Seeing the congestion ahead, Diorio tosses aside his crossbow, draws his rapier in prime position and gracefully weaves his way through the melee, to end up astride the remains of one doll, attacking the remaining doll with an overhand swing.
Diorio's swing is more accurate than Lueck's, but the table prevents him from getting the right angle in his cut. A narrow sliver peels off the hardened wooden doll, but it remains very much alive.
The doll steps forward under Luecks battleaxe and pummels the grippli with its tiny fists. Through his chain shirt, Lueck can feel that there is the punches pack a surprising amount of power, but they fail to penetrate his armor.
Indus turns on the doll hit by Diorio, uttering a brief arcane phrase that for a brief instant bathes his sword in blue flames.
"Stailc Draíochta!"
Indus' swing barely misses the agile little construct.
Seeing how ineffective his rapier is at chopping wood Diorio tries to keep it busy and focused on him until Lueck's axe can do the job...Perhaps the neck is a weak point...
"I'll make toothpicks out of you!"
The Sacred Ibis marches down to the other end of the table, its long legs, stepping gingerly over the model sailing vessel. It prepares to do it's best imitation of a woodpecker...
-----
-----
When you look back, you see Seben is somehow now in the chariot, bracing her bow for a powerful shot.
For brief second, rather than a small child she looks different, almost as though she... belongs--belongs holding such a large bow and belongs in so ancient a chariot. A trick of the dungeon light, no doubt.
There's a rush of shrieking wind as the arrow fires.
-----
Lueck steps back from the doll and brings his axe down at it again.
To hit , damage
Indus, Diorio and Lueck all hack and slash at the tiny warrior doll, one attempt more futile than the other.
Then, Seben does her warrior princess impresson. For a moment, she projects all the glory of an expert chariot rider, the glory of the ancients reflecting in the shadowy tomb. But only for a moment. Then the reality of gravity, age and the frail state of the chariot set in. A loud creak is all the warning she gets before the once proud war vehicle implodes around her in a cloud og dust, paint and splintered wood.
Her arrow streaks wildly from the chariot chamber, ricochets off the mask of Anubis and comes within a hair's breadth of skewering the Sacred Ibis before it lodges itself in the diorama table.
The scorn and disapproval emanating from The Sacred Ibis is overpowering - and seems to be mirrored by the mask of Sekhmet on the wall of the corridor.
Then the Ibis directs all that fury and dissapointment towards the remaining doll, smashing it into as many pieces as the chariot. The look it sends the reborn warrior sitting on her ass among the wreckage could freeze a yeti solid.
An awkward silence falls over Ahkentepi's tomb.
"Um, er, oops?" Seben makes an awkward smile as she stumbles to pick herself up off the ground.
"So ... when we get back to base, we probably should just ... skip this part, right?"
Indus dusts himself off and start examining the contents of the room.
Careful examination does not reveal any further wards or traps.
The rack to the east proudly displays three shields:
- A light wooden shield identical to the shields carried by the soldiers in the murals. It bears Ancient Osiriani hieroglyphs that spell the name “Akhentepi,” marking those soldiers as under the command of Akhentepi.
- The light wooden shield on the left does not appear to be Osirian in origin, and Lueck recognizes that it is similar in style to those used by tribes in the Mwangi Expanse far to the south.
- The center shield is unusual in that it is a light steel shield shaped like a scarab; it matches the one borne by Akhentepi in the engravings on the doors in the entrance areas. This is a masterwork light steel quickdraw shield.
The rack on the south wall holds a composite shortbow (+3 str bonus), a khopesh, and a spear — both melee weapons are masterwork quality. These likely belonged to Akhentepi. The composite shortbow is still serviceable, but its string has deteriorated, and must be replaced before the weapon can be used.
The chests are of good craftsmanship but less ornate than the one found in the chariot room. None of the chests are locked or trapped, but each has been sealed with wax. They contain a sack with a 100 gp and 42 sp, and several scroll tubes holding papyrus records, private memos, expense ledgers, speeches, and private correspondence. Among the papers are discussions regarding the unfinished tomb of Akhentepi’s mistress, which was to be placed in another section of this complex.
The clay urn is also sealed with wax and contains nard, an expensive, oily perfume.
When the last doll is ruined, Lueck stops and looks at his axe.
"I can only assume Sekhmet did not wish these ancient guardians to be destroyed by her representative."
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The model ship might also have some value to a collector.
Indus joins Sobek in his examination of the southern doors.
"Do you think they finished the tomb to Akhentepi’s mistress? Was it customary to have both a wife and a mistress entered in the same complex? I'd imagine that could result in some restlessness among the spirits."
Seben joins the investigation of the curiosities in the ship room.
"I could probably replace the string on this bow, I have several extras, but by the pantheon, whoever wielded this thing must have had the strength of a hetkoshu." She tests the spring of the bow's curve a second time. "If it was Akhentepi, he would have been one powerful warrior."
----
Ahkentepi's personal papers are worth 250 gp total to an Osirionologist or collector. The nard and model ship are 75 gp each.
The document's regarding the mistress are dated several years after Ahkentepi's family died. Ahkentepi's plans to including her tomb in the same crypt as his also indicate that he intended to marry her.
Returning to the chamber with the tapestry of Ahkentepi's family, you open the southern doors to find a staircase similar to the one to the north, with another set of doors at the bottom.
After determining that these are also unlocked and trapped, you open them and peer into another dark square chamber. You spot the glint of your various light sources reflected back at you as the doors swing open.
Indus examines the documents carefully, trying to glean any useful information from them.
He relates what he's found. "So, maybe its a twoferone deal when we find Ahkentepi's final resting place," he says with a strange smile. "Hopefully it won't mean double the trouble ..."
When the doors to the south open...
"Woah! I'm no wizard," she says, "but anyone else sensing a ton of magic coming from down inside there?"
----
Indus mutters a series of arcane words and waves his hand, and the magical auras become visible to his eyes.
"There's some spell of seeming and changing in the back of the room. Let's proceed with caution."
A shiver runs through Seben and she does her best to shake it off.
Bolstered by extra precautions, Indus and Sobekhotep move carefully forward, with the rest of the Smokin' Bask Brigade close behind.
A massive mirror stretches across the southern wall of this chamber, flanked by two statues. The statue to the east depicts a tall, gaunt woman in a flowing, hooded gown, holding an hourglass. The figure to the west is that of a jackal-headed man carrying a scepter or staff in his hand. At this point, you easily recognize the depictions of Pharasma and Anubis, respectively.
Stone double doors, standing slightly ajar, lead to the east and west. Torch holders sculpted in the shape of bird skulls are built in each corner, and a thin layer of dust covers every surface.
animal with the vermin type.
Startled, Indus turns around.
"Did you see that?" he says with worry in his voice.
"See what!?"
Seben spots the tracks on the floor.
Her voice drops to a whisper. "Wait!" she says. "Something's pushed those doors open! And maybe not that long ago."
". . . I don't think we're alone down here."
-----
Diorio will move to the corner next to Sobek, facing towards the west door and the hall, rapier drawn, trying to avoid looking at the mirror.
"Indus, what did you see?"
.
Seben will then tempt fate and see if she can chat with 'Akhentepi'.
"Sorry for disturbing your rest, General. We've got an important job to do though. Once we're done, we'll be out of your way and leave you alone. Believe me, we'll be as quick as we can."
I’ll wait for everyone to post their actions before I determine the outcome.
"There's a gaunt looking man, probably Akhentepi, in the mirror, and he doesn't look pleased!"
Indus takes a good look around the room, looking for obvious signs of danger, but he's clearly startled by the image.
"I hope you are right, Sobek, but just to be on the safe side ...", Indus readies his sword and pulls a small clay flask from his bandolier.
Lueck will look at the mirror and say "Ancient Akhentepi. I am here at the will of great Sekhmet. What we do here we do to further her will."
Perception:
Initiative:
Critters:
Before Sobekhotep begins examining the east doors, Seben warns him of the tracks leading across the room east to west. They appear recent and travel in both directions. Since both doors are only slightly ajar, whatever made them must be fairly small. Duely warned, Sobekhotep begins his careful search, covered by Diorio and Indus.
Meanwhile, Seben and Lueck attempt to parlay with the image of Ahkentepi, still staring sternly back at them. The reflection does react to their words or presence at all, but after a few moments, both adventurer’s feel a burning sensation on their foreheads. The outline of a single hieroglyph begins to form on their burning skin. Even mirrored, Seben-en-Ra instantly recognizes the ancient Osiriani word for “Thief”.
Fortunately, both Seben and Lueck manage to turn away and resist the burning magic before a permanent brand scars their faces. Only a faint red swelling, which will likely fade within the hour, serves as a reminder of the displeasure of Ahkentepi.
At the doors, Diorio and Sobekhotep maintain their concentration despite the commotion and yelps of pain and surprise behind them. Peering through the half-open doors, they see pillars line the walls of a rectangular chamber, interspersed with stone jackal heads extending from the walls. A stone altar, covered in a layer of dust, sits at the eastern end of the room.
Suddenly, they both spot a trio of large, spiderlike creatures scurry out from behind the altar. Before either has time to react, one of the vermin bites down hard on Sobekhoteps arm. It does not penetrate the skin but holds his arm in a vice-like grasp.
The other one snaps its mandibles at Sobekhotep, but due to the narrow space between the doors, it can’t hit him.
The last critter moves behind one of the pillars to the north, waiting for an opportune moment to join the hunt for prey.
They have large pedipalps near their heads, used to grab and hold prey while they feed with their twin sets of vertically aligned mandibles. When hunting in groups, they prefer to attack targets already grappled by other solifugids.
...Meanwhile, Seben and Lueck attempt to parlay with the image of Ahkentepi, still staring sternly back at them. The reflection does react to their words or presence at all, but after a few moments, both adventurer’s feel a burning sensation on their foreheads. The outline of a single hieroglyph begins to form on their burning skin. Even mirrored, Seben-en-Ra instantly recognizes the ancient Osiriani word for “Thief”.
Fortunately, both Seben and Lueck manage to turn away and resist the burning magic before a permanent brand scars their faces. Only a faint red swelling, which will likely fade within the hour, serves as a reminder of the displeasure of Ahkentepi...
.
Seben tears her gaze away from the mirror. "General! How could you!? And here I thought we were tight!"It might be doubtful that she is heard though, for at that very moment Sobek is calmly recounting that he is under attack...