Full Metal Matt

There was magic in this world once, but they stole it all away.
 
Tensions ease between the two groups, but how long would this peaceful calm last?

Two days passed uneventfully, before the group arrived at a sandy outbuilding. Clearly a recent construction placed in front of the entry tunnel to the pyramid, born of a different era than that of the pyramid. Rising to a height of 700 feet, the exterior of the pyramid is untouched by the desert sands: unlike the rock forming the 25 foot wall surrounding it.
 
Guarding the entryway were a pair of desert dwelling humans not garbed in the Sultans colours. Koric introduced some of the party, ignoring others (Poor Yuttosk). They proclaimed it was the Pyramid of Amun-Ra, and that they were the true faith. Koric rushed up the stairs, insisting they display symbols of their faith. They unsheathed their blades, proclaiming: Infidels!
 
Eventually they were cut down. Tage slipped on their cultist outfit as a disguise. Koric knocked on the door, while Tage was searching for traps. The doors opened, and they found themselves in a ten foot wide corridor which lead to another double door.
 
Koric adorned himself in Cultist attire, and medallion, then knocked on the second set of doors. The room within had a statue, and an altar. Decorative wall carvings and a fanciful domed ceiling awaited within. Six worshippers (five dervish and a ‘High Priestess’) were inspecting the carvings on the walls.
 
Tage let out an undulating yell: Screaming INFIDELS! Immediately, they entered battle formation: doing a deadly dance with their blades. The chance for a non-violent resolution was now zero.
 
The zealots rushed Koric, while Tage waited for the right moment to strike. A fiery blast badly burned several, and Thylek and Yuttosk rushed in to finish off one of the burnt ones. Infused with the power of the divine location, the priestess cast her divine powers without risk of failure. Tage indicated they should BEWARE THE YELLOW SKINNED INFIDELS! Immediately Quith teleported behind him and whispered into his ear: “Are you sure you want to betray us so soon?”
 
John scorched the life out of a few, while Thylek and Koric cleaned up what was left. Yuttosk prepared for the Gith Yanki to make their move, spinning his spear. The priestess sent her scimitar after Koric, cutting through his thick skin with the power of her faith and blessed herself.

Claiming that the Quith had ‘Spoiled the surprise’, Tage turned and did not cut through the magical defenses of the priestess with his shadow-infused blades. Quith stepped in cutting her with his silver blade, despite Johns suggestion to take her alive and gather some information. John tossed a sticky bomb at her, sticking her in place. Koric, having been reminded of the desire of the group to keep her alive whacked her with the flat of his blade and knocked her out.
 
John invoked the knowledge of generations and inspected the writings on the walls and the book (fancy and gilded book) that she had been reading. The walls mentioned “Though the spirit lies far from us in Heaven westward, his likeness comes so he may commune with men.” Later on, he would give this very fancy holy book a more thorough examination. The statue behind the altar radiated Transmutation magic. Tage inspected it, finding it was in fact the focus of a secret door. Tage tweaked its nipples, and whispered the secret word into the mouthpiece that came forth. Nothing was in the secret room, but Koric went down anyway.
 
Sst’ indicated it was the end point of a teleportation effect. She indicated it was very peculiar, that this magic was applying its effects. John surreptitiously learned that Q was ‘a superior rank’ to Sst’, and that she was more willing to work with the Brothers than he. Perhaps a potential brother? Time would tell.
 
They began interrogating the priestess:
Once they’d learned of the return of the pyramids (~6 months) the true believers began returning. She was not aware of how many believers dwelled within, seeking the ‘Truth of the True god’. She revealed they knew all about the curse that happened to this world, and said that ‘Once the pyramids came back, our powers came back!’. She had not gone down into the pyramids here herself, and thus availed very little information about its contents regarding traps and trials to await within. She did reveal that the book (the fancy gilded book) was found within the temple, and that she (they) had yet to truly delve into its contents. They left her bound, and gagged in the secret room: perhaps her ‘True God’ would help her escape the situation. Tage mercilessly teased her, tightening her restraints before they pressed on.
 
John carefully opened the doors into the next room: Within awaited a green statue with jeweled eyes and another altar. The altar was carved of marble, the statue was carved from a green Marble. Quickly prying the Star rubies out of the eye sockets, the party moved on.
 
The next room was a large empty chamber.
 
The hallway they walked down had a suspiciously large foyer in the center, and the party moved on through.
 
Sensing the way down to the pyramid, the brothers decided to finish sweeping the outbuilding first. The next room was a small temple with a dull red glow from a pile of burning incense in the center. Yet another statue whose hands formed an altar awaited, as did a single worshipper: A male priest. Tage snuck up behind the fellow, and slit his throat from ear to ear. Blood gushed: extinguishing the incense and pooling at the base of the statue. Snoring was heard from the next room, and the barracks was finally found. Over twenty combatants were within.
 
John concocted a plan to secure the exits of the room and use a fatal combination of alchemical fireworks, oil, and a pyrotechnical assistance from Sst’ to extinguish the lives of the cultists without too much hassle. Tage vanished in a puff of smoke, planting the barrel of oil into the center of the room, then moving into position near the two orcs securing the first exit.
 
John launched a fancy alchemical firework at the placed oil-keg, and watched as alchemical fire descended on those slumbering within. Their unfortunate post-orgy positions, left them in a bad spot.
 
John reflected that this turn of events reminded him of a friend of his: one who was very fond of elemental fire. The secret word was called forth “Avocado Toast”, and the orc brothers kicked in the door together: shattering the wood and sending the unfortunate souls on the other side flying. The sleepers poured forth from the smoke seeking the sweet taste of unfouled air, into the waiting blades and spears of the Brothers and Gith. In short order the slumbering folks were cut down.
 
The first level of the Pyramid had been cleared, and the brothers rested briefly before foraying down.
 
A pair of skilled Dervishes guarded the next level. Koric proclaimed: “My Brothers!” and intricate carvings of animals lined the walls. Tage called out “Infidels!”, running towards the pair. He warned that they had ‘soaked the altars of Amun-Re in blood!’ Quickly they were cut to ribbons, and the group pressed on into the doors awaiting them into a large dark room.
 
A twenty foot stone statue of a Pharaoh awaited within, made from a different stone from the rest of the walls. Tage located a secret passage behind it. The group backed up to check the two side rooms before pressing forward, the first held a statue of a Pharaoh and domed ceiling
as well as ancient inscriptions on the walls:
“It was said throughout the land that from the time forth, that those that came forth saying the riches were already plundered or that they never returned at all.”
“That day did the river dry and the rains disappear, the arid sun burned into the land and everything withered from its gaze.”
“The people too, dried up and blew away like the withered grass beneath their feet.” “And now that remains is I that guard this temple, and hope to talk of Amun-Re, I shall also sell trinkets to the tradesman that come, though lately business has been low.”
“The building of the pyramid was a colossal feat, especially in the bad years. The Gold Piece had been lowered in value so many times that people began to wonder if there was any future in the gold piece at all.”
“The trade business died away after the first four years, now here I dwell with twelve cases of pyramid statues yearning for the days of earning an honest gold piece.”
The next room was filled with robed figures worshipping a statue near the wall, which was also marked with 5 inscriptions. The statue held a blazing bowl of fire near his chest. One of the figures threw an offering into the bowl and the flames leapt up, and the chant of the faithful resumed.
 
Interrupting their ritual, the Gentleman tossed a dart at the leader. John burned several to death with a concoction: their tightly knit ritual formation proving deadly. Sst’ burnt many of them to a crisp with a fireball of her own. The remainder were cut to bits with spear and sword. The priest held Yuttosk, but it was only a temporary measure. John grappled the priest, tossing him at a hapless dervish before Tage finished him off, and the final cultist got a good slice in on Yuttosk before being cut to bits: Slicing him from Brow to chin.
 
 
 
The inscriptions read:
“Though there had been much bad talk about Amun-Re, it was generally recognized by people and priests alike that he was the greatest of gods either heavenly or westward: For he alone exhibited power in his own temple.”
“Sacrifices of food and gold were brought daily to lay on the altar before the statues on the small worship temples left and right of the true entrance to the tomb.” Perhaps this was the same sort of magic involved in the secret room and teleportation magics, quite likely in fact.
“It is our priests who would write that whatsoever Osiris accepts he would take from the altar, and what he leaves on the altar would go to the priests. This profited the priests greatly, except that all offerings in the east temple would disappear: Never to be found again! “
“Several priests, upset to see their assets disappearing searched the east temple, and they too disappeared. The temple became a most hallowed spot, so that all who wished to bring offerings used that temple only. The priesthood then became unprofitable and our doctrine had to be changed. Trade turned to trick! “
“Offerings were often made, for a passage was always provided between the tomb of the king and his likeness: whereby his spirit might pass into his ordained statue and live within the stone we worship here. Such a stone was always provided for the kings who live among us, so that they might live among us once more.”
 
The brothers would definitely need to search for this repository of the ancient offerings, and loot it of course. All in due time. They returned to a previous secret room: another worship chamber, with yet another secret door. A room with a large 30’ vertical shaft awaited on one side. Thunderous cascading water was heard within. Divine magic radiated within: the gentleman was tied to a rope and dunked within.
 
Thy’lek discovered that the waters were incredibly refreshing. He healed just from drinking a bit, and alerted the group. He saw something below the water, and as it turned out: it was a magical healing fountain, and upon close alchemical inspection determined that the waters would heal them (exactly 10 hp, one time per day). They all extracted some samples,and they moved on.
On the other side of the room, they found another water chamber. . . A second shaft very similar awaited within. Investigating the water indicated it was the same sort as the other side, and would only apply once per day.
 
Beyond the next secret door/statue, they found a long hallway leading to a room with Seven statues and an altar! This was the greatest worship room so far! Three statues of Amon-Re were on the north side, and opposite them were three more on the South side. In many languages, Amon-Re was carved all along the wall. On the altar were a pair of handprints, and they retrieved the captive priestess (Tage is a monster. A monster. ) while Tage worked towards building a false hope that he was in fact a true believer and all the atrocities the group had committed were working towards the greater cause of bringing Amon-Re back to power. He was strangely successful in his attempts to sway her to his bidding. She was ready to put her hands on the altar in the appropriate place, and willing to make this happen.
 
The brothers assembled around the room, preparing for something. . . interesting to happen when the altar was touched by one of the faithful. The captive priestess grabbed the altar and called out to Amon-Re to save her! A door immediately opened. The group returned her to the secret door before continuing. They found themselves in a grand hallway with a broken door. Clearly someone had destroyed the great frescoes on the wall, and the wondrous works of art destroyed. The air within was very dry. Very dry.
 
The next room had clear signs of a ‘Treasure Room’, and was devoid of anything of value or note. Another room further on contained a sarcophagus. The lid ajar and broken, ancient writing was carved into the wall: “Here lies the true tomb. Know ye have arrived too late, to plunder my ransom for heavens gate.”
 
How would the brothers move to the next level? The secret tunnel from the water chambers, the brazier of sacrifice on the east side, or the very obviously trapped stairs from the Sarcophagal chamber? Time would tell.