Pathfinder 2e: Legacy of Nex (IC)

[Gwynfrid]

Desperately, Belginabo dodges the terribly precise attacks from the hateful porcelain doll. Squeezed between her and the giant zombie towering over him, he manages to roll to the side, avoiding a monster blow from a melon-sized fist. That's when the tiny scythe comes right at his neck! He twists to the side, and takes a deep, painful cut to his shoulder instead of near-decapitation. At last - it seemed like an eternity! - his allies come to the rescue, bursting though the door and rushing at the undead colossus. He can see large pieces of undead flesh ripped away by Sachni's and Raka's determined assault. A chance...

Spoiler

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Nimble Dodge again, this time it spares him crit damage.

If I read the Discord chat correctly, the zombie is now flanked, and both Sachni and Raka dealt big damage to it. So, he's going to try and finish it, at the risk of remaining flanked if he fails.

#1 Draw rapier
#2 Attack zombie (1d20+7)[19] damage: rapier (1d6+1)[7] plus precision (1d6)[5]. In case of a critical hit, the rapier's damage is (1d8+1)[7], doubled.
#3 If the zombie falls: Attempt to Intimidate Pink (1d20+6)[25]; if not, 2nd attack (1d20+2)[10] damage: rapier (1d6+1)[4] plus precision (1d6)[2]. In case of a critical hit, the rapier's damage is (1d8+1)[4], doubled.

EDIT - I think I made it! Description below assumes the zombie is gone.

In a smooth move, he draws his runic rapier and strikes! The fine point finds an opening in the giant's armor, and in spite of the pain to his blood-covered arm, he pushes through as hard as he can... In a great fracas, the horrendous undead falls backwards, finished!

The turns toward his tiny tormentor on the other side, and the gnome who seemed about to flee as far as he could now manages a triumphant smirk.

"You were correct, Lady Knight. Your big bully needed to be faster. So sorry. Now it's the three of us against the one of you. Time to make yourself scarce, don't you think?"

[Inspector Valin]

Sachni, Raka & Belginabo
The two warriors tear into the zombie, with Raka's sword gouging deep into its flesh, and Sachni's strikes breaking bone within its arms. The confused monster is barely standing by the time Belginabo runs it through, leaving the behemoth toppled on the ground beneath them. Cadenza's own smirk of superiority turns to a look of shock as Belginabo's friends are able to down her squire so swiftly. She glares at the smug gnome, evidently enraged by this turn of events. "You..."

Belginabo's never before managed to make someone quite this angry. And that's impressive given a few of his past feats: he thought he'd hit a high watermark back on the isle. But with the goblin warrior and Jalmeran monk at his back, Cadenza knows that the odds are thoroughly against her. And unlike her bodyguard, the little knight is apparently capable of self preservation. With a grimase, she flies straight forward, zipping past the group and shattering the foreman's window with a strike of her scythe. As she withdraws through a shower of glass deeper into the darkness of the outlying tunnels, she calls out behind her. "You won't get away with this. Enjoy your loot, thieves! You're not leaving this mine alive!"

Spoiler

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Sooo.... yeah, I think this fight is over. Fun fact, according to PF2 core this encounter should have been the most extreme level of threat I could throw at a party of 3. I guess if Cadenza fought to the death, you'd take some hits, possibly even lose someone but wooow... I'm gonna need to take care when challenging you guys.

You're welcome to search the room more thoroughly. BTW, Belginabo, I'd like a Perception check for you outside of 'search the room'. There's something you might pick up on about Cadenza as she leaves.

Ellie, Zarrachia & Adria
The light of Sarenrae washes across the battlefield. It doesn't seem to do much to the Augurs, but the remaining members of the party rally behind it, surging forward as their wounds close. Koma is on the spikeball that'd been threatening Ellie, once again tearing and slashing at it as Ody tries to steady his aim and shoot some arrows of his own into the thing. Nihnin is with Zarrachia, jabbing her spear towards the monster's eye while Peridora charges forward behind her. The little mage utters a few brief arcane words, and gestures: her hand now becoming wreathed in sparks as she tries to hold back her fear and bring her palm down on the creature's eye.

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Ohkay, thanks to Adria, the NPCs are actually doing really great. They all just got healed to full, and that's left nobody with persistent bleed. Go team 'not the baddies'

Koma
(d20+10)[25] Attack - Damage (d6+5)[8]
(d20+6)[8] Attack - Damage (d6+5)[7]

Nihnin
(d20+8)[26] Attack - Damage (d8+3)[5]
(d20+3)[4] Attack - Damage (d8+3)[6]
(d20-1)[14] Attack - Damage (d8+3)[4]

Ody
(d20+8)[14] Attack - Damage (d6)[3]
(d20+3)[13] Attack - Damage (d6)[3]
(d20-1)[0] Attack - Damage (d6)[6]

Peridora
(d20+6)[25] Attack - Damage (2d12)[19] and (1d4)[3] Persistent Electrical

[Inspector Valin]

Ellie, Zarrachia & Adria
The tide of battle has definitely turned. Koma manages to draw blood from his mark, and Ody cries out in joy as his arrow lodges in the creature's flesh. Nihnin growls in frustration as the blade-sphere she's fighting dodges her strikes, but that gives Peridora a clean path to strike with her spell. The wretched thing illuminates in sparks, cascading between every edge and point that lines its surface. It hits the ground with a resounding thud.

The eye being remaining has been hurt, bobbing in the air as dark purple ichor drips down onto the cavern floor. But the power that sustains it will not permit the creature to surrender, and has pushed it past the limitations of its comrades. With a low key whine, the red aura around it begins to intensify, building to that same brightness as before - and yet further, washing out across the battlefield. Ellie and her goblin friends feel the chill of shadow washing over them, colder by far than any blizzard, reaching into their very bones.

Spoiler: OOC

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Both Augurs are using a Three Action Harm. Between them, that hits you all. A DC 19 Fort save from everyone, to mitigate (d8)[7] Negative damage

EDIT. Never mind. Just Ellie and her two. Rest of you are clear!

[DigoDragon]

Ellie Sprocket

Ellie shudders at the unnatural cold, making a pitched "eek!" sound. She backs away from the creature and grabs a pair of flasks. Ellie throws them at the nearest monster. "Die already!!"

Spoiler: Actions

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1a: backing up away from the augur.

1a: Quick Bomber, throwing alchemist fire. Attack (1d20+5)[22]; damage (1d8)[7] (plus 1 persistent fire damage).

1a: Quick Bomber, throwing bottled lightning. Attack (1d20)[15]; damage (1d6)[2] (plus flatfooted until Ellie's next turn).

And another will save that will probably not help: (1d20+3)[10]

(I've already subtracted 1 from Ellie's actions from the Frightened effect)

[Xacha]

Zarrachia

Zarra grins at the last remaining Augur. "One last little egg to break. I've got a bottle of ooze squeezings that goes to whoever finishes this thing off."

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1. Demotivate: (1d20+6)[16]

As the final orb begins to glow, Zarra scoops a handful of gravel from the floor and flings it at the creature.

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2. Feint: (1d20+6)[19]

Probably not likely, but a critical success from a scoundrel would mean the augur is flat-footed to everyone.

Leaving the Augur in the capable hands of her new teammates, Zarra makes a quick check of the weaker members of the team to see if any need first aid.

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Zarra doesn't have a med kit, but she is trained in Medicine. She checks to see if any need to be stabilized, particularly the NPC goblins who just got hit by the last Harm.

[Syless]

"We're almost there! Don't let up! Peridora, you're doing fantastically!" Adria draws back her hand, conjuring another lance of divine light- she thinks ending it faster might be a better plan here, so they won't need more healing than she can provide.

Spoiler: OOC

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Casting Divine Lance
Spell Attack Roll- (1d20+7)[17]
Damage- (1d4+4)[5] Good damage

[Inspector Valin]

Ellie, Zarrachia & Adria
The bobbing sphere barely knows what's hit it. First the vial of liquid fire, splintering right above its head, wreathing its form in endless burning terrible heat. Its skin has begun to char even before the thrice cursed bolt of sunlight strikes it. The thing has no mouth, but a faint low pitched sound emanates from somewhere within it reveals how deep this pain goes.

In those last few moments, the creature almost forgets the forces set before it. It concentrates elsewhere. Red runes flicker in front of its single eye, flickering from one to another at a near impossible speed. As it does, the creature... laughs. It's a strange, warbling sound, the beat of some bizzare instrument, but the assembled group can feel the humour in the creature's dying moments. Whatever it saw at the end, it found highly amusing.

Then, as the flames of Ellie's flask slowly take hold of its charred skin, it slowly falls to the ground. And for a final time, its eye closes.

The other combatants glance around. hesitant to believe the fight is over. Nihnin glances to Adria, Zarrachia and Peridora - wanting to ensure her companions of the moment are standing, before going to check on the mildly bleeding dishevelled Koma, who simply stands in place, shivering with the chill of that final spell. Goopy emerges from Zarrachia's pack, nuzzling gently against his mistress (keeping his acid in check enough to ensure this isn't dangerous.) Widget pops his head up from Ellie's pack, meeting his mistress' gaze with a concerned eye. Peridora walks over to Adria's side, looking up at the priestess before turning down to one of the fallen spikeballs. "Are you okay, Ms. Adria? What were those things?"

Spoiler: OOC

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Augur uses Read Omens. The pain of being near death, and that resonating with its creature type, shortens the casting time to 2 actions.

Then it laughs.

Then it dies.

ENCOUNTER OVER! You will receive XP and plot advancement shortly. Any actions in the immediate aftermath.

[DigoDragon]

Ellie Sprocket

Ellie slowly sinks down to her knees. Even when these things die they pained her. She was an utter mess;blood all over, dress completely ruined, gear haphazardly hanging from loose straps. Her own mother wouldn't recognize her until the third glance at best.

"I... I need a rest. And then... I'm going to brew more fire... and I'm going to burn down this place..."

She shudders. Ellie needed to calm down. She leans her head to Widget and tries to. Today was like nothing ever.

"Is... Is everyone alright? Koma?"

Ellie looked at the dead augur thing. She wipes the grime from her eyes and slowly crawls closer? What level of fresh hell did these things come from?

[Anyr]

The fight was over almost as soon as it began. One foe fell to the trio's combined assault. The other fled. Sachni felt a rush of relief. This wasn't like a sparring victory. If she and her comrades had faltered, they could easily have died. This was why she'd trained so hard. Because in a real fight, your first failure is often your last. Sachni rushed to Belginabo's side.

"Belginabo! Are you all right?! Do you need medical attention?"

[Gwynfrid]

Belginabo tries to think of a witty reply to his fleeing enemy, but the energy seems to have been drained off him. His rapier falls to the floor with a clatter.

He turns to his comrades and saviors. "Oh, I really thought I was done for. I don't know how that zombie didn't crush me! And its master..." He doesn't finish, and instead sits down on the floor. The fight lasted less than half a minute, but he feels completely exhausted. "Yes, if you can bandage this, I would be very grateful", he replies to Sachni. Wincing in pain, he removes his armor, and his elegant white shirt, now torn and severely stained with his blood.

While she looks after him, he stays uncharacteristically silent for one or two minutes before he speaks again.

"Thank you. Thanks to both of you, valiant ladies. You saved my life today." He looks at the goblin and the human woman, and sighs. "And, Lady Sachni: Yes, you were right, and I was wrong. This place was a lot more dangerous than I expected."

[Syless]

Adria slumps over as the last creature falls. "I... have a bit more divine healing left in me, if everyone will gather around. That was rough... but we made it. Peridora, are you okay? That must have been terrifying..."

[Xacha]

Zarrachia

"Thanks, Adria, but I think I'm still good from your last dose." She pulls a pouch of three vials out of her pack. "Hey, Ellie? I found these a ways back, some ooze products. Do you recognize any of it? You're welcome to anything useful, I think it was your firebomb that finally did the little demon in."

Wiping dried blood off her face, Zarra goes to examine the fallen foe.

"Odd. The things we faced so far have been undead. These look like outsiders."

She gently pries at the bladed exterior of a dead Augur with her sword. "These things look like somebody's sick idea of a pain demon. Something out of the shadow realms, maybe. Disgusting things."

Spoiler

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Anything about these things come up in Nexian history? Lore: (1d20+5)[6]

"Those doors, though. That's the seal of Nex. I can't imagine these things were Nex's guard dogs."

[Syless]

Adria nods at Zarra. "These are Kytons. You're spot on. They're called Augurs- the least of them. But worse... these were summoned. Recently. I hope they weren't aimed at us... but I shudder to think of who else might be down here summoning fiends. Something bigger is going on than we thought."

[DigoDragon]

"These were the LEAST of demons?" Ellie asked. She had the look of tired depression with that fact. "Ugh, do the bigger ones laugh when they catch fire too?"

Ellie took the vials From Zarra and inspected them after she sat down near the healer. Focusing on something mysterious seemed like a good distraction from pain and fear for the short, green-hair lady.

"On the light map I found in the other area, this big area was labeled 'Santuary'. Maybe we could find a spot inside to hide out while we rest? Cause I fear our chances successfully navigating another augur attack are four thousand three hundred twenty to one."

[Anyr]

Sachni extracted a medical kit from her pack. She spent 10 minutes carefully treating Belginabo's wounds. Her grasp of first aid proved sufficient. After sitting in silence for a while, her patient spoke again. His demeanour had lost its earlier confidence. Sachni resisted the urge to rant about foolish risks. That'd do no good to anyone. This was a time for healing, in several ways.

"What's done is done. I don't think any of us were prepared for this. We'll have to be much more careful in future."

That advice applied to her as well. She shouldn't have let Belginabo enter alone. At the time, she'd seen it as trusting a comrade. But maybe she'd just been scared.

Spoiler: OOC

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HP healed: (2d8)[12]

[DigoDragon]

Ellie holds up the vials to Zarra. "This one is a minor elixir of life. Definitely keep it close in case we're attacked by something else that's vicious. Speaking of, this second one is a mutegen. It'll grow out your nails into claws, though you may be a bit... ah, lumbering and easier to hit with your temporary form. I'm not sure of the last one. Seems to be another mutegen meant for drinking, but I've never seen this formula in the labs... someone made this one custom for a purpose perhaps?"

Ellie will give Z back the vials if they wish, but at least she was able to help identify some of them.

[Inspector Valin]

Ellie, Adria & Zarrachia
Peridora looks a little confused at Adria's question, seemingly not sure why she should've found this encounter any more frightening than the things that came before. Intense, scary, but terrifying? Then realization dawns. "Oh! That's right, you're not from here!" From anyone else, that remark might've been snide. From Peridora, it's more a dig at herself for not remembering Adria's perspective. She quickly tries to explain. "Outsiders are a lot more common in Nex than most places. There's planar gates and rifts all across the region. In Quantium, angels, demons and elementals walk through the streets, doing business just like anybody else."

The conversation has seemingly drawn Peridora into philosophical contemplation. The little wizard hums. "It's scary if you think about it, given how powerful creatures from other planes are... but I guess we grow used to it over time. Geb has undead lords. We have friends from other worlds who help us." She grins, happy to take her mind off the blood on her tunic and onto something she can feel some pride in. "There's even a spirit of the night breeze who sits on the Council of Nine as an equal. Master Phade, the Lord of Spies. Nex believes in equality for all!"

Koma and Nihnin both look dishevelled, while Ody looks a little guilty that he'd managed to dodge the augurs' blades and blasts quite so efficiently. The two senior goblins both nod to Adria, walking over to her. It's simple enough to cast the spell, bringing a portion of Sarenrae's healing light across the congregation. Just as it was coming to a close however...

"Hey! Are you all alright? What happened?"

A voice comes out of the darkness that lies beyond the bronze gate. Soon enough, it's joined by a flap of wings as a small creature flits towards the party. It looks like a tiny man, with grey skin, pointed ears, no hair upon its head and four batlike wings that flap upon its back. It's clad in a uniform tunic that looks... strangely close to the one Zarrachia is wearing, and bears a dark brown wand with a silver tip, jabbing it experimentally through the air as if he expected more augurs to emerge any second.

Close on his heels is a second one of the creatures, this one a touch more heavyset and carrying a crossbow. He looks the seven strange visitors over with a frown, before beckoning behind him. "Get inside! Quick, quick, no need to worry! Nex's Own Guard holds this gate - nothing gets past us!"

Spoiler: Free Knowledge - Ellie, Zarra

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As natives of Geb, you're familiar with these creatures. They're homunculi. They're a pretty simple construct, you see them all the time in Oenopion. They're usually quite a bit more basic than this though. An individual homunculus can vary with a skilled crafter, particularly a ruthless one willing to infuse a soul into its construction, but most have limited independent thought and work within preprogrammed logic. They're usually used for simple labour that takes advantage of their wings - messenger homunculi are more common than pigeons in Oenoipon.

Sachni, Belginabo, Raka
The little pink haired harridan is soon out of sight, flying down one of the mine's countless side tunnels. From somewhere deep in the mine, the three companions can hear little muffled sounds: the patter of paws, the flap of wings, a low yet carrying howl. It's becoming more and more apparent that this mine is far less deserted than was thought, and that the slimes are far from the only inhabitants of these lower levels. They are nowhere near you yet, but with the noise of fighting, it may only be a matter of time before some fell creature investigates.

For now however, the day has been won and Raka, Sachni and Belginabo stand triumphant in the villain's lair: with a slain necrotic warrior, a ritual circle and a weighty looking pile of books and correspondence littering the desk. With a little time here, they might be able to discover what threat has come to the depths of Oenopion, and what its next move might be. If they're truly lucky, they may even find some tools to help in destroying their apparent antagonist.

Spoiler: OOC

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Said it on Discord, but a reminder here. Everyone take 320 XP - this should bring your total up to enough to hit level 2, with 60 still remaining.

LVL UP

Apply level up bonuses now, both parties either currently have or will shortly have a chance for resting, and the Gate group are about to receive a chance at an eight hours rest (bringing you closer into the same time period as the Rescue Party once they're done exploring) Further, I say a new session begins now! All players hereby receive a Hero Point, and... well if this triggers anything else, be sure to let me know!

[DigoDragon]

Ellie Sprocket

Ellie looks up from the vials. She gives the healing one back to Z, packing the other two away as she sets eyes on the flying homunculi. Wow, quite fascinating!

"We survived a fight with... Croutons? No, Kytons! Yes, small spiky balls of death."

[Xacha]

Zarrachia

Zarrachia blinks at the small humanoids. She takes in their uniforms ...

"Wait, we're hiring homunculi now?! Waaaaaaiiiiit a minute. Union regulations specifically prohibits hiring semi-sentient constructs for purposes other than support and clerical work, per LNGCA regulation 53.4 --"

"Glop!"

" -- right, Goopy, make that LNGCA regulation 54.3. Alright, you two, can I get names, ranks and duty lists from the two of you? This is all going to have to go in the report."

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Zarra is being a Bureaucrat. Xacha is fishing for information. I suppose this is a Request: (1d20+6)[13], asking the two homunculi to identify themselves.

[Inspector Valin]

Zarrachia, Ellie & Adria
"Waait. We hire halflings now? I thought it was just us - OWW."

The older homunculus ribs his subordinate with a well placed elbow. "Idiot. We're the only ones living down there. She's probably from the city. They still have uniforms and some order up top, Neth bless the Archmage."

He turns back to Zarrachia, tipping her a salute. "Sargent Yara. This is Private Kell. Like I said, we're not with your Topside Watch or whatever its called, we're Nex's Own Guards, set to watch the gate and make sure the outer defenses hold in case of an attack. Which I... guess this was. Even if you beat us to the punch."

Yara looks down at one of the augurs, frowning at the blob of flesh and pain with a furrowed brow. "We were expecting undead, not fiends. Is it even Geb attacking? Why'd you lot open the Gate?"

Spoiler

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Just because it's the kinda stupid BS thing that can cause a hold up, checking OOC: are you guys willing to go with Yara and Kell? If so this conversation can happen as you're walking back to the gate. If not, I'll keep that in mind as I progress.

[DigoDragon]

OOC: Yes, Ellie can follow and talk.


Ellie Sprocket

"Opening the gate was an accident. Koma had fallen into the luminescent lake and... huh. Perhaps the wand is the key after all? Seems like these places open up when it is near..."

Widget pokes Ellie with a paw and down at her attire. "Ah, yes. Um, is there a place I could... erm, wash up and change?" She points out her destroyed dress which has more in common with peasant rags than a proper ball gown.

[Gwynfrid]

"You're right, of course. It wouldn't do any good to those people we aim to save, if we were to die here before we found them, or afterwards either." Sachni's ministrations seem to do wonders for the little gnome. Soon, he appears to have recovered all his energy and optimism. "Lady Sachni, you're not doubt a great doctor of the medicinal arts look at me good as new! I'll have to buy another shirt alas of well that is the cost of being a hero don't you think."

"Now you're right and let's put that insight in application right here. This obviously is a circle of summoning not one too powerful I think but it surely was used to bring in something nasty if I judge by the use of blood and by the evil nature of the guardians we found. These books now we should be cautious. Allow me a few minutes to study my spellbook please." With a smile of pleasure, he extracts from his backpack a rather small, but thick book, its leathery cover fairly plain. He opens it with great caution, as if expecting the spells within to jump out and do something bad. Inside the pages, one can see many complex, somewhat haphazard runes, written in a tiny little script, in purple-black ink. He studies it for several minutes, muttering to himself.

"That's it! I have just the spell!"

He stands up, a great air of authority about him, and begins a series of imperious gestures, which last for a while. Looking intently at the open book on the table, he finishes with an incantation:

"De voir l'aura subtile
Qui révèle la magie,
À l'heure du péril
C'est le moment ici."

This process is repeated until he's examined every one of the books in a similar manner.

Spoiler

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Yay, full hit points!

Belginabo refocuses, reaching to his fey heritage to change his primal cantrip to Read Aura for the rest of the day. He then casts it on the open book, then, one by one, on the other ones, then on the music box.

When that's done, he'll attempt to read the books, starting with the non-magical ones. He'll also help with the search of the room.

(leaving the Knowledge and Perception checks in the DM's hands)

Note about his spellbook: It's a homemade fake, but Belginabo is convinced it's legit. Anyone with a true knowledge of arcane who takes a close look is likely to identify as made up.

[Inspector Valin]

Adria, Zarrachia, Ellie
Kell blinks at that revelation, not sure he'd quite heard it correctly. Yara looks... bewildered. He turns to Koma, almost growling at the goblin. "You're telling me you broke our vigil of over four thousand years by accident?"

Koma winces. This is all starting to get a bit much, even for the Cindersnout leader. "Sorry?" he offers, a touch weakly.

Yara looks like he wants to throttle the little goblin. But perhaps mercifully, the tiny soldier restrains himself with a sigh. "Lordship's name, that weren't what I was expecting." It takes him a second of deep breathing to remember Ellie's question, but then he nods to her. "Yeah, you'll be alright. We're ready for you. We kinda expected a few more, but whatever - I'll explain things to the Wardmeister. She'll probably get a good laugh outta it."

You're passing the gate now, entering a carved tunnel of dark grey masonry and brick. Small blue orbs light the way to hallways and subrooms, from which other homunculi in the same uniforms are coming and going. A dozen more guardsmen are hovering right before the gate, wands raised, as the group approach. Yara barks "Refugees secure! Close the gate" Saluting as one, the homunculi split into teams, all flitting deeper into the base where control mechanisms must lie. Soon enough, the great bronze gates start to come together. In the distance, you can just make out the false wall shuddering back into place as well.

Spoiler: OOC

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Breaking here for one last chance at questions, requests or running away before Yara gives the full explanation of what's on this side of the door. He knows you don't know now, so will explain.

Belginabo, Sachni & Raka
Belginabo's examination takes some time, and disappointingly few of the items return a result from his spell. The box is indeed magical, but lacks any obvious opening mechanism - it's quite elabourate, and definetly contains inner workings, but how to activate it is not obvious. The open book that Belginabo had attempted to purloin is more promising, however. It's a manual of summoning, outlining key steps in conjuration rites for various denizens of the lower planes. Cross-referencing the circle on the floor with the images in the book allows Belginabo to determine the rite's purpose - it was meant to summon a Velstrac, a pain obsessed group of demons that reside in the Plane of Shadow. Specifically it should summon an Augur, a relatively weak creature, that the tome recommends wizards utilize as a scout and tracker due to a limited precognitive ability. Judging by slight distortions in the circle, the rite was performed multiple times.

That is where his luck comes to an end however. The majority of the books are... several recent volumes of the Pathfinder Chronicles: tales of daring do, adventure and exploration, with embossed covers and exciting titles such as Spires of Xin-Shalast, The Hungry Storm and Forge of the Giant God. It seems even foul villains lurking in the darkness desire some method of passing the time. These may be enjoyable reading matter, but they don't seem too useful in determining just what is going on here.

Then there are the letters. These lie beside an inkpot and quill - the master of this room had likely been planning to scribe a few massives himself. However here Belginabo encounters an issue - almost all of these are written in a script he's unfamiliar with. They certainly look ominous - pointy runes, flowing script that runs line after line, but he's got no idea where to start with decoding them. A few have notes scribbled atop them in Taldean however - "Impudence!" "Arrogant Old Fool!" "How Dare She?!" and words to such effect. It seems the occupant of the office disagrees with a good many members of his Secret Organization Of Evil. Or these are all his creditors.

A few sheets amidst the pile stand out however. Belginabo takes a second to make sure, but yes. These are written in Elven. And strangely, these faint slips of paper do return a signature of magic. Quite a literal one in fact. At the base of each letter, in place of a signature is an arcane mark, one that looks a bit like a wide circular arch with slits cut into the side, surrounding a grey circle with two eyes that seem to be looking right into Bel's own every time he glances at it. It looks a little like a shrouded face with a strange hood.

Spoiler

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Since Elven seems like a language Belginabo could've encountered before, I'll allow a roll to try and decode bits of these important looking letters. Let's call it a Lore (Theatre) roll - he's totally read some old Elven plays, right? A note - this is purely the result of checking what's openly on the desk, searching the rest of the room will take longer, so I'd like to confirm how thorough you guys are being at that before giving results.

I'd also appreciate a Perception Check to keep an eye out for any signs of someone approaching the office - the window is open, you've got a decent shot at hearing/seeing any ambushers.

[DigoDragon]

Ellie pats Koma on the shoulder. "Not to worry. Sometimes great scientific discoveries are by accident."

She then adds, in a more hushed tone for just those around her, "Though what do they mean by expecting us?"

[Anyr]

While Belginabo searched for magic, Sachni searched in a more conventional fashion. She opened drawers, peered into nooks, and examined anything shiny. She also kept glancing out of the window. This place probably wouldn't be safe for long.

"Let's finish this search quickly. We can't afford to linger here. That creature no doubt went to alert its allies."

Spoiler: OOC

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Perception: (1d20+4)[6]

[Xacha]

Zarrachia

Zarra's mind was moving quickly. "... some order ..." "... vigil of four thousand years ..." "... expecting undead ..." "... refugees ..."

She whispers back to Ellie, "It sounds like they think the war with Geb is still going on. They must think we're fleeing the Gebbites."

Zarra gnaws at her lip. "Excuse me, Sargent Yara, but have you really been guarding this door for four thousand years? Like, since year 576 or so?

[Syless]

Adria muses. "Did they even use the same calendar back then...?" This could be bad, though. If they think the war with Geb is still ongoing... what do they have sealed down here? Is this really just a refugee shelter, if so, who's here summoning fiends...?

[Inspector Valin]

Zarrachia, Adria & Ellie
Yara laughs at Zarrachia's question, the little officer shaking as he flits through the air just ahead of them. "Well, not personally, lass. Even we get run down over time, and new wings get brought up from the vats to join the flock. But the Gate Guard? Yeah, that's right. Four thousand years. Placed 'ere by Nex himself to keep this place safe and operational! And we still keep track of time, have a calendar, days, nights, and the Absalom reckoning."

Kel and Yara soon enough have led you through the corridors that house the gate guard to a second, far humbler looking door. The two pause before turning back to the group, Yara taking a deep breath. "Haven't had something like this happen in living memory. 'pologies if you get funny looks. Remember, most of the folk here have never seen an outsider before, and no one told us things had kicked off topside. First we knew about it was when you activated the gate's exterior trigger."

Kel grins, "Brace yourselves!" With those two words, the homunculus finally pushes the door ajar, letting a brighter light stream in as the group step forward. It takes a second to adjust, and when they do, they see...

A city. A whole damned city stretches out around them. Perhaps a smaller one than Oenopion, but still massive. The chamber is roughly circular, bigger than you could ever estimate and filled with a cluster of white marble towers, linked across jutting levels of cliff by carefully crafted bridges of pale stone. Above them on the roof of the cavern, the group see a massive blue crystal - like the light orb Ellie carries, but far bigger, able to cast light across the entire complex. The bottom level appears to be an entire underground lake, rippling in the light of the crystal, though there are traces of grassland on the side, and it's hard to make out too clearly past the rest of this bizzare place.

There are homunculi everywhere, most in robes and civilian clothes, flying from window to window and leaving the streets largely untouched and pristine. Even goods are being hauled through the air by carrier teams. Looking down, the point you now stand on bears the Rings of Nex in mosaic, with runes added to give the appearance of three overlapping binding circles. The touches of elegence and sophistication don't end, wherever you look. There are stained glass windows in some of the towers, elegant balconies and fountain plazas. This is an entire city, that's existed under Oenopion for millennia. And everywhere, in every doorway and every arch of a bridge, you see a small blue glowing rune that reminds you of the power of this strange sealed city.

"Welcome to Hekephra! Archmage Nex's own sanctum of magic, ready to resist whatever blight the Ghost King could throw at us!" Kel and Yara are both grinning. The older homunculus glances at one of the towers. "We'll go get someone to fix up some guest rooms for you to recover in. Feel free to look around though! You're citizens of Nex; this place belongs to you as much as us." And with those few words, the pair start flying off to find some administrative help.

Spoiler

Show

Yara's as good as his word. You're all getting guest bedrooms and a chance to get some rest after everything you've just been through. You can use it to recuperate or go and see some of the sights. Or combine the two to some degree. You've got a whole town to explore gang! How do you guys wanna play this?

[DigoDragon]

Ellie Sprocket


Ellie looks around the massive underground city. "How did we miss this from the surface?" she asks aloud. "This place is amazing! No, amazing isn't good enough a word. Ugh! We need to invent a bigger word for this place."

She starts walking forward, and if no one stops her, Ellie will be wandering around to find a market.

[Xacha]

Zarrachia

Zarrachia trots after Ellie. "Best stick together. Wanna see what kind on marketplace they have around here? Frankly I could use some new clothes -" she gestures towards her torn and bloody customs office uniform - " - and I haven't eaten in a whole two hours and that's practically starving for a halfling and ... um ... hey Adria? Maybe there's a healer or a temple around here?"