Two horsemen ride up to a tavern...

Cal suddenly turns, stopping before rounding the corner as the flare from the grates catches his attention again. Then it triggers in his mind. "The grates! Get him over the grates. The flames may be able to hurt him."

Thrandimir continues to concentrate his icy incantation on the joints of the automation, but the construct is too powerful and the frosted joints scrape and grown into motion regardless.

The automaton attempts to grab Kou from its back, but the monk nimbly evades the grasp of the metal fingers.

Bracing himself Kou grips the cord again placing both of his feet against the constructs head for leverage. Pulling with all of his might, it takes considerable strain but he is able to dislodge the cord. Back flipping off the machine as the cord is freed, gracefully landing on the compound's floor. He then moves to intercept the undead gnome before it endangers his companions.

Kaed dives across the grates having timed his movement to avoid the blue fire, landing on the other side he smoothly comes out of the roll and stands sword drawn. "I have something you can authenticate, come here and take it." He brandishes his sabre hoping to draw the attention away from the rest of the party. His eyes flick to the grates wondering if he can lure the creature into its own demise once it is no longer protected. He feels the cold descend on his heart, making it feel like everyone else is slower somehow, he settles into his defensive stance.

Seeing Kaed move away from the automaton, and hearing Cal's suggestion, Katrin sprint-stomps her way over to the other grate, opposite the barbarian. She bangs her gauntlets together, shouting at the machine again. "Why don't you try this on for size?" She narrows her eyes, the metal of the its body glowing red-hot again. She knows it won't damage it, but perhaps it will turn its attention towards her and move.

Hearing Thrandimir's yell and Kou deftly de-cord the automaton, Ascian darts into the room and looses an arrow at the vertebrate. Again, he pulls the bowstring back and again, the arrow deflects harmlessly across metal. 

The flames flare into existence, leaving Ascian, Kaed, and Katrin feeling warm within their armor. The pulse lasts for about three seconds before reducing back through the grates. 

Cal sprints up, seeing the barrier fallen, and looses an arrow into the zombie that had been behind it, striking true.

Thrandimir redoubles his efforts and the ice around the automaton's joints thickens.

The automaton fixes it's blue gaze on Katrin. It stomps over to the dwarf, the grates groaning and creaking under its bulk. Its fist flies back and then smashes down into Katrin's frame, but the ice from Thrandimir's spell seizes up its gears and give Katrin just enough time to push the fist away with her sword. The blow is enough to make the magic heating the plate of the automaton lose purchase, but not enough to hurt the dwarf significantly. Katrin takes 13 points of bludgeoning damage to vigor, reduced to 6 by parry, reduced to 2 by DR. The diminutive zombie thrashes at Kou, but the monk places his hand on its forehead, holding it at bay. Kou's action.

With his left hand on the abomination's head he slashes out twice with his right hand. The claws tear through the former gnomes flesh, sending chunks of rotting meat flying through the room. But despite the onslaught the little one stands and continues to harass the former Keeper. 

Staring at the giant automaton and wondering what on earth he could do Kaed sees Kou fighting the savage looking undead gnome, and darts over to help. His stays calm, focussing on making sure he hits even if it means losing a little positioning. He slashes hard feeling the skin and bones come away in the creatures chest before punching out with his shield and knocking a lump of ribcage flying across the room. Despite this the little undead doesn't fall, hanging on grimly in the face of the two warriors. " Stubborn little bastard this one!" the tribesmen exclaims to Kou.

Katrin shifts her stance as the automaton pulls back its fist for another strike. She pulls back her own sword in sync, whispering the words that cause her sword to ignite with red hot flames. "Alright buddy. Let's see how you like fire, shall we?" She pulls back her sword, ready to strike with the blue flames that are sure to erupt from the grate at any moment. 

The air stills around Ascian as he stares unwaveringly at the automaton, a third arrow strung and aimed at its back, his mark not quite visible. Somewhere to his left Kou and Kaed fight the zombie; to his right, eclipsed from view, Thrandimir and Callahan weave spells. In front of him, Katrin's sword ignites. And simultaneously Ascian is aware of all of it and none of it, the hollowness in his chest whistling with an empty breath as he inhales and aims out of habit, waiting and watching with a patience that always seems to make time stand still. Seconds pass, long and agonizing. And then, finally, flames dance up Katrin's blade, the automaton turns toward her, and the vertebrate he's been waiting for is open and bared. He thinks for a second that the reflexive breath he exhales next is timed with his arrow, but it's already loosed by the time the air leaves his unimpressed lungs, released by fingers that have been waiting for this all along. The metal digs in deep into the tiny space Thrandimir had indicated as if it had been there since they'd entered, and unblinking, Ascian stares after it, the ghost of something relieved and complacent on his face. Around him, at ease, the air starts to move again. The boy within it stays still.

The blinded automaton staggers, shaking its head in a very anthropomorphic way. Then, the flames ignite and it staggers again, slouching in place as sparks fly from its joints. The dull sheen of its armor disappears. Katrin lashes out with her blade, flames leaping across the automaton's inner workings. An audible crack sounds out as the sword bends a piece of armor in and tube within the thing's leg snaps. The sounds leave no doubt. The automaton is vulnerable now.

The flames lick over the automaton's armored chassis, stunning the creature into near-complete paralysis. "It worked..."  Cal mutters to himself, almost shocked at first. His plan had worked. And suddenly, he saw it all so clearly. What he had to do. What the stars were showing him he had to do. Everything had led him on. From the moment he'd left Farwinter Cove, the winds billowing and biting at his heels as he set out that night. Even then there'd been the slightest sliver of doubt in his mind. He'd believed, of course. Finding the map had convinced him enough. But still, the simple nagging feeling he could have been wrong... it lingered. Meeting the group here felt right  when it happened. A just cause bringing together just people to do something as just as to, well, just  help . And then it turned out their mission was so much more imperative than he could have known. Of course I was led this far, he'd thought. This was all meant to happen.  But the trials and dangers they faced had forced him to face a different sort of fact: that despite himself, he wasn't truly cut out for this mission. That he didn't fit with these people.  It was clear now what the truth was, though. The vision had shown him, and the stars now led him to the solution to this autonomous problem. Only a little further to go... Approaching the machine with a calm determination, the luminous form of Cal stops momentarily to admire the construct. "The experiment is over,"  he declares, reaching a hand up to its face. A small glimmer of light forms at the center of his palm. Then it grows, larger, wider, and brighter with every second until finally it's a blinding ball of energy. He clenches his fist shut around it, drawing the hand back to his chest. Placing his hands together, cupping the light within, his eyes flicker open suddenly as he brings his palms together straight towards the machine. A blast of light explodes throughout the room as a wave of bluish radiance washes over the entirety of the construct, sheering the shine right off of it, leaving its hull smoldering as the firbolg steps back, starting his walk away from it, his stride confident and true.

Thrandimir continues conjuring his ice, but the machine still seems to resist it somehow. It remains fastened in place, seemingly unable to move even as it strains to do so. The zombie smashes an arm into Kou's midsection, finally able to slip under the keeper's guard. Kou takes 3 points of bludgeoning damage to vigor. Kou's action.

Kou's eyes spark his lightning building within him, as the gnome manages to land a lucky blow. He almost unleashes Tempest's fury but there are certainly great threats than this. Letting the energy flow back through him he quickly jabs his clawed hand forward piercing the gnome's rotting flesh and then slashes his hand upward eviscerating the zombie.  He then sprints towards the construct, tapping into his spiritual energy to make two precise slashes that cut deep into the automaton's armor. 

The giant sized construct teetered on the brink,  Kaed stated up at it with a gleam in his eye, the zombie lying on the floor forgotten in a heartbeat. Thrandimir's knowledge had found the weakness, Ascian's deadeye shot found the chink in the armour, Cal's magic had damaged it horribly, Katrin's sword and spell had rent its metal frame and Kou had sliced it deeply, but the work was not complete. Charging forward he readied himself, controlling his breathing, timing his strides carefully, as he predicted the creature dropped to a knee and he continued on, the strong muscles in his long legs bunching as he sprang up landing lightly on the knee before jumping again straight for the giant face.  The sabre landed first the blade piercing the eyeslit and stabbing into the construct's head, it lurched a little as the catastrophic damage stacked up even further, the shield swung in crashing into the weakened neck joint, the head buckling under the force of the blow, forced over at an unnatural angle, as the automaton started to fall, its systems destroyed under the avalanche of attacks.  Kaed jumped clear, facing Kou as the creature crashed down onto the grates behind him. Without turning back to the enemy he smiled at the former keeper, " Together we are mighty indeed. The tales they will tell of us, the glory!"

Katrin watches as the automaton crashes to ground in front of her. A slight grin spreads across her face as she sheathes her sword, adrenaline still pulsing through her body. Taking a few deep breaths, she bends down to inspect the thing. "This metalwork is fascinating. Incredible what ancient civilizations have created that can last so long."

Thrandimir lets out a tense breath as the automaton falls, striding up closer with his staff aglow as he inspects this workshop for anything of value or use. Flicking through the pages of his spellbook, the wizard once more inspects the area for traces of magic. "Yes, the Tollanians were truly ahead of their time," he agrees with Katrin absentmindedly.

Patting Kaed on the back and earnestly says  "Well struck Kaed!  Felling a Tollanian construct is truly a feat worthy of song." Leaning down and examining the wreckage "Though I wish we could have examined it. As Thrandimir said the Tollanians inventions are ingenious even by our standards." Walking over to the fallen Gnome's body Kou gingerly removes the key from the being's remains. "At least we have our path foward."

"True, and nobody is hurt, which seems incredible considering how powerful that thing was." Turning to Ascian he calls out, "I see you needed two arrows to stop it moving, you must need more practice, my friend." He laughs before adding " Truly that must have been a one in a thousand shot to hit it so exactly and penetrate that armour, well done." 

Katrin groans, her muscles and joints protesting as she stands up, the full effect of the automaton's attacks on her starting to make themselves known. She walks over to her hammer, picking it up and hefting it before dropping it back into its loop on her belt. "Got what we need here?"

"Three," Ascian intones to Kaed, slowly stowing the arrow he'd drawn in preparation for another shot back into his quiver. He picks his way across he room toward the barbarian and the immobile metal, a pale imitation of something complacent on his face. "Thanks. Did it even help. You killed it immediately, hard to tell."

Katrin looks at Ash with a sympathetic gaze, as she walks back towards the automaton, hammer retrieved. "Without you, we wouldn't have been able to take it down. You did well."

Surprised by the address, Ascian looks up at Katrin, expression slightly quizzical but some of the tension dropping from his shoulders nonetheless.  "Thanks." He looks around the bare room and then down at the shell of the automaton at his feet. Morbid curiosity prompts him to mentally reach out again toward that buzzing current of before, searching for a trace; he sits quietly in the emptiness he receives instead. After a moment he looks up again. "Where next."

"The vault," Thrandimir asserts grimly, closing his spellbook with a loud clap. "There's nothing else here."

Retreating back to the main chamber, the party comes to the door that is marked with the words Main Workshop  and Vault . Above the door, a riddle is scrawled. The one who invented it doesn't want it. The one who bought it doesn't need it. The one who needs it doesn't know it. What is it?   

Still a-glow in a starry wreath, Cal barely hesitates before flatly calling out, "A coffin,"  and moving through the doorway as it opens before them. On the other side awaits another long-vacant corridor, whose draft betrays an air of foreboding. Cal and the rest of the party step through, marching one step closer to the grand secret wrapped at the center of this place no doubt.

The corridor lights with torches as the party proceeds down it. As they approach the white-stone door at the end of the hall, the air grows cold. Their breathing casts puffs of vapor into the air. The air itself feels thick, and as if the door were warning them away, no riddle is cast at the top. Only two phrases: Lockdown engaged. Experiment in progress.

Katrin purses her lips, nodding as she chews her lip, contemplating the words before them. "Well," she starts, then pauses. "Shit. That's cheery." She glances at Thrandimir, then Ash, before turning back to the door. "Do we open it now? Or do we want to wait?" 

"Hmmm," Thrandimir muses, stroking his beard in thought. The wizard reaches out with his staff and prods the door with a telekinetic hand.

The door remains resolutely closed, but Callahan and Kou feel the keys they carry grow warmer as they get closer to the door.

Fumbling through his pocket for the strange box-shaped key Thrandimir had identified earlier, Cal holds it up before the door. "Now lookit that! This thing you said was a key, Mister Thrandimir, is getting all warm now that we're next to this door... you don't think?" He moves it towards the door and starts looking about for somewhere that could possibly fit it.

As Callahan moves toward the door, the key stretches out in his hand, defying gravity, as if magnetically attracted to the closed door.

The doors open to reveal a 60 feet wide octagonal room, dimly lit by the hallway's torchlight and a dully pulsing crystal in the center of the room, truly massive compared to the ones the party had seen earlier. Several decaying corpses turn toward the party as the door opens. Two of them nock arrows while three more turn to charge.

"More undead," Katrin murmurs. Casting a quick glance around the room, she strides forward to the center of the room. She counts quickly in her head, then taps her amulet, murmuring a soft prayer. A shockwave bursts out from her, striking through four of the undead creatures. As the shockwave dissipates, everyone can see the zombies and skeleton start to turn away from Katrin, as if running in fear.

Katrin's shockwave hits the crystal, and it responds with a shockwave of its own. Negative energy cascades over Katrin, sapping her strength. It dissipates at the door, near Callahan's feet.

Seeing Katrin charge out ahead Kaed pays little attention to the potential dangers of the room, running in behind the dwarf and running around behind the zombie shambling up to her. With a roar he slices down hard, scoring a long rent in the monstrosity at it's shoulder as the blade destroys the feeble flesh. His shield comes across moments later, catching the creature at the now weakened neck the blow struck hard enough to remove the head form the neck with a satisfying pop. Kaed grins over the falling corpse at Katrin, " This won't take long, they are weak little things!". As he looks down his face loses some of the bravado as the creature turns into a robed elf, the body showing the ruination of his attacks, he looks back at the cleric, " well that makes it less satisfying..."

Kou barely suppresses a sigh as the door reveals more undead minions. He nearly complained about Tempus' blessing not being with them, until Katrin unleashes the God's might and sends some of the undead scurrying. Seeing one who escaped the God's power. Kou flips forward and sets his feet in a wide stance. He then deftly maneuvers his arms drawing power from his bodies center and then jabs his right arm forward and unleashes a bolt of lightning at the skeleton across from him

A cracking of brittle bone and chattering of teeth sounds from the ceiling. Up in one of the vaulted alcoves, something  hangs by its feet. Something humanoid that reaches out a rotted hand and fires two bolts of energy down at Kou. The first one lands a glancing blow on the Keeper's face, while the second hits the crystal and bounces off, dissipating across the floor. It's jaw unhinges to rasp a word: "MORIETURE!" Thrandimir understands the word in Old Tollanian. Die.

Ascian's bow had been aimed toward the crystal but the arrival of sudden light flaring his vision changes that, wheeling his arms to instead aim towards the creature hanging horrifically from the alcoves. His arrow flies seemingly of its own volition, striking it hard in the darkness, though it remains hanging with its awful maw gaping wide. Reaching for another arrow, his eyes stay fixed on the creature even as he slowly asks Thrandimir beside him, "What is that thing."

Thrandimir grins across at Ascian, before fixing his gaze on the floating undead creature. "Why, Ascian, my friend. I wouldn't dare presume. There are more things in heaven and earth than are dreamt of in our humble philosophy." Blowing gently at the crystal atop his staff, Thrandimir once more sends frost creeping up the limbs of the creature.

Katrin's magic forces one of the skeletons into the corner while the other takes a shot at Kou. The Keeper ducks under the arrow, leaving it to clatter across the floor.

Glowing like a beacon in the doorway to the room, Cal watches the creature bob down from the ceiling to attack and takes only a moment to raise his hands up, pooling a mass of energy in his hands that swirls larger and larger until finally he thrusts his hands forward, sending the bolt of power surging towards the creature. In a flash of fluid motion, his arms immediately retract into the archer's form, mimicking Ascian's drawing of his own bow as he pulls back another arcane arrow in his hands and lets it fly.  "The correct answer, young Ascian, is..."  Cal's starry vibrato ripples through the room from the threshold as the radiant fletching twirls through the center of the ball of energy, igniting it in a miniature explosion around the creature, which lets loose a hideous hiss as it plummets to the floor, crashing with a dull thud ,  "'dead'." Almost immediately upon its death, though, the creature's form shifts, into that of a bald, elven figure, the hideously disformed face twisted still into one of anguish as it goes still after but a single death throe. 

As if Callahan's words were a premonition of sorts, a roiling pulse of negative energy emanates from the crystal. Kou leaps over it, but Kaed and Katrin both take a large dose of the energy. As it touches the bodies of the fallen, new unlife winds its way through their broken forms. Their forms decay once again before the eyes of the party. Eyes become sunken and lips pull back from snarling teeth. The stink of fresh rot and decay fills the room.

Katrin staggers slightly, quickly pulling out a small vial of red liquid she'd recently acquired. Popping the cork out, she downs it, feeling a surge of energy through her body. Drawing her sword, she slashes out at the zombie between her and Kaed, carving out a large chunk of its abdomen. It falls unceremoniously into a heap between them. "We need to end this. Quickly. Or that crystal is going to kill us all!"