The woman ducks and dodges the missiles and blows aimed at her and then reaches out to touch Ryskovich, but the fortunate duelist avoids her groping hand.
Surprise Round
---------------------------------
Necress Nyx and minion – moves in / charges Green for 3 damage
Ryskovich - charges Green for 6 damage
Morvius – focused trance
Random – moves in
Cirri – moves in
Sifvery Moon – fires arrow on Blue, misses
---------------------------------Round 1
Necress Nyx and minion - casts ill omen on Blue / strikes Green for 6 damage
Ryskovich – slashes Green for 7 damage, bringing it down
Morvius – moves, attacks yellow with glaive for 18 damage, bringing it down
Enemies:
Blue – steps back, casts cause fear on Cirri, who succumbs
Yellow – steps up and slams at Ryskovich, misses
Random – fires arrow on Blue, misses
Cirri – runs away
Sifvery Moon – casts ray of frost on Blue for 4 damage
---------------------------------Round 2
Necress Nyx and minion – slings a stone, misses / moves
Ryskovich – moves, strikes, misses
Morvius – charges blue, strikes for 18 damage
Enemies:
Blue – steps back, casts cure moderate on self, healing 10 hp
Random – readies hydraulic push
Cirri(frightened) – runs some more
Sifvery Moon – fires arrow, misses
---------------------------------Round 3
Necress Nyx and minion – slings a stone, misses / strikes at Blue, misses
Ryskovich – steps and full attacks Blue for 7 damage
Morvius – strikes at Blue, misses
Enemies:
Blue – casts but loses spell
Random – moves to watch over Cirri
Cirri(frightened) – runs yet more
Sifvery Moon – fires arrow, misses
---------------------------------Round 4
Necress Nyx and minion – slings a stone, misses / strikes at Blue, misses
Ryskovich – full attacks, misses
Morvius – strikes, misses
Enemies:
Blue – reaches to touch Ryskovich, misses
Random
Cirri
Sifvery Moon
---------------------------------Round 5
Necress Nyx and minion
Ryskovich
Morvius
Enemy
The undead creature the priestess once commanded again slices at her with its scimitar.
"Unnnnn..."
The zombie's blow lands on the woman's skull with a satisfying crunch and she falls to the ground with a thump.
The man in the blue sash steps forward once the threat is ended. "I am Magistros Sebastus Hustavan, Emperor Stavian III’s consul for the fourth district of Oppara Prefecture. You have done Taldor a great service in saving my life, I assure you. Now quickly, get these doors open so that I can alert the authorities about this attempt upon my life." He speaks with a note of command as one who has enjoyed the privilege of respect and immediately the other patrons turn to do his bidding, struggling against the closed doors.
Try as you might, no one can open the doors to the outside.
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Cirri finally gets into the room. "Sorry, that lady scared me so much! I freaked out and I couldn't concentrate..."
Cirri scratches her head sheepishly.
"Um, this door is stuck. They must have barricaded the doors shut. We'll have to find another way out of here. You guys should follow us just in case more of those weird cultists attack."
"Where to, next?"
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"Whaaaaat?! I thought he was the Emperor. Pfft! You know what? Maybe the Emperor is behind all this. Maybe he's trying to off you, but he wants it to look like natural causes. I mean, nobody's going to suspect foul play if a whole theater company turns into zombies and kills everyone in the audience."
"Yeah, all y'all untrained civilians should follow us while we look for more trouble. Just in case Necress runs out of dead bodies to reanimate. Oh, yeah, 'necress' is female for 'necromancer'. I know, you thought it was 'necromantress' but only old people use that word anymore."
The nobleman's eyes widen in shock at Random's words and the other patrons turn to each other to share scandalized looks. "Nonsense! That's bordering on heresy, young man, and easily the most ridiculous notion I've.... ever heard." He finishes lamely and the look in his eyes seems to suggest he may be reconsidering the theory.
Ryskovich searches the now unconscious woman in the fur-lined cloak and turns up two potions of cure moderate wounds, a heavy steel shield, a masterwork heavy pick made from human bone, full plate armor, and a wooden holy symbol. You also find a crumpled note secured in her belt pouch.
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Cirri reads the note as she shrinks back to her natural size. "Huh. What's this stone Fel is talking about? It sounds like he tricked someone into find it for him. Or her. Let's search the opera house and find either the stone or the Fel guy." Cirri scratches her head.
"Ryskovich, Random. You two should onto these potions."
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"We cannot escape this way, so we must find another." Sifvery quickly reads the letter. "Not another crackpot..." she mutters.
"Let's all stick together. I fear anyone who falls to the undead may join their ranks, and we don't need wither the loss of life nor the gain of additional enemies. Let's find them a safe place to barricade themselves while we clean up the mess."
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Random takes a look at the note when it's passed around. "Hmmm... it's some kind of code..." He spins it around in his hands, "Well! That's a stupid code! All you have to do is turn it upside down and it's as clear as if it was written in common!" He mouths the words as he silently reads to the end of the missive. "Meh, I still don't get it," he dismisses the missive as he passes it to the next teammate.
Morvius checks the hardness of the barricated exit door.
Barricaded is only a guess, and based on the way the doors will not even shift or groan against their hinges... it's probably not the true answer.
Cirri can only guess that the stone referenced must be some manner of artifact connected with this deity that seems to be called Zyphus.
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"Okay, we need to get this Zyphus stone thingie. It's gonna get dangerous from here on out. Maybe you patrons can barricade the door from the inside while us Pathfinders explore the stage?"
Cirri sees if the madman's bone pick can barricade the door from the inside. At least it will do something good.
It is but a few moments of work to pull some banquet tables through the east door and erect some makeshift barricades. The patrons don't look very hopeful at being left behind, but they do not waste anytime in making the room more secure.
The wooden stage is painted black and currently decorated to look like a jungle underworld, with fake plants, vines, and a backdrop of jungle scenery. An orchestra pit separates the stage from the main opera house and a thick, red velvet curtain conceals the main doors to the back stage area.
The backstage area is crowded with the various and sundried clutter of the theater. The floors are painted black and the walls are covered in dozens of painted handbills and posters of previous operas performed here. Dozens of costume racks and painted backdrops are set up here to be wheeled out on stage for the proper scenes. There are doors that lead to actor's dressing rooms on either side as well as spiral staircases that descend beneath the Opera House.
You check the northern areas near the stage and find nothing. The sounds of combat have all but ceased from the surrounding areas and you hope that the opera patrons have fortified their positions and now merely wait for an opportunity to escape this would be tomb.
Used primarily to store larger set pieces no longer used, this musty basement is now the home to a dig project that extends into the bedrock east of the room. This room is well lit by standing lamps.
Glistening with water, the slick walls and floor of these tunnels were recently carved from the thick bedrock beneath Oppara. Well lit by standing lamps, the tunnels stretch into an adjacent chamber, seemingly carved from the bedrock as well. However, the adjacent chamber is made of smooth walls, covered in strange glyphs, and also lit by the same standing lamps. At the center of that chamber stands a tall stone dais. In the middle of the dais is a huge boulder which, by all appearances, fell a great distance before crashing here. The boulder glows with an eerie green light.
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"Strange dais. Meh, someone had to say it." Random's curiosity compels him to lead the way. He does have enough sense, though, to dig out his potion of hide from undead. "Wait, I bought two of these?! That might be useful." He holds them up. "Makes you invisible to the undead, but it ends when you attack. Who can use one the longest?"
Random hands off the two potions and then resumes the approach, stepping relatively quietly.
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"Man, that's a big stone. Maybe that's what that note rambled about."
Cirri readies her quarterstaff and shudders. "Do you really think we'll need to fight more undead?"
Nyx's minion, on queue, seems to shrug and grunt in response.
"Aw man..."
Cirri readies her wand of shield.
Despite her fear, Cirri keeps her nerves intact as she approaches the rock.
The path travels through slippery, winding passages before it joins with another and then opens into the finished chamber ahead. At first glance, the room seems empty save for the flickering torches casting weirdly warped shadows that chase each other around the strange luminescent boulder. The party moves slowly and carefully forward and as the light shifts, you notice a pale and gaunt man standing just beside the great rock. His eyes flicker your way as if some subtle sound has attracted his attention. Most of you cannot yet see, but there is a heavy dragging sound coming from around the corner up ahead as well.
Round 1
---------------------------------
Sifvery Moon
Necress Nyx
_and Minion
Morvius
Cirri
Enemy
Random
Ryskovich
Upon receiving Necress' mental command, the undead creature moves forward to engage the enemy.
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When no one else volunteers to take a hide from undead potion, Random shrugs and downs one, then puts the other one away.
He watches Necress send her undead minion ahead, and wonders why the group is sending a non-sentient zombie to go check out that glowing boulder. Eventually, he realizes that there's something(s) else in the room.
"Ooh! Are they zombies! I'm invisible!" He dances around the big zombie to get a clear shot at the presumed master.
Round 1
---------------------------------
Sifvery Moon - Readies
Necress Nyx – Sling (miss)
_and Minion - Engages
Morvius – Double move
Cirri – Wand/move
Enemy –acted!
Random
Ryskovich
The undead minion walks in and attacks the giant cousin, missing it!
As the party moves in the enemy begins to react!
It attacks the undead attacking it!
Attack
Damage
The man starts chanting, and in response Sif releases an arrow, but it goes wide!
Round continues
---------------------------------
Random
Ryskovich
Round 2
---------------------------------
Sifvery Moon
Necress Nyx
_and Minion
Morvius
Cirri
Enemy