Nulli Dei. Nulli Domini. [IC]

[AscendingApe]

Relaxing slightly and allowing the accumulated power to begin to ebb away, Dharmesh looks to Vauma."You seem to have this well in hand, I will begin freeing the civilians. If you could direct it out of here, that would be wise." Dharmesh will take the time to flick the fur of a black cat at the spider, laying a curse of ill fortune upon it, creeping black tendrils coating its hide. His cuse bestowed, Dharmesh will fly up to the web and begin cutting people loose.

Spoiler: ill omen, for ease of access

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next five rolls made Windweaver must roll twice and take the lower result. Duration is 20 rounds or until all five rolls have been made, whichever comes first. It can negate a single reroll by burning a move action to say a prayer to appease the spirits of ill fortune on it, if it knows what's been cast on it. 1 MP burned to cast, relentless casting to secure CL check to beat SR result of 40, no phrenic cost thanks to remade self.

[Sepulchritude]

Shovash didn't make the healing entirely simple, or really, even the identifying her. The stragglers in the webs, those few the mammoths hadn't utterly trampled, had been unable to abide her heat. When the fresh swarms proved to at least contain enough individual spiders that a few survived to do harm, her immediate reaction was to collapse entirely out of humanoid form into incandescent disgust, hot enough to burn blue. The mammoths, with no ongoing guidance, crashed around the area recklessly. The angel just drifted into the heart of the flames and spun in place, only theoretically of use.

[TheOneHawk]

Damien jumps a solid foot in the air when the spider teleports out of her box, only his invisibility keeping his pride intact. Before he can regain his composure, a massive swarm of spiders descends upon him and he is reduced to swatting and trying ineffectively to shake them off.

[The Glyphstone]

Looks like it's time for the main event!

Unwilling to test Windweaver's hearing, or that of her companion spiders, Ragnar only nodded silently. Killing the smaller vermin was obviously of little use while their mother lived, as she birthed more with every moment that passed. Sighting Greta towards the Primordial's bloated abdoment, he fired a flurry of bolts before drifting sideways slightly.

Spoiler: OOC

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Mythic Rapid Shot for +2 attacks, Haste for +1 attack, Ki point for +1 Attack.

Vs. AC58, 154 damage
Vs. AC56, 153 damage
Vs. AC55, 165 damage
Vs. AC51, 170 damage
Vs. AC45, 162 damage
Vs. AC43, 152 damage
Vs. AC33, 157 damage

Clustered Shots means DR only applies to the first hit. If she is not immune to Ability Damage, each hit also deals 2 Dex damage. If there are any active spells on her, it's a 1d20+20 Dispel check for each hit as well.

5ft. step to one side, just to make it a little harder to backtrack my fire.

[ylvathrall]

Y̴̮̬̒̆́̍̄ǫ̷̝̠͉̫͗̑u̷͍͂̐̊ ̸̗͚̈́͜ẃ̸̖̯̩̤̍̎ỏ̷̟r̶͚̪̤̗̯͂̿̆̾m̴̪͇̓̑̕̕s̸̥̮̭͍͗͋̌̈́̕.̵ ̪̼̙̐͐̒͠ ̶̡̝̹͌̒́͝D̶͔̞͓͓̀̎͒͝o̸̞̘͛ ̶̠̖̮̏y̶͔̖̒̆͜ő̵̡͙̫̏̌̊ŭ̷̢̜̳̦̏͋ ̷̗̊̑͝ī̷̞̭̀͂̓m̶̧̩̖̈́͛ą̸̘̪̊́̈́́̔g̷̢̜̻̤͒̒̇͂͝i̶̺̝̒͒̅̽n ̷̟̀͋̊͂̿ȇ̶̪̦͒͐̐ ̵̖̣̠̈t̷̟̽̔̒̌̿h̴͉̖̿͆̉͝ḭ̵̙̯͋s̸̹̙͝ͅ ̴̳͓̥͕̟̍͆m̴̻͈̖̩͘ȧ̵͉̂̚͜ẗ̸̼́̚͜t̵͈͍̞̫͂̄̇e̵̛̬̍̆̀ȓ̵͖̅s ̴̗̰̣͗?̶͉̭̪̍̎̅͠ ̴̨̯͝T̵͖̙͋ḥ̴̬̎̆͛̀a̷̢͑̑̊̌͌ṭ̷̪̺̓̍ ̸͈͇̈́̌̄̚̕s̸̡̻̤̜̯͊̐͘h̸̟̖̦̔͛o̷͔̣̖͆̂̚ǫ̷͎̬̣̀̉̂̈́t̶̨͇̘̏i ̷͔̟̔͑̕͝͝n̴͎̘̔̆̓̚g̷̭͓͑̍̒̓̀ ̶̖̻̘͊̎̽̌̔m̵̹̹͗͗̈̾ȩ̶͔̀̉̃̀͆ ̶̭̭̖͓̓͘w̷̡̨̛̥̿̈́̒̆i̶̛̙͇̔͗̿t̴͉̾̅͒̕h̵̙͇̲̥̔͐̅̓ ̴̺͗̏b̸̡̨̤̀ồ̷̼́l̶̪̐t̸͖̯̆͝s̶̛̫͒̂,̵͎̈́̌̽̄͘ ̸̺̺̃̀͂̀͝ò̴͕̤̥͈̯̽͊̋̈́f̷̲̑̏͜͝ ̵̡̛̫̼̺̚͜a̶̳̥̭̦̚͘ḽ̶̛̛̠̰̈̉͝l̴̩͈̉̒ ̶̼̙͊̈́t̵̲͉̞̗̞͒̑̈́͊̒h̴̝̓͜͠î̴͚n̵̮͚͛̅ǵ̸̦̉͆̚s̵̨̡͕̬̐͂,̵ ̘̦̘̄́̀͜ ̴͎̦͔̽̅͊w̵͎̣͖̙̽͋̈̆͘i̴̡̥̲̽͐̾̿͆l̴̘̹͖̂͂̿́l̵̛͎͎̔͑̄̋ ̸͈̖͍̱̯̀͒̍̈͋e̵̬͓̹͊͑̾͑n̶̡̛̪̯͙̼͒̕d̶̘̲̹̼̆̌̔̈́͜ ̸̻̬̄t̸̼͓̮̱̽̔͠ͅh̸̯͍̝̉̀͂͠͠í̷̺̜͕͇͖̋̂s̷̛͓?̶̫̲̓̓̾͘ ͉͓͚ ̶̣̗̫̆̆T̶̠͕͔̎ḩ̵͗̈́͑a̵̬͖̣̅̅̍̀ț̵̞̀̒ ̶̩̼̿̋͐̋̇ŝ̵̩͜p̴̲̝̭̪̯̑̊̿̕o̵̮͓͝r̵̥̜̀͘e̵͖̠̱̼̓̈́͋͝s̶͙̙̃ ̯̣ ̷̜͎͌̉̄̍̉g̶͕̺̪̲̠͗i̵͔̪̱̞̬̊f̶͙͎͓̰́͜t̷̠̖͈̔̽͊͘ę̷͙͑́d̵̈́ ̩͍̭̗̄̏̓ ̶̞̫̣̆́̑͋͘b̷̙͓̋̑̈͊͝y̴̳̌̓́ ̶̢̞͔́͌̊a̵̡̺̜̎̚ ̸̺͕͍̬̖͊̍̈́p̸͕̳͈̏̄͠r̸̝͎̹̆̇̂e̷̢̛t̶̪͈̮̝͋̉̚e̶̥̓̒n̴̤̪͕̓d ̴̣͖͓̗̟̆̀e̶̢͉̒́̅͋͜r̷͓͎̘̝̚ ̵̜̦̩͛͘t̸͖̭̾͋́̉͝o̷̧̱̤̜͙͊̚ ̶͉͓͑̆̊͜t̶̞͑̏̋̈́̿h̶̳̮́͊͆͊̅ȩ̶̲̘̜̐̅̃̎ ̴̜͖͙͔̅̓͐l̵̨͍̹̆̿̕ŏ̶͙̃r̶̝̫̈̒̓̑͜ͅͅd̴̜̟̝͋̀͛'̶͖̟̲̪̙̎̐̕ ṡ̶̙̫̗ ̴̟͇̤̤́t̵̡͙̩͎̼̂̊h̵͉̱̑̆̄̈́͠r̶̛̰͕͐ȯ̴̡̦͖̜n̸̨̆̐͒̋e̸ ̙̂̓ ̶̜͂w̷̛̤̘̙ì̷͇ĺ̴̨̯̘͝͠l̵̫̯͂ ̷͎̈́̒̀s̵̡͓̲̓͊͊t̶̠̳̪̪͂̈́͘o̷̪̫͇͑̎̈́̚͝p̷̡̬̱̪̹̽̅͑̓̇ ̵͕͓̪̯̲̏̓̕m̸̨̹͙̯͋̓̿̈́́e̵̢̛̳͚̮̾̏̅̇͜?̵̛͓ Windweaver's voice is calm, albeit distorted, even as she almost experimentally claws at herself. At the same time, a single spider is disgorged from her abdomen - quite a step down from the swarms of moments ago, or so it seems for a moment. But this spider rapidly swells in size, growing from a normal spider to a jet-black creature the size of a building, positioned directly between its mother and Ragnar.

[Sepulchritude]

Dͤoͦn̲̖'͂̾t͍͢ ̖͉l̤̦͛ò͒ͅo̫̒ͪk͓̳̊ ̜ͣ̽͒d̪ͤ̈́̈oͦͮ̅̚ŵ̴͋͢n̴̯ͦͫ ̝̦͔͊o̙̼̒̽ń̸̞ͫ ̷͍̱̥m̷̢͡͝e̸̯͂͘.̩̣̅ͬ ̏ͦ҉̾I̲ͧ̿̆ ̢̎̀͢d̥̄̔͠o͚̯͟n̵ͯ̚'̶́͠t̖͉̞ ̪̑l͆̋ö̑o̴ḳ ͗up. The fire that was Shovash burns suddenly brighter, blue yielding to violet as though a chemist had salted it with alkali. It stretches in either direction around Windweaver, hands rising from the tongues of flame in the gestures of spellcasting erratically before flickering away, and voice jumping too much to usefully follow.

"S͝w̥e̻è̫t̹͛h̶͂e̫̮̘ḁͭ͘r̳̐̓t̅͒͆,͕͚̻̎ ̡͇̥̏ÿ̢͝͞o̰͙͂̉u͈̾̃ͭ͝'̵̜͆ͥ͢r̷̜̜̋̀ĕ͔̻̓̇ ̭͔̩͆͘j̬͇̫ͮ͜ṵ̓͛͘͝s̥ͪ͆̐̕t̮ͨ̋̎͘ ̢̨̃̐͡ă͈̰͙̼—

̸̬̩͗͜—ṃ̸̢ͮ̕o̖̙̓ͯ̃r̞̠̙ͮ̆ṅ͍̍̎̎i̴͙̖̱̭n͍̻ͫ̊̔ḡ̦͈ͭ'͕̄ ͒ͥs̵̝̭͕ ̵̛́̽d̬̟͕i̻̔͞s̙̋̑t̗̺̅r͇͒ḁ҉c̬͒t͒ịo̞n̫. T̉h͖ě ̦͟o͒ͧn̢͗l̬͓͊y̤͊̏ ̼̽̇s̬͔̚h̭̊ͯ̃â͐̏͜m͓̠ͨ͛e̷̙ͮͫf̨͆̐͌u̝͋͡͡l̨̺ͨ̓ ̭̹̱̂—

—p̈̒́͘͝a̬̲̖̺̍r̖̜̗̳͗t̶̰̺̔͘ ͇́͢ͅi͚ͦͤ͝s̴̹̥͜ ͚͂̊ͅy͒̄͒̋o̸̙ͮ̓u̢̨̒͌ ̒̉̄c͇ͦ͟a̶͜͠n͈̆͋'̏͂ť͚ ̙͙t̀͘e̎l̐l̹. I̠ ̹h̷a̤ͅṯ̡e̦̯ ͒ͨ͜t̹̱̑o̮͔̜ ̱̼҉d̼̜̭̒o̺̣͌̿ ̈ͪ͑͠t̨̮͕ͯh̴͉ͩͨi̲ͫͣ́ş́͡҉ ̷͙̩ͪt̵̲̆̾o͐̿̀͌ ͍͋ͤ͜a̠ͧ̑͡n̲͚̂ͥo̵̥̞t̷̽̚h̟͔̋ę̮ͯr͕ͦ͛ ̠̟mͭ͊ȍ͊t͒h͇e̴r."

The mostly-humanoid shape from before coalesces for just an instant and reached for the spider's abdomen. " መደነስ ይማሩ።" she hisses, voice low and momentarily clear, then she melts again into a bodiless rush of flame, leaving her handprint sizzling in place behind her. Shovash takes a winding path around the courtyard that passes by the rampaging mammoths, sending them stampeding at the new threat, rolls right over Damien, burning him and the swarm alike, and eventually heads out into one of the uncleared streets beyond.

Spoiler: OOC

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Okay, so that's a 33 melee touch attack with 4 fire damage and a DC 29 Will save vs irresistible dance, five bull rushes from the mammoths in an attempt to knock Yung Rachny out of Ragnar's way (31, 35, 43, 47, 49), and Damien takes 9 fire damage and a kiss on the forehead.

[TheOneHawk]

With his spider problem solved by a slightly more painful than usual hug from Shovash, Damien shakes off the last of the burnt corpses and turns his attention back towards Windweaver. "Ok, enough playing around." He says, with an edge to his voice. He points at the spider and lets a jet black stream of energy erupt from his finger, then glances at Beatrice as they say in unison, "STOP," and the world obeys. With everyone and everything else at a standstill, he conjures a handful of glowing orange beads and throws them between Windweaver and her massive spawn, then grins and permits the world to begin moving again. Once it does, he counts down from three with his fingers, then just before the beads explode he spins away from the blast and strikes a pose.

[The Glyphstone]

Ragnar shrugs, flying upward and around the impeding spider-spawn to get another unimpaired line of sight towards the injured Windweaver. The power of Stormbringer's soul crackles in his veins, the Primordial titan's phenomenal speed muted to a pale shadow of its living self but still enough to grant him a burst of peerless dexterity. His fingers fly so fast they would be invisible if he wasn't already shrouded in concealment, firing two bolts into the side of the Primordial spider's flank.

Spoiler: OOC

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Move 90 to get line of sight. Fire once, Distance Barrage to fire again for 1 MP. Hits for 306 total

[Hjolnai]

Since the Windweaver no longer seems to be an issue, Tolben turns his attention to the remaining giant spider.

"Just go away."

He gestures and chants, and a withering barrage of force projectiles leap at the creature.

Spoiler: OOC

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Intensified Battering Blast, Maximized by Spell Perfection:
Vs SR: (1d20+33)[50]
To hit: (+13 normally, +1 for Haste) (1d20+14)[20], (1d20+14)[15], (1d20+14)[33], (1d20+14)[22], (1d20+14)[25]
Damage: 42, 42, 42, 42, 42
Bull rush: (1d20+42)[61], (1d20+42)[48], (1d20+42)[49], (1d20+42)[53], (1d20+42)[60] (take the highest and add +10 for each other hit)
If bull rushed, reflex save DC 32 or fall prone.

Quickened by Spell Perfection:
Vs SR: (1d20+33)[44]
To hit: (1d20+14)[19], (1d20+14)[33], (1d20+14)[28], (1d20+14)[27], (1d20+14)[20]
Damage: (7d6)[25], (7d6)[21], (7d6)[33], (7d6)[26], (7d6)[19]
Bull rush: (1d20+42)[49], (1d20+42)[46], (1d20+42)[48], (1d20+42)[51], (1d20+42)[58] (take the highest and add +10 for each other hit)
If bull rushed, reflex save DC 32 or fall prone.

[ylvathrall]

The bolts land home, and then a massive explosion of fire and light and sound fills the air. Windweaver...there's not much left of her when the echoes of the blast fade. Pieces of shell, fungus, juices of a disturbing green-black color, and foul-smelling burned bits. The colossal spider surges forward at Damien, but Tolben's blasts batter it to death.

Unfortunately for Damien, he's looking away, and thus doesn't realize that the spider's shattered corpse is falling on him. He ends up trapped under an enormous spider body, also ensnared in burning webs.

Aiva laughs and Cho takes up the sound, discordant and harsh and somehow still beautiful. The pair surge forward, carving a path through webs and spiders with axe and sword and tooth. Carreau continues to stand guard over the civilians that Dharmesh is rescuing.

The other spiders are moving in chaotic almost-patterns, tearing into anyone that comes close but otherwise lacking in organization.

[QuidEst]

"Hmm. I'll start a moderate rainstorm to start clearing out the smaller webs and spiders. In the meantime, can anybody do illusions of giant birds flying overhead? Whether the spiders try to catch them or get away, it takes their focus off people," Vauma suggested, concentrating on the weather magic. She sighed as she saw Damien get crushed in the conflagration. One of these days, he'd at least stop wasting money on removing the fungus.

[Sepulchritude]

Shovash had already left, familiar in tow, when the spider toppled. Her mastodons sank into the ground almost immediately, leaving only brimstone scorch-marks on the paving stones. The light from her fire vanished shortly after that, replaced by a dark haze just visible over the lowest buildings as it rolled down the side streets, opposite the direction Aiva and Cho had gone.

Spoiler: OOC

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Given Transformation, Greater Angelic Aspect, Unholy Aura, Fiendish Wrath, Touch of Rage, flight speeds, magic weapons, +40 heal checks, a fire damage breath weapon, and whatever else she and her familiar can pull out, I'm sure a long street-to-street mop-up would just be tedious, not challenging.

[The Glyphstone]

Ragnar returns to his usual quasi-visibility, letting the razor-bite of phantom thorns fade back to a stinging prickle, and drifts down to the blasted remains of what was once Windweaver. His peerless marksmanship will be of little use clearing the streets of their spidery contents and knotted webs. But he can offer this newest slain Primordial the same respects on passing as he had its reptilian cousin, before turning his attention to her victims and survivors. There is no head to identify this time, or really any recognizable body parts at all - but in the carpet of bilious green juices there is still the fading sense of presence. When it is gone, Ragnar heads out to begin his own form of clean-up.

[ylvathrall]

As the rain starts to fall, the spiders scurry en masse for the sewer entrances, hiding down in the dark where they were spawned. The larger of them are unable to get back in, of course, but Aiva, Cho, Carreau, and Shovash are quickly reducing their numbers to the point that they are unlikely to menace anyone else. The webs themselves seem likely to be significantly more problematic to remove, but without the malign will of Windweaver influencing them, they seem to have lost something of their supernaturally clinginess, and without the spiders infesting them they're only irritating to the civilians, not truly hazardous. Dharmesh manages to save numerous people from swarms of spiders indoors and extricate them from the coccoons, while Ragnar finds some restless spirits - not as many as in the wake of Stormbringer's attack, but some.

[QuidEst]

"Mycetes, could you go fetch me Damien? Or part of Damien? Whatever works," Vauma said, hopping off. The overgrown (in both senses) wolf lumbered forward and started shoving the carcass around before eventually returning with an arm. She took it. Any decorum of the process had been lost in the repetition. "Hey, Heiress. It's him, Damien. Again." Before long, a new Damien was growing from the arm, fungal growths sprouting while skin grew around them. "Welcome back."

[TheOneHawk]

"What the... what happened?" Damien gasps once his lungs work, or exist for that matter, again. He looks over at where his explosion obliterated Windweaver with a questioning look. "We won, why was I dead?" Seeing the mushroom colony that was animating him, he quietly cursed and said, "Nevermind, one minute," then teleported away, appearing next to Vauma again perhaps 30 seconds later, sans fungus. "Mind filling me in on why I was mushroom, again?"

[Hjolnai]

Tolben directs his summoned angel to heal the wounded townsfolk while it remains, and paces angrily until Damien returns.

"Damien, what in the Pit did you think you were doing? Killed by a falling spider corpse - a new low for you! Will you please be more careful?

I have work to do. You lot can deal with the boring speeches without me!"

With that, and a few words, he is gone.

Spoiler: OOC

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Tolben casts Greater Teleport to go find a magic shop - he has scrolls to buy. I'll come up with a shopping list shortly.

[Sepulchritude]

The shadows rolling through the eastern neighborhoods persist perhaps another quarter-hour before winking out entirely. Shovash does not rejoin her companions, however, even for as brief a goodbye as Tolben's. Rather, at that moment she appears several hundred miles away, above the Western gate of Daggermark, sitting casually on the parapet, her ankles crossed and kicking above the road into the city.

"I'm looking for a lich," she declares to the guard just to her left, before he quite has time to notice her on his own. "Perhaps you've seen him? Tall for a former human, very grim, highest expectations you've ever worked under?"

[QuidEst]

”Tolben about summer it up. You’ll save a lot if you just let them grow, you know,” Vauma commented mildly.

[TheOneHawk]

"Let them... the mushrooms? Ick. Mushrooms are gross!" He pauses, glancing at Vauma's extremely fungus laden form, then coughs and amends, "I mean, uh, I just don't really think they work with my, uh, complexion. Yeah. Anyways, I hope you guys left me something to finish off!" At which he spins around and walks away quickly, looking for spiders to burn.

[ylvathrall]

Spoiler: Those still in the city

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As you wrap up the bulk of the work of clearing out the spiders and webs, a messenger arrives from Lady Melissa Sereni, the current head of what passes for government in the city after it broke free of Cheliax's main government following the disappearance of Asmodeus and the resulting governmental chaos. She says that to her regret she is unable to meet with you in person, being too occupied with organizing disaster relief, but she wishes to say that Kintargo owes you a great debt and that you are welcome to call on her at need. Also, the messenger is carrying four thousand platinum pieces and two relics from the city's vaults.

What he must have been threatened with to deliver that honestly probably doesn't bear consideration.

Spoiler: OOC

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Forty thousand gold worth of cash, and two items, a cape of free will +6/+5 and a cloak of quick reflexes +6/+5.

Spoiler: Tolben

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Tolben is easily able to find a magic shop carrying numerous scrolls. They offer him a 5% discount as the savior of two cities and defeater of the cult of Rovagug, which really isn't much considering how long that took, but it's a nice gesture.

Spoiler: Shovesh

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The guard stares, then shakes his head. "You, uh, you must be talking about Valdr. Yeah. He's probably meeting with the guildmasters of the stonemason's and blacksmith's guilds right now, I heard something about him talking with them about reinforcing the defenses?"

[AscendingApe]

After seeing to the survivors and the accepting of rewards, Dharmesh will place Tolben's share in a separate pouch, making a mental note to give it to the man when next they met.
"Now that that is done, I must agree with Tolben, there is much to do. If you have need of me I will be in Axis." With a quick incantation he is gone.

Spoiler: What Dharmesh is doing

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Rolling diplomacy on library, total result of 47.
Will save to start following the training regimen, final result is 47.

[Sepulchritude]

The guard stares, then shakes his head. "You, uh, you must be talking about Valdr. Yeah. He's probably meeting with the guildmasters of the stonemason's and blacksmith's guilds right now, I heard something about him talking with them about reinforcing the defenses?"

"Mmm. Helpful boy," purrs the... demon-orc-woman-thing, right before she pitches forward off the wall. She swoops low enough to run her fingers through the grass before recovering altitude and circling back overhead. "I'll be back before I leave!" she promises, then arcs through a lazy turn toward the noisy, smoky part of the city. Disrupting a planning meeting about walls and weapons sounded like a great time. Besides, the real threat would hardly be stopped by another few tons of stone. Her skin fades to a muted blue-violet on the way, and her racy gown to a dun peasant dress more suited to an Ustalavan farmer's daughter than to, well, Shovash. Valdr wouldn't care one way or the other, of course, even assuming he noticed. But there's always the audience to think of. By the time she touches down on the roof of the best-decorated building in the district, she hardly even looks reckless.

[ylvathrall]

Spoiler: Shovash

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Inside the window, you see Valdr, a skeleton in a fine robe decked out with magical trinkets. Crimson lights burn in the depths of his empty eye sockets. He is currently listening impassively to a man in fine dress who looks like he's about to ruin it with certain bodily excretions explain in a shaky voice that constructing that many siege weapons in that short of a time frame is not possible. Considering that the number in question seems to be in excess of fifty, he's probably right.

Spoiler: Dharmesh

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At the library, you get given the runaround. One person tells you to talk to another who says that it's in another department which sends you back to the first, repeated with minor variations for three hours. Finally, however, you get the answer you wanted: there is a record of who checks out each book for reading, tracked magically by an enchantment on each book. The entire entry for The Book of Coming Forth is redacted.

That's all you have time for before you receive an urgent sending from an Iroran monastery you once visited in Vudra. Apparently they're under attack by a rakshasa lord of some kind, and the monks are failing to fight off the attackers.

Spoiler: Tolben

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The next day you take a trip out to the near reaches of space, as far as a normal teleport spell can take you, and look down on Golarion from a distance that most people can't even imagine. It's really no surprise that people think you're detached; they would be too, with this perspective.

Looking up, such as up is, you see a whale floating through space placidly, arcs of electricity filling its mouth and coiling down its body.

Spoiler: Knowledge (dungeoneering) DC 26

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It's an oma - a type of magical beast native to the gas giant worlds of the system. Though not intelligent, they are ponderously strong, and capable of incredibly flast flight through the vacuum of space - it can travel between planets in a month or less. They're used as living space ships by some of the natives of the gas giants.

Spoiler: Vauma

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The next day, while maintaining a moderate rainstorm to keep the suddenly-larger spider population in check, you get a vague feeling inside you, a feeling that you recognize as a nudge from the Heiress. Something isn't right with your fungal home.

Spoiler: Ragnar

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Two hours after taking down Windweaver, you get an urgent sending from a contact of yours who's an expert in transmutation magic in Absalom, relaying a message sent to him from the Mana Wastes. Apparently some sorcerer-general from the Great War between Nex and Geb in distant antiquity, dead now for a very long time, is proving to not be as dead as she should be. Specifically, she's a ghost. More specifically, she's a ghost who is now raising hell, or possibly the Abyss, over something or other and interfering with trade through the Wastes. Naturally, your contact thought of you.

Spoiler: Damien

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The next day, you get a message, delivered by a tiny ferret which runs up and chirps at you with a bow tied around its neck and a letter attached to the bow. It reads, in calligraphy that would make a scribe weep but which is largely lost on you:

Dearest Damien,

I do so apologize for my long silence. Truly, I don't know how to excuse it, save only to say that I felt not quite myself after the battle, and I did so deeply wish to mend the rift in our friendship circle, I fear it overcame my good sense. You remain, as always, my dear friend, and I wish you (all of you) only the best.

Also my violin is broken please fix it.

Cassie

[Hjolnai]

Enthralled, Tolben mutters to himself (though the sound cannot propagate past his Life Bubble):

"So vast... Our world is wondrous, and yet meaningless. And the oma - I never really thought about what it meant, that the gas giants are populated, but they are greater than our own world. Irrelevant in the end, but nonetheless..."

Despite the distraction, he soon returns to the task at hand. Namely, a survey - he must see what the world looks like when it is not the day of an attack. His prodigious memory leaves no need to draw the result, so any deviations will be noticeable when the next attack comes.

"Hmm... All of my maps are wrong. Not to worry."

He takes a particular eye to the River Kingdoms, to see if Valdr's work noticeably distorts the land.

Once he is done with observation of this side, he teleports again to survey the other side of the world and repeat the process.

Spoiler: OOC

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Tolben had to prepare some spells he wouldn't normally - particularly more copies of Greater Teleport. These are reflected in his sheet at the moment.

He has Knowledge: Dungeoneering +29, so he automatically identified the Oma.

[The Glyphstone]

"The reward for a good job done right is another job."
"Isn't the reward for a good job done right gold and treasure?

Tracking down one of the local arcanists, Ragnar haggles for a Teleport to Quantium. Once there, he begins looking around for whatever information he can find on this renegade re-awakened ghost, before setting off south into the Mana Wastes in search of her.

[Sepulchritude]

Inside the window, you see Valdr, a skeleton in a fine robe decked out with magical trinkets. Crimson lights burn in the depths of his empty eye sockets. He is currently listening impassively to a man in fine dress who looks like he's about to ruin it with certain bodily excretions explain in a shaky voice that constructing that many siege weapons in that short of a time frame is not possible. Considering that the number in question seems to be in excess of fifty, he's probably right.

The window was probably locked, but it's not as though Shovash tries it, first. Instead, she presses a tiny chip of stone against the center of the frame. There are words, but they're swallowed up by the ring of cracking brass before they can quite resolve. The hasp inside shatters, the window falls open, and the demon crawls inside from above. It isn't a way of moving that really fits the demure peasant look she'd been trying for.

"Sit down," she commands sternly, when her sudden entry naturally inspires some animated reactions. And then, a moment later, "And relax! I'm just here to visit an old friend. You can go back to being terrified of him in a few minutes. Valdr! It's been a while, you old buzzkill. How's the Fearsome Tyrant life treating you?" She flashes the utterly mild sort of smile that doesn't even acknowledge there might be something objectionable about what she'd just said. Or done.

Spoiler: OOC

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That's two greater commands. It's a DC26 Will save for up to 21 of the assembled guild factors, assistants, and guards to stop sitting or relaxing for the next couple of minutes. DC27 if by some mysterious moral failing they're able to find the voluptuous monster girl desirable.

[QuidEst]

Receiving the sensation of something being wrong about her home, Vauma spent a brief period wrapping up business in the city- casting the weather spell as one locally affixed, rather than tied to herself, and so on. At last, she got together with Mycetes, casting the spell to whisk her away to her sanctuary.

Spoiler: OOC

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Word of Recall to the island.

[TheOneHawk]

After wandering around the streets for a while blasting any spider he can find that for whatever reason didn't manage to get into the sewers to take cover from the rainstorm, Damien gets bored and teleports himself home for the night. He wakes up well after dawn when the ferret finally manages to rouse him by jumping on his neck. At first he's pretty reticent to leave the comfort of his bed, but once he manages to read the note he's up and about quite quickly. "See that, Beatrice?" He says, holding the note up to his bird who's only response was a dismissive glance and a ruffling of feathers. Unperturbed, Damien continues, "I knew Cassie would get in touch eventually, it's gonna be great to see her again! Plus with Cho joining up to fight Windweaver, hell maybe we can get everyone back together again and play music just like old times!" He quickly prepares himself, then teleports himself to a few high quality music shops around the globe before he finds a satisfactory violin, which he purchases and ties with a bow before teleporting himself to Cassie.

[ylvathrall]

Spoiler: Tolben

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You see nothing out of the norm in the River Kingdoms. However, on the other side of the world...is that a battlefield far, far larger than any you would expect, near the coast of Tian Xia? In Tianjing, right next to the great rift to the deepest Abyss that you know to be there...?

Spoiler: Ragnar

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The teleport goes off smoothly, and you end up in Quantium. Then you turn around to thank the mage, and see a familiar nine-tailed kitsune with emerald eyes and a wicked smile. "Hey handsome," Suiko says. "Been a while."

Spoiler: Shovash

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The guild leaders sit, terror warring with raw calmness in their eyes. Valdr turns to you, hand raised as though to cast a spell, then sees who it is and relaxes. "Ah, Shovash," he says, his crisp, clipped voice almost friendly. "It has been some time. I hear your clan is doing well, I'm glad to see that you are as well. Governance is proving somewhat tedious for me, there are so many things to balance in running a kingdom, but the work goes smoothly enough."

Spoiler: Vauma

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Upon teleporting back, it doesn't take long to identify why you might have gotten an inkling of something not quite right. The twenty-seven aboleths in the near shallows around the lake would be a good indicator even without their forty-five minions crawling around the island, tearing up mushrooms.

Spoiler: Damien

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The spell drops you right next to Cassie. Or it would, except there's a teleport trap spell on the area, so it actually drops you on the front step of a mansion. It's five stories tall, three hundred feet on a side, and made of stone with ornate carved gargoyles. It's even more impressive if you know that she conjured it with a single spell, which you don't because you're not particularly well educated. The front door is black wood bound with bronze and has a knocker in the shape of a wolf's head.

Upon knocking, it takes several minutes for a response. Then the door opens and Cassie dives out at you, tackling you to the ground in a hug.

Spoiler: OOC

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You are now grappled.