Session 049 - What is beyond the Gateway?
General Summary
13th to 30th Nuzyael (1) (Spring) 721TR and some downtime
The story so far
Quazzy learns that her lost memories correspond to her time spent in the isolated and mysterious Earthmaster site of Anisha. The party joins her investigation.
Inside Anisha, the heroes discover that the complex has been taken over by snake-human hybrid monsters. These have been defeated, and the heroes plan to determine where they came from.
Continuation of Session 48 - Treasures from the Long Past.
Part 1 - The Statue.
The heroes investigate the last unexplored rooms in the Anisha complex. They enter a large chamber containing a fifteen-foot tall statue some heroic individual, and frescos on the roof of strange alien creatures dancing. Dead snakes litter the chamber's floor and Yureb keen eyes spot a concealed compartment behind the statues head. He carefully makes his way behind the statue but discovers it is psionically locked and he is unable to open it.
Quazzy climbs up and investigates, but accidentally touches the statue, and as the characters feared, it animated. Kalin climbed behind it and wrapped his arms around its head, blinding it and by some miracle hangs on as it fought back using its immense strength. The rest of the heroes were then able to smash it into rubble.
Quazzy opens the compartment finding an Andarin-Wysan. This strange egg-shaped Earthmaster object repairs or recharge Earthmaster artifacts.
Part 2 - The Gateway.
The heroes are interested in learning the origin of the Snake-men. Quazzy then opens the Godstone's portal and the party step through finding a decaying humid stone chamber filled with Giant Scorpions. Although Lucia is stung and groggy with poison, the party quickly dispatch these monsters.
Part 3 - Body of the Volcano Priest.
Only two passages lead out of the Godstone chamber, but both appear to be dead ends but have easily discovered concealed doors.
In one passage is the skeleton of a man in robes, possibly an Agrikian priest. On his body, they find a Journal, a pearl and a large circular obsidian ball. Both the Pearl and the Obsidian Ball prove to be magical. The Journal is from Heruchai Inagra, a Priest of Agrik of the Brotherhood of the Molten Flame from the City of Ilmas in the distant Kingdom of Menêma.
About thirty years ago he became aware of a legend that one of the 888 Sacred Cairns was hidden the Earthmaster ruin of Cinharjin, also known as the City of Screams. Presumably, Cinharjin is the current location the party has traveled to, and it is located far away on the Hèpekérian subcontinent. His notes reveal that he is the last survivor of an expedition who spent weeks searching the Cinharjin ruins, but did not find any evidence of a Sacred Cairn, or any other holy artifact.
The Journal refers to the Obsidian Ball, which is called the Eye of Prince Pavahnis and it glows when near Agrikian sacred objects.
Part 4 - Jungle and Journey Home.
The other secret passage has visible snakes tracks on the floor and leads up to a moldy spiral staircase. This opens up into the top of an old and worn Ziggurat, in the middle of dense a Jungle valley. Ruined buildings are scattered everywhere. Far to the East is the sea and to the west is a desert. The heroes decide to leave the jungle unexplored for the moment and travel back through the Godstone to Anisha.
They meet with Chief Skoll, of the nearby village of Haruch. He sends a team into Anisha to clean up and burn the corpses. He is more than happy for the party to use the Godstone in the future if there is a need.
The heroes then uneventfully travel by land back to City of Coranan.
