The melee continues in the daemon's lair, as Harlan, Aryas, and Hekk all manage to connect with the creature. In fact, much to the daemon's surprise, the hits send her, unconscious, to the floor!
~+~Combat Round 4~+~
Harlan
Leopold
Aryas
Tathane (-25)
Hekk (-42, 8 CHA Drain)
Branson
Daemon (unconscious)
Green (-17)
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Aryas thinks for a moment.
He sends a message to his goddess... I am sorry but this being is beyond redemption! Corrupt at heart and dangerous!
A question is sent from his mind to Clarity to get this strong blade’s approval.
Aryas whirls around and sinks his blade into the body of the unconscious fiend.
”Rest in peace and may you find redemption in the afterlife!“
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Hekk stands there waffling, letting his rage lapse, not sure what to do, the confusion and exhaustion obvious on his face. He looks at his hands as the claws revert to normal hands, and wonders at the transformation, wonders not only because of the magic that has been granted to him, but also wonders on the why of it all. Why him? Why DID he become a warrior? What is the point?
With a loud sigh, he says, "Yes, and may we all find peace. Tathane, you can come out now. Aryas has defeated the daemon and Leo has neutralized the construct."
And me? I did not do much of anything.
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With a loud sigh, he says, "Yes, and may we all find peace. Tathane, you can come out now. Aryas has defeated the daemon and Leo has neutralized the construct."And me? I did not do much of anything.
Aryas beams. ”Hekk! If you would not have stood against the fiend and all the other foes before her then I surely wouldn’t have survived! You all saved me from my embarrassing imprisonment! And you know that you are stronger than I - and I am not as robust as you are!“
Aryas looks at the group with such pride.
”Tathane!! You really found the demon! Without your bravery we would have fled from the construct but you led us to the right path!“
Then he looks at Harlan. ”Your bolts were so precise and devastating! You are a master of your art!“
He looks at his closed wounds. Then out of the door.
”And if Leo would not have had such magical illusions then we probably would not have survived! And if Branson would not have healed us again and again then this whole fight could not have been possible at all!“
He looks at the fiend again.
”This whole house and all the pain that we had to witness in last weeks is hopefully over! As Tathane said upstairs when we saw the painting: all these strange incidents could be because of the inhabitants of this house! And you all were part of their defeat!!“
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When Hekk calls out to him, Tathane peeks over the edge of the desk. Seeing the daemon is defeated, he steps out and towards the group. "Nice of you guys to abandon me here. At least you decided to come around eventually."
With Aryas's compliments Tathane shrugs and waves him off with a hand. "Sure. Whatever." Now that he's closer, he catches a closer glimpse of Hekk and flinches. "Wow. Hekk. I can't believe it but you've gotten even uglier."
Tathane watches Branson touch his arm and he allows the healing to flow into his body. Once he's fully healed he pulls away without thanking the cleric.
Aryas hits and you all feel a rush of energy wash over you. Clarity fairly glows in approval.
You looking through the room, you find a magical collar on the daemon and 4 peculiar gems that are grey-ish, but seem to shine with an inner light.
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Hekk perks up when Aryas encourages him, his mood swinging with the positive comments.
"Thanks Aryas, I guess I did pretty well at times. You can't be perfect all the time, right?"
But then Tathane grumps and his ever so insecure personality shoves the mood in the other direction. His face falls, but he does not say anything, but just looks guilty. To change the subject he asks,
"What's a soul gem?"
With everyone healed up a bit, you can slip through the golem's room and close the door behind you, leaving you in the basement with 3 of the old members of the Golden Watch.
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Aryas is truly happy to see the the adventurous couple safe!
He sits down next to them after Branson has tended to their wounds.
”You two are the most relevant role model that I have in mind when I think about love with another person and love with respect to my profession as a pathfinder! You combine both relationship and traveling to save others and to experience life!“ he says with a smile.
”And I am so glad that you are not hurt! But unfortunately it was betrayal that led you to this situation!“ Aryas says and looks at the half-elf with sad eyes.
But suddenly Aryas smiles and his moth familiar starts to circle his head.
”But I wanted to tell you something else! Something great that probably not even you believed possible when you hired us! Our friend Leopold here is the son of your longtime companion, the cleric of the Dawnflower that we rescued from the elderly home and that lent me Clarity! Yes! You also reunited a father and a son with your mission for us!!“ he says beaming with a look at Leopold.
The flurry of information seems a bit much for the old couple, who look a little bewildered.
"Thank you for saving us. I knew you had the look of true adventurers! Teagin certainly owes us an explanation. It seems he lured us here and then captured us. We'd love to know why!"
Taegan wakens with a start and struggles against his bonds for a moment.
He scowls at you.
"Well...what do you want?"
Igneous Crandel and Branda Tulles look on intently as Taegan's gaze goes from one of them to the other. He then pointedly looks away.
"Look at you! You both have one foot in the grave. How can you settle for that, after all of the adventures we've had--all the things we've seen? You're about to give that all up, like old Rhoma and Dern."
"I was sure I had found it. After years of failed experiments." He gestures at the other alchemists, and you realize that they bear a striking resemblance to the aging half-elf, though each of their figures is marred by some obvious congenital defect.
"She was going to tell me the secret to eternal youth. She promised. All I had to do was deliver you."
The half-elf hangs his head in remorse. "I didn't want to do it, but what did it matter. You're almost gone anyway!" He finishes with a snarl.
"I suppose that's all over now."
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"I don't feel gone or anywhere near gone. What exactly do you mean by gone? As in gone away, or gone bonkers, or a goner as in dead, or ..."
Hekk finishes suggestively, hoping the talkative alchemist will fill him in.
"I think you should have gone to a priest for eternal life. They promise that sort of thing aaaallll the time. Certainly a better idea than trusting a daemon. Even the good kinds."
Though what Hekk means by a 'good' daemon is probably as much in question as what the half dead alchemist meant by gone.
Gee, I hope there isn't another combat coming up. I just don't feel up to it.
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From the corner of the room Tathane offers a snide comment. "Heh, Igneous and Branda, looks like your friend is just as friendly as my so-called friends. This kind of friendliness seems to be contagious."
Aryas feels kind of hurt to hear Tathane talk like this.
And when he sees the shocked and speechless faces of the old couple he goes to them and helps them up.
"Come on, let us get you out of here. I know it hurts. We will hand him over the authorities and we will bring you back to town so that you can get your strength back."
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It suddenly strikes Hekk, that Tathane is acting a lot like the others that were influenced by the Daemon. Then there was the fact that he went running to the daemon for help when they were all assaulted by the construct!
"Friend, Tathane, why all this talk of betrayal and being ignored? I don't see that we are treating you rudely. You didn't happen to get kissed by the Daemon or something? Leo, how does a daemon affect someone anyway? I suspect our friend Tathane to be under the influence! Could you do an e-meter reading on him?"
Crandel looks sadly at his old friend, " I don't know how you could do it, Taergan. We've had a long life that was fuller than most. Now, instead of enjoying retirement, you'll be spending your remaining days in prison."
Tulles turns her back on the alchemist. "Thank you so much for your help. We would have come to a bad end without your help. When we return to Cassomir, we'll certainly tell everyone we know what an effective and virtuous team of adventurers you are."
You are able to retrieve Crandel and Tulles' equipment from a locked cabinet in the laboratory. The two retired adventurers suit up and are ready to accompany you out of the manor. Teagan does not give you any problems leaving.
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"Say, fellahs. These here monster parts are getting heavy. Can we load them up on some wagons and take them witih us? Do you think zombie hands would be OK? I man, they look human. Well, they are human, but they became monsters. But it would just seem like a bad idea to sell human parts. Folks might get the wrong idea."
Hekk wrings his hands in indecision.
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Aryas does not remember much about the ghost - poor memory and lack of attention are bad mix but he helps to bury the man with the murder weapon to put his ghost to rest.
Aryas looks at the grave and his companions.
”Tathane and Hekk! You guys are really friends! We’ve been together from the start and I enjoy our bond! And Harlan and Leopold... you have been tutoring and helping on this path to eradicate evil like teachers! The e-Meter readings have been so crucial! And Bransons healing hands are just as soothing as a caring parent!!“
Aryas looks at his moth familiar and seems to be happy.
After loading up any necessary supplies and remains in the manor's wagon, you head back into the Verduran Forest to return to Cassomir.
IT might be your imagination, but the forest already seems more naturally peaceful than on your journey toward the house. At any rate, you are not attacked by monsters or hostile forest creatures, and by the second nigght out, Crandel and Tulles are well enough to start regaling you with stories from their many years as adventurers.
Once you return to Cassomir with your trophies and the tale of your journey, word quickly spreads and you are hailed as heroes for slaying the daemon and revealing her wicked schemes. The authorities reward you, based on the evidence you've brought of ridding the forest of dangerous creatures.
The city of Cassomir declares Tristeza House devoid of ownership, and offers you right of first refusal on the condition you help manage the monsters and other hazards of the Verduran.
Crandel and Tulles provide a safe place for Dern Fosimuth to live out his days in peace, and foreswear taking up arms again. They gift their own weirding watches, as well as Flinn’s and the one belonging to the party’s deceased wizard, to the party and bid them great care in their future career.
Flinn is taken into custody by the town guards. Though Crandel and Tulles visit him regularly in prison, he shows little signs of remorse for putting the tragic events of the recent past in motion.