on the right is slightly ajar and covered in scratch marks from a seemingly human-sized set of claws. Something red and wet glistens on the door handle. Other than these ominous details, there seems to be no discernible trap mechanisms or dangers.
You can discern that the possibility of magic not being involved at some point in the edifice's construction is slim at best, although your ability to detect magical auras does not pick up anything on the structure itself. That rules out the possibility of the structure being some form of permanent arcane construct, which leaves only a few logical avenues to consider: it was either carved- most likely magically- from a single block of otherworldly marble or it was created ex-nihilo as it currently exists.
Kiya points out the claw marks on the right door, as well as the red glistening substance on its door handle. The door seems safe but looks like something's been through here. Recently too. Now would be the sensible time to back out... Who wants to go first?
Straehan moves along with the group, a bit distracted by the architecture instead of looking for threats.
4th Spells (5):
3rd Spells (7): x
2nd Spells (8):
1st Spells (8): x
Ki Pool (10):
Stunning Fist (5):
Blood Intensity (2):
Mnemonic Vest (1):
Dancing Lights (3):
Spell Tattoo (1): x (default: Charm Monster)
Effects:
Mage Armor = +4 AC for 9 hrs
Rahlmaat runs a hand-paw over the stone. "Carved from a single block of marble, disguised to look like it's fitted together... either this was conjured into existence all at once, or there are pieces of marble here large enough to carve into a building of this size. It neither proves nor disproves the hypothesis that the realm itself conjures these things into being..." she murmurs to herself, thinking aloud as much as passing information aloud.
Eyes alight with curiousity, Rahlmaat enters the structure.
Bronwyn stands on tip-toes to examine the claw marks. "Well that could explain why the door's open. Someone got hurt and ran in here looking for shelter." She lightly taps a finger against the blood, trying to determine whether it's still wet or has had time to dry.
As soon as she's done examining the door Bronwyn slips inside. "Once we see what we're dealing with we'll pick a direction and start scouting. Straehen, if you don't mind coming along I'd appreciate the backup."
Straehan nods then moves to shadow the diminutive scout. "Delighted to help. We don't know each others' skills yet... so, if you've got an angle and you need me to do something, tell me. I'll do the same."
The iron hinges of the double doors creak ominously as Bronwyn and Volgroruth open them. As the doors open, the dry, stale air of a crypt rushes out to intermingle with the subtle sweetness of the rose bushes outside. The inside is lit with ensconced iron torches whose flames give off no smoke. Black marble floors and a vaulted ceiling lend the place a distinctly grandiose feel, almost like a miniature cathedral. The inside of the mausoleum is lined with rectangular stone coffins, or perhaps a better term would be sarcophagi, whose lids bear depictions of what is ostensibly their occupants: stately-looking knights. Engraved on the foot of each coffin is a nameplate depicting the name of the deceased, along with the title 'Rose Knight of Solamnia'. These rows continue on for a few hundred feet until visibility begins to fade, shrouded in darkness.
"Blood's fresh, by the way. Real fresh. Whoever ran in here is maybe an hour ahead of us at most." Bronwyn keeps her voice low as she looks down the rows of coffins. "Which means there's a good chance whatever left those claw marks is also still around."
"Start with the leftmost row?" Edér suggests. "'Less there's a clue right around here to say where our hurt guy went."
"Works for me. Let me get us all connected." Bronwyn pulls a copper wire out of her pocket and begins pointing at people. When she speaks next everyone (except Amn) can hear an odd echo. "As long as I don't go more than a couple hundred feet ahead we'll be able to hear each other whispering." There are enough spellcasters in the group that they're probably familiar with the spell, but it's worth explaining just in case. "I usually don't go anywhere near that far; not worth the risk. Just far enough to get a head's up if we're about to walk into any traps or ambushes. Shall we?"
Yeah, uh, that felt real weird. Don't think we should get too far apart from each other.
...So you're back in my head? How?
Dunno. Just felt like the right thing to do. She feels the mental equivalent of a shrug.
Brownyn blinks a few times before whispering to the group. "Looks like Edér needs to stay with me." She gives Straehen a shrug of her own and a look that conveys "what can you do" before continuing onward.
"Do not assume numbers just yet. The injured and the clawed may be one and the same... or there may be multiple of one or the other," Rahlmaat cautions Bronwyn. "Were I in haste, I would not sheathe my claws before opening the door, and we could be dealing with any sort of creature here."
Entering a tomb like this is a familiar feeling for the ancient sphinx, whose many quests for knowledge have sometimes taken her into such places. Perhaps few as sizable and well-preserved as this.
"Rose knights... that would explain the shape," she murmurs as she examines one of the coffins. "I never visited Krynn. Dragons are generally too much trouble to be worth it, and they are far too active on that world."
"So does that mean a number of them arrived here at once, and thus this place prepared a tomb for them to awaken in? Or perhaps one of them arrived and gained enough wealth and power to create this structure for their order? Or is it to be a place for them to be bound when they die to many times and become a rabid undead?"
Lost in the riddle, she completely ignores the rest of what Bronwyn said, instead examining the coffin more closely. Does it seem also to have been created by magic? Has its lid been moved? Is it sealed to the rest of the coffin? Are there marks on the walls or floor nearby?
Unable to read the text, Straehan contents himself with nosing around for more tangible dangers. "I'm not seeing any traps here."
Kiya moves over to one of the sarcophagi, away from the rest of the group. She pulls out the holy symbol from beneath her clothing while Daisy watches the rest of the group. Casting a spell on both herself and then Daisy, she then puts the symbol back in its hiding place before rejoining the group.
Vol summons forth unholy chains that wrap around him protectively, just in case they should encounter whatever it was that left the claw marks and/or the blood.
The sorcerer notes Kiya's surreptitious movement, finding that as curious as the strange holy symbol itself. He sighs his relief - the symbol is related to a pantheon he has neither abetted nor opposed. Lucky. Gods are like cats and it seems I've developed an allergy.
Rahlmaat makes no sign of having noticed Kiya's holy symbol. She is, after all, engrossed in this current riddle.
You follow it for a bit longer and your eye turns to one one of the coffins to your left, it's stone rent by impossibly sharp claws and coated in blood from what seems to be a hit to an artery. From there, the trail you were searching for becomes readily apparent as intermittent drops of blood turn into small pools that lead further on into the edifice.
There may be no obvious traps in sight, but it is clear that something dangerous has been through very recently.
Their lids do not seem to have been moved and a small layer of dust lies atop most of them, although they do not seem to be physically sealed in any way beyond the sheer weight of the coffin lid.
Bronwyn ranges ahead of the group, seeming to notice something on the floor. As she moves forward, you see what it is: small drops of blood. The trail leads to a coffin on the left whose surface is stained crimson and rent by a claw mark.
Bronwyn instinctively crouches down even lower as she relays what she's found to the rest of the group. "Think I've found evidence that our clawed guy and our hurt guy are not the same person. Unless our clawed guy was trying to commit suicide by slashing his arteries open while simultaneously slicing through stone coffins. Blood trail continues leading on ahead."
Smart thing to do would be leave. Hurt guy's probably already dead; no sense in joining him.
Bronwyn winces. You're not wrong, but I'd prefer to try.
A sense of resignation mixed with fondness. You always do.
"We've got a few different options here. One, we turn around and leave. Edér thinks that's the smart choice and he's not wrong." Bronwyn slides her bow off her back and makes sure it's ready. "Two, I go invisible and scout even further ahead. Find out exactly what we'd be facing and if anyone's alive to rescue before we decide what to do. A little more dangerous for me but the knowledge we'd gain is potentially worth the risk. Three, we all go further in as a group. No advantage of surprise or foreknowledge, but we'd guarantee we'd all face whatever it is together. Probably other options I'm not thinking of, but right now my vote's option two."
"Unlike the structure, the coffins are carved in the classic fashion--with tools," Rahlmaat says, seemingly thinking aloud as much as communicating.
She pauses and looks at the damaged coffin just as Bronwyn turns back. The currently-bipedal sphinx gives her much smaller companion a slight nod.
"The evidence does lead to the conclusion that there are pursuer and pursued," she concurs. "But as for myself, I would think it wisest to stay in sight of one another. We are all unfamiliar with the dangers of this place, and would little profit from you falling prey to such where we could not see."
"I'm the cat that curiosity almost killed. I'd like to see this hazard, since this is the world we live in now. Rahlmaat's suggestion seems best to me."
Amn tried to gravitate towards the middle of the group. It may not have been the best way to remain apprised of any conversations, but it kept her close enough to everyone in case her magic might be needed...
"I agree, exploring an unknown location with an unknown possible threat, as well as an unknown wounded is best done as a group." He pauses, rubbing his chin in thought. "That said, it might be not bad for our scouts to move ahead, as long as they are roughly still within eyesight?"
Considering where we are, it is unlikely that either the assailant or their prey is expecting to run into any third parties. And if Bronwyn is volunteering I won't stop her.