"Okay, that's one of the weirder things I've ever seen," says Kenzo as he peers through the doorway. "So, one of you want to take a better look?" he asks Gyorgy and Jessa.
"yeah! We could make a pretty little pile here charging for admission to the 'Ye Olde Hall of Arcayne Wonders, kids half price'.
knowldege Arcana (1d20+7=11)
Spellcraft (1d20+7=23)
"Hmm, lets take a look."
I use Detect Magic to see what that offers up (couple of rounds concentration) the prepare to step into the strange room.
The room radiates both transmutational and divinational energies.
As Gyorgy steps into the room, he finds himself floating easily through the air. The dead bird drifts near him and he can see that the label on the wine bottle identifies it as having been brewed in Sandpoint's own Two Knight Brewery.
A silent bolt of black energy ripples across the metal plated ceiling of the spherical chamber, forming a set of words and then vanishing.
As Jessa watches the letters and runes form, she realizes that they are Thassilonian.
I swim around in the air, trying to avoid the icky maggots and collecting up the book, scroll, wine and wand.
I may occasionally emit a quiet; "Wheee!"
The scroll and the wand, incidentally, also detected as magic.
The scroll and the wand, incidentally, also detected as magic.
"...Wheeee!"
Once I recover my composure I drift back to the entrance, clear the 'flotation field' and hand the magic devices to Jessa.
Once I recover my composure I drift back to the entrance, clear the 'flotation field' and hand the magic devices to Jessa.
"That's got to be one of the most amazing things I've ever seen," Jessa states in regards to Gyorgy's experience in the weightless room. Then she regards the items he retrieved. "And I'm sure these will be no less surprising in whatever arcane power they can produce. Do we have time for me to study them before we move on?"
The wand would appear to be an antique and it bears some Thassilon markings. The scroll is certainly covered in what appears to be arcane notations.
Without being able to analyze their dweomers however Jessa cannot tell more about them or their abilities.
As Gyorgy steps into the room, he finds himself floating easily through the air.
"I stand corrected," says Kenzo, "Now that's the strangest thing I've ever seen."
"Let's have a look at this then..."
I muscle in on the magical action.
Both the wand and the scroll radiate evocational magic but Gyorgy cannot tell what they do.
"Sorry Jessa, all this weird ancient magic is a bit beyond me."
I turn to the rest of the gang; "So, is this a dead end then?"
"Sorry Jessa, all this weird ancient magic is a bit beyond me."
"It's okay," she responds, "Given enough time, I'm confident I can unlock their secrets. Shall I hold onto them for the time being?"
"So, is this a dead end then?"
"It looks that way," Jessa nods, "The stairwell was blocked back there. And I don't see any other exits from that strange room. The runes on the walls are odd, though. Patterns of Thassilonian script...occasionally a word or two...but nothing significant that I can tell. Perhaps we should circle back and explore one of the other passages? That statue for instance...I'd like to get a better look at that."
"The statue probably isn't going anywhere, but let's get back to the other tunnels. These defensive conjurings don't last forever."
I attempt to wave the burly, armoured members of the party ahead of me.
Herded by Gyorgy, the party moves back up the hallway into the room with the pits and then back into the defunct chamber of tortures. They traipse once more through the room with the prison cells and back to the south until they are once more in the chamber with the red marble statue of the very angry woman.
As before, there are four exits from the room.
The door to the north of course leads to the prison chamber and the opening in the wall to the west leads into the tunnels.
This leaves a hallway going east and a hallway going south. The one to the east can be seen to have steps going up some ten feet in. In the hallway to the south there appear to be branching hallways to the east.
I suddenly stop, remembering that I have some knowledge that may help the group.
"Excuse me everyone. I think I may have neglected to inform you of what I found out concerning quasits from Father Zantus and Brother Kinmorn."
I pause a moment to gather my thoughts.
"Quasit's are fiendish creatures that may be vulnerable to cold iron, blessed weapons, and holy water. Quasits have the ability to become invisible, and take the shape of beasts. They also heal quickly, so if we do find a Quasit, we will Eugen to do his standard choppity-chop-chop until it is in a lot of pieces."
I then take a moment to refresh all the light spells for the group.
"so, are quasit's the things we've been killing? or are those something else? "
"So do we have any cold-iron, blessed weapons or holy water? Or if we come across this thing are we just going to hurt its feelings?"
I start to laugh at my own hilarity, then smother it into a cough as I realise just how daft that sounds coming from the least macho man in the room...
"so, are quasit's the things we've been killing? or are those something else? "
"I don't think those were quasits," Jessa offers, "Something dangerous to be sure. But not quasits..."
"So do we have any cold-iron, blessed weapons or holy water? Or if we come across this thing are we just going to hurt its feelings?"
"Well, our weapons have worked pretty well felling those things earlier," Jessa states, "But no, I don't have any cold iron, holy water, or gods-blessed weapons. Just my magic. Do you really think we'll find a quasit down here? Should we go back and prepare better for it?"
Somewhere up the stairs to the east comes the muffled sound of wings beating the air and then all is again silent.
"We've made our presence known," Kenzo says. "If we leave now and come back, they're likely to better prepared as well. Magazin, what do you say? This sounds like your department. Do you have any holy water, or can you give us a blessing if need be?"
"We've made our presence known," Kenzo says. "If we leave now and come back, they're likely to better prepared as well. Magazin, what do you say? This sounds like your department. Do you have any holy water, or can you give us a blessing if need be?"
"We might be able to better prepare ourselves with these..." Jessa responds, holding up the items they found in the strange magical room earlier, "Even if we can only glean clues rather than arcane power from them, it might give us a better edge than chasing after whatever heard us..."
"While I do not have any holy water, I am saving a blessing just in case we meet the Quasit."
Realizing my condition as well as Eugen's, I take a few moments to pray to Desna to strengthen us.
Expending 2 Channel Positive Energy for Healing. (1d6=3, 1d6=5)
Expending 2 Channel Positive Energy for Healing. (1d6=3, 1d6=5)
Magazin's channeling of positive energy into the room makes everyone feel better, more energized. Magazin's wounds, such as they were, completely heal over. Eugen also feels somewhat better, though still just a little ragged.
Expending 2 Channel Positive Energy for Healing. (1d6=3, 1d6=5)
Magazin's channeling of positive energy into the room makes everyone feel better, more energized. Magazin's wounds, such as they were, completely heal over. Eugen also feels somewhat better, though still just a little ragged.
"Those stairs to the East then; might as well get on with it."
Once again I speak confidently but hang back waiting for others to take the lead.
"onward and upward!"
"Yeah, let's see what other, um, interesting things we can find."
The hallway to the east, as noted, has steps going up ten feet into the hall. These steps go up for about five feet to a landing, at the end of which is another set of steps. There are in total, four sets of steps and four such landings. At the eastern end of the fourth landing is a doorway set into a stone wall. The door is featureless save for a lifesized skull carved into the center of it. The eyesockets of the skull would appear to serve as the door's only 'handle.'
...At the eastern end of the fourth landing is a doorway set into a stone wall. The door is featureless save for a lifesized skull carved into the center of it. The eyesockets of the skull would appear to serve as the door's only 'handle.'
"Shall we?" Jessa gestures at the door.
I breathe deeply, reach out and open the door, holding my breath in trepidation as I grasp the eerie handle.
As Gyorgy opens the door - perception checks if you would.
As Gyorgy opens the door - perception checks if you would.
Perception check... (1d20+3 = 20)
"What's that?" Jessa asks.
The room beyond the door has rounded walls and is fifteen feet wide in diameter. There is a circular stone pool in the middle of the floor, lined with skulls. The water ripples gently, sparkling from the light now filling the room. There are smears of what looks to be dried blood around the edge of the pool, covering some of the stone skulls.
Above, there is the sound of beating wings.
Looking up reveals a rather gruesome sight, a disembodied head, trailing tentacles from its neck, flaps bat like wings which sprout from the side of its head.
"Oh, my!"
Expecting the worst, and a little panicked, I send a blast of Divine Fire toward the strange beast.
Gyorgy's blast just misses as the creature bounces erraticly in the air.
But now it is fully aware of the party and it turns towards them. A long tongue lolls from its mouth and its eyes glow a venomous green.