Loose threads: Who is Yssrix, Oracle of Mihsu, exactly? What’s with the obsidian tablet we found? What were the rumblings in the earth? What was up with the visage of the serpentfolk we killed? What were those creatures in the Observatory?
Participants: Felix Arceneaux, Holt Forrest, Laby Excandria, Ashara Idris Cendrillion, Jetta
Locations: Desert of Rydess, Saqqaran Observatory
Short summary:
Tracked and fought with serpentfolk to interrogate them about the increased serpentfolk activity and strange dig sites. We made our way to the Observatory to chase down a serpentfolk who fled during the earlier scuffle, spotted Rydess watching from a distance, and got separated from Jetta after the roof we were standing on collapsed. Got chased(?) by something unknown and reunited with Jetta. Used our recallers to return back to First Landing due to encountering the serpentfolk in our group’s not so pristine condition.
Full Report
Felix Arceneaux here, writing my first report, ain’t that neat? Anyways, I'll cut straight to the point. We’re here because we picked up a request to investigate potential serpentfolk scout activity close by Greyspine Mountains. Now serpentfolk activity has increased in the last few weeks along with these odd dig sites that were done pretty unprofessionally with all the rubble left lying around and whatnot. So our little group got out there to find out what the hell was going on, and after interrogating a scout we managed to capture, found out that more scouts were headed towards the Saqqaran Observatory.
We tracked down the two scouts (or I suppose one scout, after one of them killed the other in an attempt to get away easier) to a serpentfolk camp and got into a scuffle with the serpentfolk there, where we managed to kill most of them, left one alive for interrogating, and one fled to the Observatory. I interrogated the one we left alive after Laby tied him up, learning of their supposed leader, Yssrix. However, everything else the bastard said was cryptic, or he just refused to explain to us. In the end, we were left with more confusion than clarity once the interrogation was done. Although, something odd happened when I slashed his neck once he no longer served any purpose.
A strange visage rose from the body when he fell, disappearing within seconds as the physical body crumbled to dust. I’ve racked my brain trying to figure out what it could mean, but to no avail. The camp itself did not have much to offer at the moment, being only some tablets with languages we don’t understand. The serpentfolk had cleaned up camp well before fleeing, it seemed. We investigated the digsite, which at that moment, just looked like a big hole. My theory is that the hole was made to try and get to whatever kept rumbling in the earth (which happened once before we fought the serpentfolk, and once during our interrogation). After a few hours, Ashara managed to unearth an obsidian tablet with a rune on it, definitely a piece of a bigger rune. Maybe the rest was taken, or perhaps lost, It remains a mystery for now. We began on our way to the Observatory, making our way through greener lands to the Desert of Rydess.
Over those days, Laby tried translating the tablet with the assistance of translation magic, but to no avail, as whatever was written on it is older than what’s known in this world. After having a quick encounter with some large scarab beetles, we spotted Rydess overhead flying by, giving us only a glance before continuing on to the Observatory, probably more concerned with the serpentfolk in her lands. We pushed on to the Observatory, climbing onto the rooftops after spotting footprints and tail lines that probably belonged to the serpentfolk. Going from roof to roof, we saw Rydess observing us from a cliff while we went on our merry way, which was a somewhat interesting, but we didn't have time to dwell on it as the roof we were standing on collapsed under our combined weight. Laby and Ashara made it off safely with no problem, while me and Holt had a bit of trouble pulling ourselves, but managed to get over. Jetta on the other hand, couldn't make it in time and fell into the darkness below. Luckily, Laby had a climbing kit, so we managed to get down there. Unluckily, our path was blocked by a shit ton of rubble, so we had to get it all out of the way, which was very much unpleasant. While clearing it out, we heard some loud banging on the way. Whether it was gunshots or something, we didn't know yet until we made it through. As it turns out, it was not gunshots it was definitely some sort of beast making loud banging noises from the records area, so we hauled ass outta there. (According to Jetta during her own little escapade, she spotted THREE creatures in the records area) While we ran to the Observatory, there was a bunch of murals painted on the walls of the halls we passed. From what we could discern, it looked to be just the daily life of people from a civilization long ago, except for maybe the surgeons(?) looking out over the room of slabs of stone and metal, that was kind of weird. What was more concerning though, was the graffiti covering the murals. It seemed to be the ramblings of insanity, mentioning something in the writer's head that they don't want in anymore and something that's sealed that the writer wants to free. Whether this is the work of a serpentfolk gone insane or something else, we don't know.
We managed to get to the doors of the actual observatory without encountering whatever creatures were in the Records, and instead found us a bigger problem. My head tightened gently, like something or someone was squeezing it, accompanied by what sounded like a "Hmmm". Like a mix of buzzing and an actual person saying "Hmm". It was strangely comforting, but also extremely spine-shivering, and next thing I knew, I've blanked out and everyone's giving me weird looks. Was it a figment of my imagination or some sort of outside force? I still do not have answers. After that little hiccup, we hear the familiar voice of our chaotic little gnomess through the doors of the Observatory, gearing up ready to obviously fight the large number of serpentfolk in the observatory. Unfortunately for her though, in our pretty beat-up condition, we decide we can't last another battle and use our recallers, and thus ends our little expedition.
Conclusion: This whole trip has left me with more questions than answers. I feel like this whole thing with the serpentfolk is going to snowball into something greater, too grand for us alone to handle. And even as I write this report, I'm still hooked on whatever the hell touched my mind (I don't have a better way to describe it). Call it foolish, but I want to go back, to find clarity within all this confusion.