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"Agreed." Ojal sorts the coin into careful heaps and places them in his pack.
"Very useful."
The potter keeps his orb at the ready while his companions restore themselves.
Ojal pokes his head around the door and sees nothing but carnage. "You seem to have dealt with the problem terribly efficiently. Although I'm sure the screams may attract a little attention. Perhaps we should ready ourselves for the next wave?"
Ojal waits for the flurry of movement to die down before making his move.
Ojal moves past Lemris and blinks as the bright light of the Athasian sun hits him. It's more than his attack does.
Somewhat startled by Monoc's abrupt disappearance and the ruckus above, Ojal heads to the bottom of the stairs.
His head still swimming from the recent flurry of world-shattering images, Ojal takes a while to realise that battle has joined. So long indeed, that T'Klik has fallen as well as a drake before he can collect himself long enough to concentrate on the scene in front of him. When he does so, it makes little difference. Firing a futile mental blast at the remaining drake, he moves closer to his fallen comrade.
Ojal follows, deep in thought. He has far too many inexplicable gaps in his knowledge of the world for his own comfort.
"My nur... an old lady told stories like this long ago. Fairy tales, of course." Ojal sounds more and more doubtful.
Ojal ponders aloud. "Great War? When would that have been and against who?"
Ojal looks from the inscriptions to the statues and back again, more and more bewildered that his education has such enormous gaps in it. "I'm reluctant to appear heretical, but it does seem that Hammanu has been leaving out a great deal of our past. For some good reason, no doubt. I hope for some good reason."
Wishing he had paid a little more attention during his ancient history classes instead of trying to probe the mind of the pretty girl next to him, Ojal follows Shamash.
Ojal gazes at the pictures, trying to fathom their age and purpose. He hardly hears the discussion going on around him.
"I do assure you, I would not keep valuable information to myself. The thing is, I've never really been underground. Stonework is a bit of a mystery to me. We should go back and take another look though." Ojal seeks to reassure T'Klik that he is working for the benefit of all.
"An intriguing notion. Is there any way up?" Ojal gazes hopefully at the ceiling.
Ojal is utterly bewildered.
Ojal turns to follow T'klik. "Oh dear. I was ... umm ... engrossed. Yes, that's what it was. So much is happening that seems contrary to what I know. Back the way we came in. Of course." He burbles gently.
"This would be considered heresy in Urik." Ojal looks deeply concerned as he heads to the exit. "I cannot help wondering if Hamanu has simplified matters for his subject?"
Ojal thinks hard as he says, "I believe T'Klik Chik is correct, however. We are still in pursuit of the silt-runners. My natural curiosity should not divert us from the original task. This area is untouched in many years and I'm sure it will wait for us to unravel its secrets."
Ojal repeats the inscriptions out loud for the benefit of his companions. "Most interesting. Do those names mean anything to anyone?"
Ojal wanders forward, eager to read the writing.
Quietly proud of his unsuspected skills, Ojal draws attention to the tuft of hair. "I do feel, really, that we should continue with our immediate mission. Although I am tempted by those doors, they are not our objective," he concludes wistfully.
Ojal gazes from his companions to the floor and wonders if he has hitherto unrealised talents as a tracker.
Ojal rises refreshed and ready to face the day whatever it may contain. He still looks longingly at the doors, but concedes that dealing with the possible silt-runner threat is of more immediate importance. "We can return here later. After all it is unlikely the inhabitants of this tomb will be going very far."
Ojal has no particular desire to pursue the Hej-kin. He looks to see if anyone needs further help before attempting to sleep again.
Hoping that Tanaak can help the fallen mantis-man, Ojal holds his orb high and allows his mind to focus through the glassy stone.
Ojal gropes groggily for his orb.
"It is a tomb. Not surprising perhaps. It belongs to errm... well, either heretics or traitors and hopes that their souls find eternal rest. Curious, to say the least of it." Ojal looks at the door with eager eyes. "Surely there is knowledge to uncover here. Danger possibly as well, but really, when one considers the secrets that might be hidden, how can we pass this by? Or do we feel the silt runners are a more immediate threat?"
Ten minutes of faffing follow as Ojal scribbles strange marks on the ground, looks from the marks on the door to his own replicas, frowns, scuffs them out and tries again. Eventually, he is rewarded. Or so he hopes.
"I do believe I may be able to assist here. My work as a potter has of course given me some insight into inscriptions ..." This sounds feeble, even to Ojal and he sighs. "Or put another way, I have the ability to understand languages, given a little time."
Ojal does a swift mental translation and tries to emulate.
He fails.
"Ah. Well. Yes. Can't have us all tripping over in the dark."
"An inhabited cave system does seem interesting. I propose we explore it." Ojal follows cautiously in T'klik's wake.
"For me, it is a weapon. I can use it to look deeper and seek weaknesses in our foes." Ojal shows Monoc the lump of polished stone. "Shall we find T'klik?" He puts aside the ethics of robbing the dead to be considered at another time.
Ojal's eyes widen slightly and he looks deep into the obsidian. Reflected back, he sees his own distorted image somehow overlaid with many other faces, none of which he knows.
Aware that where a silt runner has been posted as a guard, there may be other silt runners lurking, Ojal start to wriggle his way across the hot sand towards the fallen runner.
"This seems like an opportune moment to check where the scout was standing. Discreetly, of course, so I'm not suggesting I go." Ojal smiles beatifically at Taanak and T'klik.
Ojal tries again, seeking once more to understand and weaken the insectoid brain.
At last he feels an opening and takes it.
Ojal focuses his mind on the only visible Kruthik and tries to find a way into its insectoid brain. He thinks of hives and communal minds and the need to follow a scent and the tremors of the earth to hunt.
The alien mind defeats him.
Unable to help Monoc directly, Ojal does his best to eliminate the threats around the goliath.
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