Dark Rumblings

[Anastasia]

> roll 1d20+23
<Kobot> Kotono rolled 1d20+23 --> [ 1d20=10 ]{33}

A hole is bored through mere stone as you hear a faraway gasp and cry, before both noise and your mind grow silent.

[Ebiris]

"What did the wall do?" Marie asks, blinking.

"Not the wall, the thing hiding behind it," Alicia says with a note of satisfaction, going to open the east and west doors and clearing them out assuming they're more storage like in the previous armoury.

Spoiler: ShowHide

Marie: 515+20/515
Active spells: Extended superior resistance (CL 31), extended mind blank (CL 31), greater arcane sight (CL 31), extended repelling shield (CL 31), bibliotheca arcana (CL 31), extended nondetection (CL 31), extended ray deflection (CL 31), greater heroism (CL 31), recitation (CL 31), sensual blessing (CL 31)
Defences: AC 93 (touch 35), CMD 83, spell resistance 45, energy immunity (electricity, cold, negative energy), energy resistance 10 (acid, cold), (petrification, polymorph, form-altering, energy drain, ability drain, ability damage, mind-affecting), protective aura, nondetection (DC 46), ray deflection
Stat buffs/penalties: +11 shield AC, +15 insight knowledge, +4 morale attack/saves/skills, +3 luck attack/saves, +25 competence perception
Perceptions: Darkvision 60, blessed sight 120, see invisibility, greater arcane sight, low-light vision, scent, blindsight 60, tremorsense 60, perception +71
Sorcerer spell slots: 6/7/10/8/7/7/6/6/7/7/6/4/3
Limited SLAs available: Limited wish, radiant assault, heal, meteor swarm, time stop

Avatarlicia: 706+60/706
Active spells: Extended nondetection (CL 32), many moments of prescience (CL 31), epic mage armour (CL 31), extended greater anticipate teleportation (CL 32), extended repelling shield (CL 32), sensual blessing (CL 31), greater heroism (CL 31), recitation (CL 31), dance of the unicorn (CL 31), keen edge (CL 31), foresight (CL 31), ray deflection (CL 32), magic vestment (CL 31), greater magic weapon (CL 31)
Defences: AC 81 (touch 34), CMD 82, spell resistance 46, energy immunity (cold, negative energy), status immunity (polymorph, petrification, disease, energy drain, ability damage, ability drain, mind-affecting, and fear), nondetection (DC 47), ray deflection
Stat buffs/penalties: +13 armour, +9 shield, +4 morale attack/saves/skills, +3 luck attack/saves, +25 competence perception, doubled crit range, +2 insight AC/reflec, +1 enhancement attack/damage
Perceptions: Darkvision 60, arcane sight, low-light vision, scent, blindsight 60, tremorsense 60, perception +73
Sorcerer spell slots: 6/13/12/10/9/9/11/8/7/3/7/6/6/4
Duskblade spell slots: 6/17/17/16/9/4

[Anastasia]

They are indeed and promptly cleansed.

[Ebiris]

Back into the hallway to the south and along to open the next door along to the north!

[Anastasia]

Here is a long hallway, arched and with glowing writing in pale purple atop the arches. Yet it the writing is twisted, turning as vermin crawl all along it.

Profane writings, horrid urges in a language long dead and forgotten. Submit. Embrace oblivion by your own hand. Look above and see nothing.

As you obliterate more insects - they form another lash but Alicia's speed is unmatched - you see there is a door to the north.

"What, do you wish to make this an unholy cathedral to Shar? A monument that at the end of the journey is only oblivion?" Ebony's voice is cold, quiet. "Foolishness."

[Ebiris]

Consecrating this hallway, Alicia leaves it and then goes to open the door at the eastern end of the previous hallway.

"They've been industrious in their time here, I'll grant that," she says icily as she goes.

[Anastasia]

Consecrating the hallway causes the profane words to shudder, twisting inward. Looking up, you can see familiar verses above - verses dedicated to Mystra, words of praise and teaching of the Weave.

"I understand why Mystra tasked you with this now," Ebony follows. "This is an abomination. They seek not to destroy, but to mock everything that is good. They mock in their emptiness, mock those who see anything but oblivion as meaning."

Ahead is a long north/south hallway. The outer wall glimmers, becoming transparent to give you a breath-taking view of the mountains below. The insects here are promptly obliterated, crawling away in vain as you cleanse the hallway.

"Look on at the works of magic," A man's sonorous voice declares, coming from above, "The Great Mother of All Magic has gifted us with this. Look on at her works and despair." A twisting of the voice, a shudder that makes your skin crawl. A sonic disturbance, something in his voice going straight into wrong, a sound that should not be. "Look at the empty world. Look at the emptiness. Look at the void. Hunger for the void. Look at what Mystra hides from you." A new view, a broken, empty world, a vista that shows nothing but dead kingdoms and broken mountains. The only color is the occasional plume or river of lava, weeping from the land like a bloody wound. It replaces the mountain view, glimmering with dark magic.

It's easy enough to understand an illusion when you see it at your level of skill. You can feel the mental contagion within, trying to cloud and cloy the mind, but such things are nothing to you as you are now.

Will save if not warded against mind-affecting. Pretty Marie is and Alicia's immune.

https://imgur.com/Qyka7cT

[Ebiris]

We've all got divine immunity to mind-affecting.

Stepping forward Alicia touches the illusion, a dispel evil unmaking it before she re-consecrates the hallway.

"They're definitely intent on leaving a message," she agrees with Ebony.

[Anastasia]

"There may be more going on in this world than just this," Ebony declares as the illusion is washed away by holy light, the view restored. "If I may suggest, perhaps some of your faithful should investigate along with Mystra's. A message like this does not stand on its own."

The hallway is purified, a sense of peace coming to it.

[Ebiris]

"A shame both you and Marie are busy on other long term projects, but I'll see who I can scare up to look around here," Alicia says, leading the way back to the first room of the cathedral and opening the doors North from there.

[Anastasia]

Ahead is a room of worship, a long hall filled with stone benches. Everything is utterly covered with sacks and veins connecting them - more insects than even you can casually count.

In the middle of the room is an altar, where the remnants of something lie, only ruin there. A hole is bored in the side, clean though and beyond. A pile of clothes, a weapon and gear lie there.

"You hate us. You hurt us. You hate us," The chittering of insects, so many here. "You hurt us. You hurt us! You hurt us!"

https://imgur.com/25viXC1

Init.

[Ebiris]

[18:13] <@Ebiris> roll 1d20+11+5 Marie, nerveskitter
[18:13] <Kobot> Ebiris rolled 1d20+11+5 Marie, nerveskitter --> [ 1d20=17 ]{33}

Supreme init for Alicia.

Spoiler: ShowHide

Marie: 515+20/515
Active spells: Extended superior resistance (CL 31), extended mind blank (CL 31), greater arcane sight (CL 31), extended repelling shield (CL 31), bibliotheca arcana (CL 31), extended nondetection (CL 31), extended ray deflection (CL 31), greater heroism (CL 31), recitation (CL 31), sensual blessing (CL 31)
Defences: AC 93 (touch 35), CMD 83, spell resistance 45, energy immunity (electricity, cold, negative energy), energy resistance 10 (acid, cold), (petrification, polymorph, form-altering, energy drain, ability drain, ability damage, mind-affecting), protective aura, nondetection (DC 46), ray deflection
Stat buffs/penalties: +11 shield AC, +15 insight knowledge, +4 morale attack/saves/skills, +3 luck attack/saves, +25 competence perception
Perceptions: Darkvision 60, blessed sight 120, see invisibility, greater arcane sight, low-light vision, scent, blindsight 60, tremorsense 60, perception +71
Sorcerer spell slots: 6/6/10/8/7/7/6/6/7/7/6/4/3
Limited SLAs available: Limited wish, radiant assault, heal, meteor swarm, time stop

Avatarlicia: 706+60/706
Active spells: Extended nondetection (CL 32), many moments of prescience (CL 31), epic mage armour (CL 31), extended greater anticipate teleportation (CL 32), extended repelling shield (CL 32), sensual blessing (CL 31), greater heroism (CL 31), recitation (CL 31), dance of the unicorn (CL 31), keen edge (CL 31), foresight (CL 31), ray deflection (CL 32), magic vestment (CL 31), greater magic weapon (CL 31)
Defences: AC 81 (touch 34), CMD 82, spell resistance 46, energy immunity (cold, negative energy), status immunity (polymorph, petrification, disease, energy drain, ability damage, ability drain, mind-affecting, and fear), nondetection (DC 47), ray deflection
Stat buffs/penalties: +13 armour, +9 shield, +4 morale attack/saves/skills, +3 luck attack/saves, +25 competence perception, doubled crit range, +2 insight AC/reflec, +1 enhancement attack/damage
Perceptions: Darkvision 60, arcane sight, low-light vision, scent, blindsight 60, tremorsense 60, perception +73
Sorcerer spell slots: 6/13/12/10/9/9/11/8/7/3/7/6/6/4
Duskblade spell slots: 6/17/17/16/9/4

[Anastasia]

> roll 1d20+8 Ebony
<Kobot> Kotono rolled 1d20+8 Ebony --> [ 1d20=16 ]{24}
> roll 1d20+13 insects
<Kobot> Kotono rolled 1d20+13 insects --> [ 1d20=13 ]{26}

Init is Alicia (Supreme Init) > Marie (33) > Insects (26) > Ebony (24)

Open.

[Ebiris]

"Marie?" Alicia asks, giving way and drawing a smile from the eladrin as she steps forward.

"No walls to protect you here!" she sing-songs, raising her hand up as masses of purple dots of light spiral up around her to completely blot her from view before flying off to bombard the room, every single insect no matter how insignificant receiving its own unerring projectile!

[18:21] <@Ebiris> roll 1d20+31 SR
[18:21] <Kobot> Ebiris rolled 1d20+31 SR --> [ 1d20=4 ]{35}
[18:21] <@Ebiris> roll 1d3+31
[18:21] <Kobot> Ebiris rolled 1d3+31 --> [ 1d3=3 ]{34}

+2 more on SR, forgot she has spell penetration so 37.

Spoiler: ShowHide

Marie: 515+20/515
Active spells: Extended superior resistance (CL 31), extended mind blank (CL 31), greater arcane sight (CL 31), extended repelling shield (CL 31), bibliotheca arcana (CL 31), extended nondetection (CL 31), extended ray deflection (CL 31), greater heroism (CL 31), recitation (CL 31), sensual blessing (CL 31)
Defences: AC 93 (touch 35), CMD 83, spell resistance 45, energy immunity (electricity, cold, negative energy), energy resistance 10 (acid, cold), (petrification, polymorph, form-altering, energy drain, ability drain, ability damage, mind-affecting), protective aura, nondetection (DC 46), ray deflection
Stat buffs/penalties: +11 shield AC, +15 insight knowledge, +4 morale attack/saves/skills, +3 luck attack/saves, +25 competence perception
Perceptions: Darkvision 60, blessed sight 120, see invisibility, greater arcane sight, low-light vision, scent, blindsight 60, tremorsense 60, perception +71
Sorcerer spell slots: 6/6/10/8/7/7/6/6/7/7/6/4/2
Limited SLAs available: Limited wish, radiant assault, heal, meteor swarm, time stop

Avatarlicia: 706+60/706
Active spells: Extended nondetection (CL 32), many moments of prescience (CL 31), epic mage armour (CL 31), extended greater anticipate teleportation (CL 32), extended repelling shield (CL 32), sensual blessing (CL 31), greater heroism (CL 31), recitation (CL 31), dance of the unicorn (CL 31), keen edge (CL 31), foresight (CL 31), ray deflection (CL 32), magic vestment (CL 31), greater magic weapon (CL 31)
Defences: AC 81 (touch 34), CMD 82, spell resistance 46, energy immunity (cold, negative energy), status immunity (polymorph, petrification, disease, energy drain, ability damage, ability drain, mind-affecting, and fear), nondetection (DC 47), ray deflection
Stat buffs/penalties: +13 armour, +9 shield, +4 morale attack/saves/skills, +3 luck attack/saves, +25 competence perception, doubled crit range, +2 insight AC/reflec, +1 enhancement attack/damage
Perceptions: Darkvision 60, arcane sight, low-light vision, scent, blindsight 60, tremorsense 60, perception +73
Sorcerer spell slots: 6/13/12/10/9/9/11/8/7/3/7/6/6/4
Duskblade spell slots: 6/17/17/16/9/4

[Anastasia]

It is a sea of purple light. roiling and striking. Flashes of radiance as the way is cleared, sacs hanging heavy with dead vermin and not a single crawling, creeping thing moving after that barrage.

"Well done," Ebony remarks, pulling her hood back. "But I do not see any sign of the wounds here, do you? I am not that well versed in them."