Loose threads
What exactly happened between Voice and his allies that caused their estrangement?
The mystery man Zoro can provide us with various tools to aid exploration but can he be trusted?
We found one of the three offerings to the great gate. Assuming we find the other two, should we try and open it?
The clay discs must contain some useful information. We ought to retrieve them as soon as we can.
Who or what lies in the sarcophagus?
There was another gate in the prism room which we could not open.
The astronomers of First Landing should pay attention to the motions of the Moon and the two planets. What is it that makes them radiate this energy?
The earthquake may have shifted some things in the ruins. A second look might be necessary.
Participants Hakuto, Luz Cielo, Stanelin Shazorwyn, Thanja Rhuuk, Toma
Locations Saqqaran Observatory, Desert of Rydess
Short summary:
Revisited the Saqqaran Observatory hoping to unveil its secrets.
Full Report: Toma
The Assembly of the Black Lotus arranged an expedition to the Saqqaran Observatory in the Desert of Rydess. We travelled by ship and arrived at the North Western shore of the Watchers' Island whence an uneventful journey brought us to the Observatory. We cleaned up the Orrery and checked if the ancient telescope was functioning as expected. Finding everything in order and nightfall several hours away, the party decided to explore the tower just north of the Observatory. There were reports of a group of Kobolds hunted by Rydess hiding in the tower, and I had a hunch they might possess some useful or forbidden knowledge.
We arrived at their refuge but there was nothing there except for rotting rations and other signs of abandonment. Following a faint track of footprints and acid residue, we spotted a hole in the floor that led us to an otherwise blocked off lower floor. Excited by the spirit of discovery, I hopped in feet first, shortly followed by my companions. It turned out this level had been a hive of Ankhravs for quite some time and the residents did not take kindly to our intrusion. No matter, neither the brood-lings nor their Queen Mother were a threat to us seasoned adventurers. At the first sign of danger, Stanelin unleashed a single enchanted arrow and cleaved one of them in half. The angry mother lashed out but I managed to get in her head, forcing her to split her time between applauding my antics and fighting for her life. Hakuto made quick work of the burrowing broodlings with his quick reactions, while Luz, Thanjaand Stan pelted the Queen with a barrage of attacks. The situation got a bit out of hand when I was washed up in a deluge of acid, courtesy of the Queen, but we prevailed regardless. After the battle, the party, following Hakuto, spent some time introspecting our actions before heading in further.
The path forward forked in two. A passage north and one east. We decided to push north, leaving the other one for later. We entered a misty hallway with several silent humanoid figures. Upon closer inspection, they turned out to be sand figures in fleeing and cowering poses. These people might have been caught in the crossfire when the dragons destroyed the jungle. Thanja attempted to commune with their spirits, hearing the last thoughts child mourning its mother, feeling abandoned by a 'whisper'. Her trance was interrupted, however, by a vision of a demonic Baboon who chided her for peering into the past. Thanja, however, only became more curious and the vision ended abruptly.
We forged ahead and entered a part of the ruin that had collapsed to allow some natural light in. We met two of the Kobolds we were searching for over there along with an enigmatic humanoid(?) in a trench coat and a wide brimmed hat, Zoro. Zoro's tent seemed to be an extra-dimensional space similar to a Cozy Cabin, but it contained several scrolls each having an enchantment preventing anyone but Zoro from using them. The mysterious stranger offered to sell us maps, magic items that aid travel and rare leads in exchange for either money or 'soul matter.' Thanja purchased a lead to the Harrow ritual for a mere 5 gold pieces, I wonder how much that amount is in souls. Unsavory discussions about soul currency aside, we took our leave from the tent. The previous leader of the Kobold group, Voice, was still missing and his friends seemed to no longer acknowledge him in any way.
With the day coming to an end, we headed back to the Observatory but not before examining a great sealed double door gate that stood close to the tent. It was covered in intricate designs: three alcoves meant to accept offerings: heart, flower, feather; and a carved figure of the Baboon demon from Thanja's vision in the center. Opinion was divided on whether we should attempt to open the door, but in the end it was left sealed for the time being. Back at the Observatory, I summoned a Mephit to explore the lower levels that had sunk deep into the sand. Thanks to our little scout, I informed Hakuto of the most efficient way to dig through the sand and access the lower level. The Anadi devout of Nethys was equipped with just the perfect spell scroll to get us into the lower level.
With Hakuto eliminating the 10 ft deep sand blocking our path, we discovered a spiral staircase leading us to a large room with several corridors. The floor was blanketed with scorpions and there was a giant prism in the middle. Setting down Helpful Steps, I created a safe area for us to stand near the crystal while I myself took flight and explored the entire floor. There were several mirrors and alcoves in the room along with several pieces of broken down rubble. Navigating through them, I set the mirrors in place and managed to somewhat figure out the puzzle mechanism of the room. However, it was thanks to Hakuto's observations and his Spider Climb spell, and later Stan, that we were able to solve this challenge, but more on that later. While exploring the room, I came upon a mosaic depicting pyramids and spires amidst a lush jungle with large humanoids holding various objects under a starry sky.
With our spells running out of time, the party headed back up and set up camp in the Orrery. Stan and I stayed up a bit longer than the others observing the night sky. We identified the moon and two planets that seemed to emanate a certain glow when viewed through the telescope. This glow could be focused into a thin ray. Stan posited that there must be a way to get this ray in to the puzzle room below and as he predicted, there was a hole in the floor connecting the two rooms. Passing the light through it caused something to open downstairs. We had done it!! I could barely sleep that night out of sheer excitement and the earthquake later in the night didn't help either. The next morning we all headed downstairs to find out what changed.
I cast Spider Climb on Luz, letting the Monk cling to the walls as he rapidly searched the corridors. According to his report, a trapdoor had opened in the mosaic room and the mosaic itself had changed: now depicting rivers of blood around crumbling pyramids under a blazing sky and an eldritch maw. Luz went into the basement and noted a sarcophagus emitting a green glow along with several discs lining the basement walls. He retrieved one of those for us to examine, but we couldn't find anything conclusive from it. Since the basement would require all my castings of Helpful Steps to reach safely, we chose to come here later that day and Recall after we had all had a chance to explore the basement. That left our last lead: the passage east of the Ankhrav Hive.
Following the tunnel for several hundreds of feet we arrived at a sinkhole created by an underground river. The cracks in the ceiling let in some sunlight and a giant flower had managed to bloom in the middle of this subterranean oasis. Luz noticed a Kobold corpse trapped in the plant's vines and Thanja's attempt to retrieve it caused the Bloom to attack us. The plant had a mind of its own, spawning vines and pods all around it and lashing out at who ever came close to it. Thanja bravely stood in front of us as an unshakeable wall with Hakuto just behind providing support. Stan landed another enchanted arrow lacerating the vines, and a fiery double assault from me and Thanja burned the bloom down to cinders. Or so we thought: with all that damage ramping up on it, the flower retreated into its stem, covering itself in thorny vines for protection and sending out a root of sorts to siphon life from the nearby growth. My allies physical attacks failing to harm the concealed main body and several explosive filling up the cramped space, I chose to burn down all the vines once and for all. The Bloom emerged from hiding, stunned and uncoordinated, and quickly fell victim to our Crimson Beasts, Luz and Thanja. Thanja recovered the poor Kobold and figured two key things about the fallen flora. First, this creature thrives by infecting others, as was evident from the dead Kobold, and the tiny spores that had started festering in our wounds. Second, the Bloom looked exactly the same as the one depicted as an offering to the Baboon Demon. After this revelation, we decided to cut the expedition short and get our wounds checked for infection. Thus, we recalled, with several loose ends still out there.
NOTES AND DIAGRAMS
The result of Thanja's Automatic Writing (translated from an Elven-Halfling mixed dialect):
"... cannot see stars, only burning skies. Mother cannot breathe. We must stay behind. A guiding voice promised salvation. Refuge in these ruins of old. A whisper left us abandoned. Time ran out. Remember us."
A gate is drawn here with exact measurements- 20' high, 20' feet with a slight tilt, a double door with no handle covered in intricate designs:
"On the top side, small indentations and narrow grooves in the stone form patterns of linked dots. Three of these drawn shapes resemble: an owl, a cow or bull, and one barely recognizable feline or canine."
"These shapes are carved above and around a central figure that sits cross-legged in the middle. Thin frame, with elongated limbs and a long tail. Its clawed hands in meditative position and, on top of its shoulders, an oversized head of baboon shape. Not a single face, but three. One facing the front, and two profiles protruding from the sides."
"Underneath, countless tiny humanoid figures kneel with their pleading hands risen. But only a dozen or so, carved in the bottom middle of the frame are represented in bigger size. These are bringing offerings in bowls that they carry on top of their heads. Three of these bowls actually match with three different alcoves carved into the stone. And each of these shows a different symbol:
- The first one shows a heart.
- The second one shows a feather.
- The third one shows a flower. There is little check mark in the alcove."
A floor map of the puzzle map, recreated from Toma's near eidetic memory. There is a text written twice, once in Saqarran and once in Common:
"Every star holds secrets. Let their light shine truth, for those who dare pose the question."
Two contrasting images of the same mosaic. Being redrawn from memory and second hand account, the tiniest details are not drawn, only whatever stood out to Toma:
Titled 'before': The piece is divided in two halves:
"At the bottom, in warm colors, is a highly detail depiction of pyramids and tall spires that populate a lush forest or jungle. Humanoid figures, of disproportionate size, stand in between the structures. Some hold cornucopias and chalices, others parchment and quill, or intricate accesories of unknown purpose. Regardless, all of them share a single feature, a clear white tile positioned in the middle of their forehead.
At the top, in blues and violets, is the sky. Pieces of quartz represent stars, arranged in winding paths that connect the land beneath with half a dozen big celestial bodies at the chamber's ceiling."
Titled 'after':
"At the bottom, in fiery red, rivers of blood encircle crumbled pyramids. Crooked spires raise among darkened vegetation. The giant humanoids now cover their faces with both hands; offerings rotting at their feet. The clear tile on their forehead is the only opaque tile on this translucent mosaic.
At the top, the sky is ablaze, The quartz dots have dimmed, leaving previously obscured tiles shine brighter. Hundreds of glass beads form a multicolored vortex that cascades down towards the realm below. An eldritch maw from beyond."
A diagram of a clay disk. The disk is 10 inches in diameter, and relatively thick. There's an indentation on its center, and a chain of numbers in Saqqaran carved around it. Symbols assumed to be unique to the retrieved disk were removed, replaced with 111... Surrounding the inner ring, there are multiple concentric grooves with variable depth and thickness.
A sketch of the moon as viewed through the telescope. Glowing sigils of colossal size float around the cracked moon, chained together by tendrils of light.
A diagram of the New World solar system with two planets highlighted.