Return of the Pharaohs

Chapter 10c – The Do-Over

Details

After the party is disastrously and mercilessly killed by the Brothers of Anhumet in the warehouse, the undead quietly and stealthily removed themselves from the building without the Guard seeing them. With the noise of the marketplace, the sounds of battle inside blended into the din. After about 30 minutes Setep began to get a feeling that all was not right and was the one who found the group’s bodies as well as the terrified, bewildered and now uncharmed warehouse owner hiding inside of a large crate. With disciplined efficiency and discretion, he and his Guard gathered up the bodies and the shopkeeper and made their way with a cart back to the Palace.

When Khemet heard of the betrayal, his anger was unfortunately aimed at the duped shopkeeper who nearly had his skin charred from his body by Janhelia, but the truth was discovered just in time. Abel and his crew were notified almost immediately and Lina suggested a Speak with Dead to find out exactly what happened. Suramber and Po decided that they needed to divulge what they have discovered about the Chronosphere (which Khemet partially knew already) and they made a new plan.

Suramber first used Blood Biography to find out how one of them died (Balen) since they didn’t show many signs of physical damage. Then she offered to cast Speak with Dead to find out the pertinent details so they would be to use the Sphere to travel back to the exact time of the assault and assist the group with the mummy lords. They both took appropriate spells and countermeasures. Po warned Khemet that one of the more ominous warnings about the device was that “any use of the device always incurs a proportional cost”. The reference is not any more specific than that, but Po suggested that the more the timelines are disturbed, the greater the chance for disaster. They also discovered that the device is at full charge, but they are not sure how fast it will recharge. If they travel back a single day in time and keep in the same spot and since they should not have to travel while in the past, they should theoretically minimize the temporal impact.

Early the following morning, Suramber and Po, accompanied by the Guard entered the warehouse. Suramber shuddered to think of the carnage the day before, but she pulled the Sphere from her Bag of Holding and made the proper adjustments to the controls. She and Po cast their own spells in preparation, then with a nod, Po touched her shoulder and she activated the item. Both of them felt their bodies float momentarily then they saw the world around them blur slightly and people appear all around them. They found themselves in the midst of a horrifying combat.

Spells precast:

Suramber – Expeditious Retreat, Shield, Hide from Undead, Sanctuary, Daylight

Po – Mirror Image (8), Freedom of Movement, Fly, Spell Turning

Tactical Overview:

Surprise –            Mummies emerge, paralyzing Balen, Meridian, Kodiak and Midnight

                                Roga casts MCE, Din casts Fluid Form

                                One mummy casts Deeper Darkness, others close

Ramos, Roga and Din succumb to Paralysis

Round 1 –             Tark casts Daylight, then expends HP to cast FB

Suramber and Po arrive at Init 17 (after Ramos)

                                Suramber and Po arrive and cast Rem Paralysis (Balen, Ramos, Roga, Din) and Web

                                Mummies attempt to use Touch of Evil or break through Web

                                New combat from this point on

Suramber – She has the Daylight spell on her, so the Deeper Darkness is negated. The first thing that Suramber will do is to cast Remove Paralysis on the 4 party members affected (they will get a new save at +2). She will also drop the Sphere into her Bag of Holding as a move action (no AoO since hidden from undead). Next round she will either attack, channel positive energy or recast Remove Paralysis.

Po – Will first attempt to catch as many of the hiding mummies in a Web spell. Then he will cast Dispel Magic to remove the Sickened condition. Then he will assist as he can with Magic Missile, Baleful Polymorph or even Disintegrate

When Suramber and Po materialize in the midst of the battle, Suramber will exclaim, “Thank the goddess, they are still alive!”

Once the Brothers have been dispatched, the Lesser Geas spell is still in effect on Watjep who now just stands there and tries unsuccessfully to answer their questions. Hopefully the party will be able to determine that he in under the influence of a compulsion spell and remove it.

Setep will be confused at first by the story the party brings to him. With the noise of the Bazaar, he was unaware of the combat upstairs, but then he will get very angry, saying,

“This could not have been sanctioned by the Midnight Scarabs… It must be the work of an independent… and stupid group. To so brazenly defy the Prince as well as the Scarabs. It is unthinkable.”

He will dispatch 2 of the guard to the Palace for assistance. The group will be asked to wait until more officials show up to take control of the scene, but then the group can complete their shopping or head back to the Estate, depending on their trust in Watjep. Healers will be provided if necessary. If the group asks about the whereabouts of Po and Suramber, he will tell them that he believes that they are somewhere in the guest suites of the palace. The group will not be allowed to go there, but Setep will offer to send them any message or note.

<In actuality, the Sphere has taken them ‘out of time’ and they will reappear back in the warehouse the next morning (the time when they departed). Anyone looking for them will be unable to find them by ANY means mundane or magical until they reappear a couple minutes from the moment of activation>

The group will be informed that they will be meeting with the Ruby Prince the next day to discuss their future opportunities. Setep says that he will personally report what happened here to the Prince and hopefully they will have some answers for their meeting tomorrow. He strongly suggests that they complete their shopping and then return to the Estate.

Second Meeting with Khemet

The following morning at the estate, the party is treated to a sumptuous breakfast consisting of local delicacies:

Honey roasted lamb with onions and shaved taro

Ful Medames; fava beans sautéed in butter, tahini and egg

Feseekh; a fermented and salted fish served with onion and lemon on bread

Konafah; sweet thin noodle pastry containing various nuts and topped with fresh whipped cream

Gibna Domiati; soft cheese stuffed in a buttery Sambousak pastry

All served with bread and ample kegs of beer or wine

When they are ready, the group will be gathered and escorted to the gates of the Black Dome where they saw the group of lottery hopefuls the day before. Setep will lead the group directly to the gates and will pass through without challenge. A mini-tour of the following sites will commence:

10 – Shepeskan Grove

6 – Menetnashte’s Orrery – see handout

11 – Sothis Exhibitory

8 – Forthbringers Palace – see below and handout

The largest and most impressive structure under the Black Dome, and thus in all of Osirion, is the Palace of the Forthbringer, a huge complex of towers, domes, and gardens. As you enter the palace grounds, you find an earthly paradise of perfectly maintained grounds (but no one apparently maintaining them), and a constant, gentle breeze that dispels the summer heat yet seems not to increase the nocturnal chill. Your guide tells you that the carnelian-domed towers of the main palace are well known to the Sothan elite, but the private lives of the Ruby Prince and his family are completely protected in the adjoining, exclusive-access compound about which most outsiders can only speculate, but you are now approaching.

Within this inner compound, two children, a boy and girl about 8 or 9 years old are chasing a pair of grey geese along the shoreline of a wide pond. Rather than approaching the main doors, the honor guard leads you to a side door on the right side of the grounds. Inside is a comfortable room with bowls of fresh fruits and decanters of different beverages. The sounds of laughter and giggling can be heard coming from a doorway to the right, the guard invites you to any refreshment you desire then to follow him through a doorway opposite the entry. This cozy room has darker walls, comfortable looking leather chairs, throw pillows and plush velvety carpets. There is a large oval-shaped table on one side of the room with 9 chairs surrounding it. Setep bows to you and says,

“Please make yourselves comfortable while I announce that you have arrived.”

After about 15 minutes, the man your group met on the previous day, referred to by others as the Kopeshman, enters from an arched doorway. He takes a critical look around the room, then gestures behind him. Prince Khemet will enter the room looking, as far as you can tell, the same as he did at dinner the previous evening. However, he is also followed this time by Po and Suramber.

Khemet will defer any questions for the two by saying, “Please, let us get to that in order. I am confident that most of your questions will be answered.”

Khemet will not make small talk this time, looking a bit agitated and asking about their encounter yesterday and the shopping trip. He listens to any of the ‘excitement’ that they experienced the previous day, but will eventually tell the group what he has found out.

• The mummies are an ancient but infamous group of powerful undead protectors called the “Brothers of Anhumet”. (Anhumet was a pharaoh obsessed with revenge for anyone who wronged him)
• During the investigation, the mummies had been traced back to an unknown necromancer in Sothis (the group has ‘identified’ this man by his unusual staff)
• They are currently trying to locate the necromancer to get more answers
• He will tell them more about their enemies a little later on if asked

Once he has informed the group about yesterday’s findings, Khemet will invite everyone to the table where he will unroll a map of the Inner Sea Region then begin to tell them about the latest find.

“Okay, since no one is the worse for wear, as they say, we must get back to the original purpose for our meeting. So, here is where the tale from last night continues…”

Khemet will convey the following information:

• Reinterates that he has been ‘reviewing’ all of the important items found by Osirionologists and adventurers who explore Osiris for the past year
• About 4 months ago, an item came to his attention through the Ministry of Culture (it reviews all treasures brought into the city for documentation of possible historical significance/seizure) which was not magical, but was a large tome with ancient Osiriani writing subscribed below text and symbols that no one could readily recognize.
• The unknown writing was determined to be Thassilonian, which has never been encountered in Osirion. An intact find like this is extremely rare even where ancient Thassilon was once located in Avistan. Very few written records exist about that almost forgotten empire.
• The translated text was incomplete, but appeared to be a general account of the rulers of Thassilon, seven powerful mages called Runelords.

General rundown of the Runelords:

• There were a few odd rumors about each Runelord, but one passage caught his eye; the Runelord known as Belimarius was one, if not THE most powerful abjurist in the world at that time. She was also rumored to be excessively paranoid, a hoarder of powerful magic and planned for almost any contingency, including her own death. One of her more unheralded and obscure creations was an spell called “Multum Ruptor” which translates from Thassilonian as “Deal Breaker”. If the translations are accurate, they say that Runelord Belimarius invented a spell that would break the pact between a mortal and a powerful outsider.
• There is very little information regarding the Runelords, but on the group’s last voyage to Korvosa, while the party was in the Darklands, Po was able to uncover an obscure reference about Xin-Edasseril, Belimarius’ capital city which supposedly sits somewhere in the Ironbound Archipelago in the sea between Varisia and the Land of the Linnorm Kings. It refers to a famous structure called the Temple of Desna’s First Dream where the Runelord kept her most prized secrets. The problem is that according to the text, the Temple of Desna’s First Dream disappeared after Earthfall and the demise of the Thassilonian Empire 10,000 years ago.

The Plan

“This is where your groups’ most recent venture comes into play. As you have now discovered, the artifact you retrieved from Zirnakaynin has a very powerful ability. We may not be able to find The Temple of Desna’s Last Dream and Multum Ruptor today, but with some diligent research, you will be able to find it in the distant past.”

He lets that statement sink in for effect. Then he gestures to Po and Suramber who take up the explanation.

• They will describe what they have discovered about the Chronosphere, the mechanism and the power and time constraints.
• They will stress that their time in the past will be limited to a max of 12 hours
• They will reveal the warning about indirect consequences, so the less time and the less interference in the past the better
• They will tell the group that the location must be as precise as possible in space, because there is no margin for error, but a couple well-worded divinations (Commune or Divination) may help accuracy
• No one really knows the exact location of Xin-Edasseril
• Po tells them that they should start by seeking out one of the most knowledgeable sages of Thassilonian lore, a man named Brodert Quink who lives in Sandpoint, in southwestern Varisia. His advice should start you on your way to finding the most probable location of the Temple of Desna’s First Dream back when it existed during the height of the Thassilonian Empire.
• Suramber will tell them that she cannot go with them. She will tell them that she would be a liability die to the factions seeking her out
• If the group asks how long they have, he will encourage them to get moving ASAP since their enemies know that they are in town and obviously will go to great lengths to see them dead.

The Reward

“This task I am setting before you will be extremely risky and dangerous. I understand that you have no compelling reason to do this favor for me, and you would probably be able to profit greatly from simply selling the device or the valuable information that you now possess. But, I will offer you something that will transform your very existence. I will guide you to a level of consciousness that will raise you up and above the heroic, yet mundane lives you have already lead. I will help you ascend to become more than mere mortals – you will become… heroes of legend, a state of existence sometimes referred to by the sages as ‘Mythic’. Not quite divine, but also not simply mortal. It has always been my ultimate goal for you all to become the new Pharaohs of this age.”

As Khemet finishes speaking, you realize that your perception of him shifts and you see him in a different way, almost a different person. The aura of presence he had with him when you first met, coalesces around his body and he becomes more defined. The youthful, but deceptively weak Prince now appears as a muscled, powerful being of strength, wisdom and even… kindness. Although it is hard to conceive, you just know that this is more than a man sitting before you. When you look at him, you see Prince Khemet, his father, his grandfather and 5000 years of his predecessors all in one body. He smiles and then reverts back into the normal man he was a few moments ago.

Warnings and the Enemies

Before he sends them on their way, he will tell them about the dangers they have following them.

• He suspects that the previous owner of the artifact, the drow called Yeetugh, may have been responsible for hiring the necromancer who organized the attack by the Brothers of Anhumet
• He also suspects that the Technic league has been searching for the artifact for decades but now that it is out in the open, can be rediscovered
• He also looks at Suramber and tells them that the Technic League is also looking for her as well (if they have not already found out, she may divulge her true origins)
• Although they are probably not a great concern, the clergy of Urgathoa, some of whom you defeated at Sirathu are seeking revenge, so you may find some resistance in the form of powerful undead
• And finally, the most important enemy may be the one that they probably know nothing about – very few people even know of their existence
• He will generally describe the extraplanar, extratemporal entities known as the Elemental Lords of Time and that they watch in almost all times and places for anyone or anything that has interfered or has the potential of interfering with the flow of time.
• He believes that the Lords of Time are the ones that sent the Kraken after you and are actively using powerful spells to trace the Chronosphere (e.g. Discern Location)
• They must keep the device in the Bag of Holding when it’s not being used and keep on their guard for any more ‘surprises’

** If the party decides to wait for more than 2 days, they will encounter another powerful attack **

The Technic League will gate in a Shemhazian Demon where the group is staying, hoping to kill the party and all those who are aiding and abetting the thief if the Chronosphere.