Torin moves into the room and fires an arrow:
"Didn't we just run away from one of these things because it was super dangerous?"
"Yes," Izra answered Torin, as she moved up to tap Koshukhep with a wand, which sheathed the Catfolk warrior in a shield of magical protection, "Yes, we did. But we were just trying to survive then. Now, we have someone to resuce."
"Careful there, big guy," Kwin called to Koshukhep while dashing into the room. "I'll swing around behind to give you flanking!"
Djehuti nods in Izra's direction. "Fight when we must, and now we must."
Ahmed moves into the room, and keeps his distance from the creature, wishing he was more useful with a weapon. He looks at Suri and casts an incarnation on her, boosting her own strength as she moves towards the being, her muscles rippling.
Suri charges into the room, feeling herself get stronger with each step as she moved closer to what may be certain doom. She approaches the large creature and takes a powerful swing at it.
The Tekenu takes an arrow to a lung, and then has its liver ripped open by Suri. But while it certainly looks like it's in worse shape, it doesn't seem to be expressing any form of pain.
Djehuti: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (17) + 9 = 26
Koshukhep: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (20) + 3 = 23
Qasin: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (20) + 3 = 23
Tekenu: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (13) + 8 = 21
Ahmed: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (19) + 2 = 21
Izra: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (11) + 2 = 13
Suri: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 = 2
Kwin: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (1) + 6 = 7
Torin: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4
Tekenu AC 16, HP 39/65
Remembering his temple training, Koshukhep darted after the flying bag of filth and rot, lashing out at the last moment with claws spread wide.
Djehuti tries to defend himself. Koshukhep moves in and slices the Tekenu. Qasin meanwhile turns invisible. And Izra can feel the psychopomp flying off her shoulder.
The Tekenu focuses on the catfolk in front of it, and slams into him twice.
; hit!
Djehuti: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (17) + 9 = 26
Koshukhep: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (20) + 3 = 23
Qasin: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (20) + 3 = 23
Tekenu: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (13) + 8 = 21
Ahmed: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (19) + 2 = 21
Izra: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (11) + 2 = 13
Suri: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 = 2
Kwin: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (1) + 6 = 7
Torin: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4
Tekenu AC 16, HP 34/65
Izra's fingers worked at one of the leather frogs holding a glass vial secured in a pocket on her bandolier. Her eyes did not leave the floating, twisting collection of viscera. The frog came undone and the flask slid into Izra's hand, the stopper sealed with a silver and purple blob of wax impressed with the holy symbol of Pharasma. She handed the flask to Djehuti.
"This might help," she muttered, still watching the Tekenu's motions intently.
Suddenly, her glowing blue eyes flared in triumph. "Torin! The heart stays central! Everything else moves around that!"
Kwin fidgeted with his rapier, tossing it ever so slightly into the air with a twist so the hilt rotated a bit each time it returned to his hand, as he watched for an opening. From the corner of his eye he caught Izra passing a flask to Djehuti, and he briefly considered tossing one of his own. But both Suri and Koshukhep were too close to the thing and might be splashed, so he went with his original plan.
"Kosh! Flank!" he shouted as he rushed the thing.
"Thanks for the advice, but I find it easier to hit hearts when they are still inside the body."
Torin takes a bead and fires:
Izra hands off a holy water flask to Djehuti. Kwin stabs the Tekenu, opening up a section of the lower intestines. And then Torin puts an arrow into the monster's heart--which oddly seems ineffective in killing it.
Tekenu AC 16, HP 21/65
Ahmed prepares himself to be attacked , while Suri tries to slam the Tekenu. But with the creature's odd movements, her aim is just a bit off.
The Tekenu turns to Kwin and slams into him once very hard. It moves to strike again, but despite being hurt, the agile swashbuckler dodges in the nick of time.
Djehuti: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (17) + 9 = 26
Koshukhep: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (20) + 3 = 23
Qasin: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (20) + 3 = 23
Tekenu: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (13) + 8 = 21
Ahmed: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (19) + 2 = 21
Izra: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (11) + 2 = 13
Suri: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 = 2
Kwin: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (1) + 6 = 7
Torin: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4
Aw.
Also aw.
Koshukhep's fury was terrible to behold. "Suri and Kwin are not for the likes of you, demon!" At first, it seemed that no matter how Koshu struck it, he found no purchase, but he learned as he went, and his paws shot out in black streaks to flense the undead thing.
Koshukhep rips off a piece of the Tekenu's liver, and it hangs off his claws in a weird stringy fashion.
Thinking his friends have this monster handled, Djehuti simply stays out of the way and defends himself.
Qasin suddenly appears next to the Tekenu and slams its beak on one of the lungs. But it doesn't seem to do any real, noticeable damage.
"What have you done with my friend?!" the whippoorwill-like creature shouts in her high-pitched, melodic voice.
The Tekenu attacks Kwin.
; hit!
; hit!
Djehuti: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (17) + 9 = 26
Koshukhep: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (20) + 3 = 23
Qasin: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (20) + 3 = 23
Tekenu: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (13) + 8 = 21
Ahmed: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (19) + 2 = 21
Izra: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (11) + 2 = 13
Suri: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 = 2
Kwin: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (1) + 6 = 7
Torin: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4
Izra moved up and into the fight, her healing wand at the ready. "Kwin," she called to the kitsune as she shoved aside chairs and tables on her way to him, "Try to slice, not jab!"
"Hah! Slashing is for dullards who can't hit a precise... target!", he replied, thrusting again in time with the last word.
"On second thought, Kwin may be an acceptable target," Koshukhep said dryly as he shook the stringy liver off his claws.
"You got to bob and weave. Don't just stand there and let it hit you!
Torin fires some more arrows:
Kwin and Torin manage to finally end the Tekenu with a barrage of missiles and thrusts.
Once the dust has settled and the Tekenu lies unmoving on the ground, both Ahmed and Suri feel a "pull" towards a crate in the northeastern corner of the room.
It is a comforting and familiar feeling.
Ahmed curiously looks at Suri, to see if she has the same feeling he does. Their eyes lock for more than a moment before she nods, and the two walk towards the crate slowly. As they approach, Suri stands back while Ahmed starts to open it.
The crate had very clearly been forced open at one point. And so with only a modicum of effort he is able to pry the top open with nothing but his bare hands. When he sees what is inside, he gasps in surprise.
Inside he finds a sphinx-like statue of the Auroric Flame-Mother, a representation of the elemental lord Ymeri. A powerful patron worshiped by many in the Plane of Fire as the Guardian of the Wish. (Lawful Neutral)
Izra sighed as she looked around the room. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but we should go. We can look for recovery items once we know that Qasin's friend is safe."
Koshukhep flicked his paws several times, trying to get the rank undead off them without having to resort to licking.
"Agreed. ...Ahmed? Suri? We should move on," Koshu called, but his curiosity was clearly in danger of getting the better of him.
"Yeah, yeah." Ahmed replies absently, his eyes still locked to the inside of the box. Very carefully he reaches in, muttering a about not being worthy, before drawing his hands back up with the statue clasped carefully between them. Moving incredibly cautiously, he holds it between himself and Suri, and she places her hands on it as well, fire emanating from their palms and pulsing into the statue, before being released and spiraling around it. After a few seconds, the flames dissipate, and Ahmed looks first at Suri, and then at the others. "This is a sign." Ahmed says softly, but forcefully. "We are where we are meant to be. Our mother has seen my suffering, and will grant my freedom."
The Band of the Black Fire observes as Ahmed and Suri reverently hold a a small, beautiful, sphinx-like stone statue.
This is a statue of the Auroric Flame-Mother, a representation of the elemental lord Ymeri. A powerful patron worshiped by many in the Plane of Fire as the Guardian of the Wish. (Lawful Neutral)
That sucker is worth 750 gp to the right collector. :-)
Izra's eyes narrowed in speculation as she watched Ahmed and Suri. She nodded, but then frowned.
"It's a statue of the Auroric Flame-Mother," She whispered to the others. "A representation of the elemental lord Ymeri. A powerful patron worshiped by many in the Plane of Fire. Known to some as the Guardian of the Wish".
She frowned some more. "I'm not sure what it would be worth, but I suspect that it's not a thing that Ahmed or Suri would part with at this point, for any price."
"Ha! Jackpot! Nice find Ahmed. That baby is going to keep me rolling in bacon and beard oil for a long time."
Looking at Izra,
"What do you mean they aren't will to part with it? This isn't 'finders keepers'."
"I wasn't speaking of you, big guy," Kwin says to Koshukhep while pulling out a cloth to wipe down his rapier. "You're the farthest thing from a dullard. Plus Team Furry has to stick togeth..."
Distracted by the sudden reverent quiet, Kwin's gaze shifts to Ahmed and Suri.
"Hrmph," Koshukhep told Kwin eloquently.
"You should not part them from their sign, Torin," he scolded the dwarf. "The Flame Mother may not be one of the true Gods, but any being of power would look unkindly on being separated from its worshippers. Potential worshippers," he corrected himself. "Are you worshippers of the Flame Mother, my friends? Truly, it is a powerful sign," Koshu insisted, rubbing some of his charms to ward off the attention of angry gods, just in case.
Then he, too, looked for the nosoi, to see where it would lead them next.
"That baby is worth like 750 gold. It's not a god, it's a statue. What if us finding it is a sign from Abadar? What if we are meant to sell it for a big bag of gold?"
"I say we sell it and then make a copy out of wood for like 10gp. Boom. Ahmed gets his religious icon and we don't reject Abadar's blessing of wealth. Everybody wins."
Qasin settles down on Izra's shoulder, and shrugs--which is an odd thing to see a small bird do--when asked where the Band should go.
"I haven't been inside. I don't know where Ptemenib could be exactly. I just know he was here."
***
The Band of the Black Fire move onto the next door. Once there they are ambushed...
+4 w/o panache
A couple of hidden smugglers fire hand crossbows into Koshukhep and Kwin.
; hit!
; hit!
Ahmed: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (19) + 2 = 21
Izra: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (19) + 2 = 21
Smugglers: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (13) + 7 = 20
Koshukhep: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (17) + 3 = 20
Torin: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (18) + 2 = 20
Kwin: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (12) + 6 = 18
Suri: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (15) + 1 = 16
Djehuti: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (6) + 9 = 15
Hyena: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 2 = 10
Ahmed glares at Torin, his eyes flaming. "We have said nothing as you have robbed the dead and made a tidy profit, nor have we asked for anything save continued help in obtaining my freedom. This is the first truly hopeful sign I have had and you will not sully that with your false gods and decadence. Make no mistake, I will protect the 'statue' with what remains of my life."
"As for its value, I am sure we will come across other shiny things that appeal to you, and if not, that's between you and your god. In my eyes, as long as you have your freedom and health, you have all the gold you need. Pray you never discover what it is like to lose either."
Djehuti calls out a warning, but can do little else. The hyena then moves in to bite attack the bit cat.
But Koshukhep as a preternatural ability to protect himself from anything dog-like, even when caught off-guard.
Ahmed: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (19) + 2 = 21
Izra: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (19) + 2 = 21
Smugglers: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (13) + 7 = 20
Koshukhep: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (17) + 3 = 20
Torin: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (18) + 2 = 20
Kwin: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (12) + 6 = 18
Suri: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (15) + 1 = 16
Djehuti: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (6) + 9 = 15
Hyena: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 2 = 10
Izra and Ahmed hold off on any immediate actions due to their positioning.
The smugglers reload, and continue firing their hand crossbows.
; Hit and confirm!
A bolt hits a vital spot on Kwin, and the swashbuckler falls to the ground.
Ahmed: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (19) + 2 = 21
Izra: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (19) + 2 = 21
Smugglers: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (13) + 7 = 20
Koshukhep: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (17) + 3 = 20
Torin: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (18) + 2 = 20
Kwin: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (12) + 6 = 18
Suri: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (15) + 1 = 16
Djehuti: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (6) + 9 = 15
Hyena: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 2 = 10
Startled by both the hyena and Kwin dropping beside him, Koshukhep's counterattack wasn't as effective as it could have been.
"I didn't mean that Kwin was anyone's acceptable target!" he snarled as he swiped at the hyena that had snapped at him.
Koshukhep rakes the hyena severely, but is unable to finish it off.
Torin moves into the room and fires at one of the smugglers:
Izra, seeing Kwin drop, moved cautiously up to kneel next to the fallen Kitsune. Trying to keep herself hidden behind the door frame as much as possible, she reached out and let Pharasma's cool, soothing energy flow through her hands and into Kwin's body.