Eltariel examines the note, gem and pouch, and then goes on to get a closer look at the mural.
Arriving late on the scene, Gashelle will look at the pouch, but keep enough distance to avoid dripping on the contents. She'll leave the investigation to Etariel and Aude, and she'll keep an eye on the scouting party, ready to raise an alarm and rush to their aid if anything nasty comes at them.
Eltariel and Aude study the murals..though Eltariel vaugly recognises the figure it is Aude (who has been swatting up on the dieties of her new world during the months you were in the tower)who puts a name to them.
"These murals are depictions of Centivus the Shaper" she says pointing to the left hand mural "Ildavi the Giver of Form " she points to the right "and Choranus the SeerFather ,also known as the Triad – ancient gods of Law."
"Law ... then why are they at the nexus of what many would call complete chaos?"
"That" replies the pretty blonde Cleric "is what we are here to find out is it not? I thought you were the one who enjoyed solving mysteries"
Meanwhile Layjiani and avinar examine the outside of the bulding..they can see no entrances of any sort on the east or west wals,the south wall is blocked off by the 50 foot wide ravine
"Law ... then why are they at the nexus of what many would call complete chaos?"
"It could be that Chaos triumphed here."
"Possible," Eltariel smiles, "it certainly is a mystery, at any rate." She continues to study the architecture and the craftsmanship of the walls to get an idea of the age of the building and how long it might have remained unoccupied.
Returning with Avinar to rejoin the others inside, Layjiani reports "Unless we do be wanting to traverse the reviene, there do be no other way
that we did find to enter than this one."
With that, the party scout moves to carefully search the area by the room's only visible exit. While doing doing so, she also searches for any hidden exits.
"How deep is the ravine?"
The ravine was deep enough for you not to be able to see the bottom
"So it looks like the front entrance it is," Eltariel comments. "Well, it would seem we are no the first at any rate."
Layjiani
You see a long, 30-foot-wide hallway. White stone blocks, about a foot square, make up the floor. These blocks also run in two rows along the wall’s base, beneath immense, carved stone bas-relief slabs, 4 feet tall by 2 feet wide.The top two feet of the wall and the ceiling are covered in cracked white plaster. In several places you can see where it has fallen away,revealing plain blocks beneath. At regular intervals along the hallway are low, broad benches fashioned from the same white rock. A narrow passage forks to the south just beyond thesecret door.
The bas-relief slabs are carved to reflect a Wasteland: barren landscape, stunted or charred vegetation, or unnatural beasts lumbering
, slithering, or oozing over pitted rock. Some slabs, however, depict strange men with beaked faces and large shells on their backs.
These turtle-men are shown standing at a great chasm, recognizable as the rift outside.
You can hear the sound of pacing footsteps to the south
Wellard
Ah, didn't notice that was a secret door at first. Looking closer at the map now though, is that another one also on the other side of the first room? Or did Layjiani and the elves fail to detect it?
Stepping quietly back into the entrance room, Layjiani motions all her companions to silence and to gather near her. In whispers she then explains all she had seen and heard adding.
"This one do want to go with stealth to see the source of the steps. If any can cast magics to help her remain hidden, this will be good, but otherwise, go now she does."
Unless there are any words or actions to stop her, the rogue quietly slips back into the passage, staying to the shadows and moving extremely slowly, while also not forgetting to check for traps and other dangers.
Wellard
Two things, first, what is the source of light in the wide and southern hallways? Second, if it works for you, I am fine with you rolling all of Layjiani's Stealth and Perception rolls. Personally, I have always preferred the DM to handle rolls that the PC might not be able to immediately know the results of anyway. Her Stealth is +11, Perception +10 plus any bonus' if any spells were cast on her first. Of course her force shield is activated and she has an arrow nocked (if possible) or her +2 dagger out and ready.
Aude stops searching her memories for how to deal with burial of bits of old bones to reply
"the only thing I can do is check for magic for you ? do you think I can cast it without being heard ? "
Eltariel digs deep and uses her Arcane Bond to cast invisibility on Layjiani as silently as she can.
"It will last only a few minutes," she cautions. "Take care."
Layjiani vanishes from view and the rest off you wait in silence
Layjiani.
You move silently into the room...to the south you can see a grey skinned bat eared humanoid which is pacing to and fro it carries a heavy pick oveer it's shoulder. This is a race you have not encountered before..however as it turns and points its face towards you you see it has no eyes just smooth patches of skin over where they would normally be... them screams "your stuff is ours" and leaps towards you as if you were in plain sight. more off the creatures appear from the passageway the sentry was gaurding..a further two are able to close with you and attack. one hits you with a club for 4 points of damage
The rest of you hear a shout of "your stuff is ours" in common from the hallway that Layjiani is then you see some grey skinned humanoids appear slashing with weapons at empty air a club seems to contact something and bounce off
Opposition 23
Layjiani 21
Holgur 13+
Aude 13
Eltariel 11
Gashelle 6
Avinar 5
Eltariel will rush down the passageway and if she gets close enough she will use her Hand of the Apprentice to attack.
Holgur charges at the mass of the foes, hoping to keep them from surrounding Layjiani. He swings his axe in a wide arc in an attempt disperse them as much as to kill one.
Aude is intent on the fight but take not action for the moment wanting to see how the combat goes
Shocked and disgusted at the sight of the strange beings, Layjiani nevertheless reacts quickly and uses her acrobatic skill () to tumble out the way of the creatures which mass upon her. As she moves, she slashes out with her dagger at one, hoping to catch it unawares with her movement and Holgur's attack.
Attack & Damage:
Sneak if possible:
Layjiani manges to twist and tumble away from the attacking trio scoring a hit on one as she goes..Holgurs axe bites deeply into the leg of a second and Eltariels spell wounds a third..the invisibility fades away as Layjiani strikes
Gashelle moves forward, hoping to hit an uninjured foe. She commits to shocking grasp through her glaive, wondering too late if that's a mistake given her sopping wet clothes.
Attack: (Plus 2 if the creatures are Chaotic as well as greedy.)
Damage: (Plus if they're Chaotic.)
She'll command, "Stand down! We mean you no harm, but we will kill you if you don't settle down! We're wet, cold, crabby, and not in a mood to fool around."
Gashelles glaive licks out and fells one of the humanoids..it's blood spurts as it dies.Avinar thrusts and misses
The other creatures merely redouble their efforts to kill you
Two attack Holgur..one hitting with its club for a nasty bruise.."(5 damage)
a third attacks Layjiani...it's pick bites into her (5 damage)
The last, seemingly a leader, leaps for Avinar slicing at him with a scimitar and hitting(9 damage)
"that hurt, but I am sorry to say my friend, you just made it eaiser for me to kill you"
Moving agilely about the field of battle, Layjiani attempts to position herself to be able to flank or otherwise take advantage of on her the monstrosities distraction.
Acrobatics: (if necessary)
Attack:
Sneak Damage:
"That one with the scimitar looks to be their sergeant. That's who we need to take down."
Eltariel holds back, as the foe are now all engaged in melee and she is well aware of the abilities of her friends. She will await developments ...
"I urge you to surrender," she calls to the bat-eared creatures. "Your lives are forfeit if you persist!"
Aude will try to position herself so as to be more than 30' than one of the creature and within distance of all her companions . If this is not possible she will nonetheless channel excluding two of the creatures but not the one facing Gashelle
She then heals all persons affectef by
Layjiani moves away from her attacker although his club rattles off her armour..she comes to her feet behind one of Holgurs foes and wounds it just as Holgur cuts down first one then the other of the ones facing him. Audes channeling excludes the two remaining creatures and everyone is healed slightly...the creatures show no sign of heeding Eltariels words.
Gashelle attacks the creature with the scimitar. She'll try to position herself to get a flank with someone, perhaps Avinar.
Attack: with a possible +2 if the creature is chaotic.
Damage: with a possible bonus if the creature is chaotic.
Gashelle cuts the scimitar wielding creature down, its head rolling away from the body which gouts black blood across the floor.
Yes I'll do the rolls..
Avinar leaps towards the last of the grey skinned 'bat-men' scoring a long bleeding slash along his ribs...
... at which the creature drops his club and surrenders.."not kill...not kill" he pleads
"Can yopu stabilise those that yet live?" Eltariel asks Aude, "I think we may need information."
Eltariel approaches the creature, fascinated.
"We will not kill you, we did not desire to fight you to begin with," she tells it, "yet we reserve the right to defend ourselves. We have not seen beings like yourself before, tell us what you are, and what you and your kind are doing here?"
Aude checks the other fallen and shakes her head..they are too far gone to be saved.
In halting common the creature, a grimlock, who calls himself Gral explains that they were a hunting party who took refuge in the building from the rains last night, their tribe living some hours march away in a cave complex. Their leader Sedj, he indicates the headless one, forced them into agreeing to attack anyone else who came along
"Sedj him say we kill others and take their stuff...then we be ..ad...ven..tur...ersss" he stumbles over the last word "Sedj stupid"
"Killing things and taking their stuff isn't what makes an adventurer," Eltariel comments sadly. "It just makes you a brigand. I am sorry we had to kill your friends all the same, Gral. We think this place may have something to do with the terrible weather affecting the whole of the North. Have you seen anything here but us, or noticed any changes in this area recently or anything else strange or unusual?"
"Was humans here..and building..temple Sedj said" the grimlock tells you "then was big storm..and this place was here..is empty..always empty..we do not explore far...not good place Sedj said..."
460XP each for defeating the Grimlocks
Gashelle shakes her head, splaying water from her hair. "Gral, you speak very well, but I don't understand. Did you mean to say, this building has taken the place of a temple that used to be here?"
Gral nods at Gashelles question.."yes..yes..Temple was here now temple gone..and this place here..bad weather come with this place..no storms before it here..now always storms..Gral talk to humans here before this place..they teach Gral to speak their tounge...want Gral to help go down below..hunt in dark like grimlocks"
Scowling at the disgusting creature, Layjiani grunts at it's reply and says Eltariel "This one says we cannot trust this Kan'lech (Elven=garbage), it do turn on us when first it has the chance."
As she speaks, she begin to search the corpses of the fallen.
Perception:
Gashelle is startled by Layjiani's protest, but her only outward reaction is a rueful smile. She lays a sopping-wet hand gently on Layjiani's shoulder and says, "Buais alwedig Kan'lech, achos Allais mo areithia, a achos'm dadogi ydy'n engubabi."
"Elves called me garbage, because I spoke poorly, and because my father was mannish*."
*engabi is the Elven word for humans-as-a-race. It's conjugated with the same infixes as the Elven nouns for beasts.
She turns back to Gral. "We ask nothing of you, Gral. You are free to leave, to stay here, or to come with us if you like. We are not hunters, like those humans you met before. We, too, are worried about the storms, and we have come to see why this place is here, and to make things right again, if we can.
"Can you tell us, please, what do you know of the humans who were here before us, the ones who wanted you to hunt for them? And, what was below, before this place?"
Layjiani shakes her head in disagreement but does not say anything to gainsay her comrade and merely continues her search.
"Doubtless we are as ... strange ... to Gral as he is to us," Eltariel murmurs to Layjiani. She turns to Gral:
"What did they desire to hunt below this place, Gral?"