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Recife, "Anyone read hieroglyphs? More importantly do they read whatever language this would be in? I would guess Ancient Egyptian or perhaps Greek using hieroglyphs."
Recife then checks through his boxes for some of his occult books looking for one that would have hieroglyph examples and translations.
Note Recife has Occult at 4
Halifax steps up alongside Recife. Who knew that of all possible places and times, all the useless mystical gobbledygook his parents stuffed his head with might come in handy here and now?
Halifax has Occult at 4 as well. Might as well take a peek.
"Let me see if I can help you with that, Recife. I've done some reading along similar lines. I wouldn't want to go wandering blindly into an Egyptian tomb."
Millie has a 3 in Occult
"I can't read the writing very well, but if it's in Egyptian I can help," Hassan offers as steps up alongside the others. "We still use Coptic in the Church and at university I worked on comparing it to its origins." (Academics 4 [Linguistics])
Between Recife, Halifax and Millie they're able to identify the language and sounds, which are apparently Archaic Egyptian, from the Early Dynastic Period.
From there, Hassan is able to offer a translation:
Certain death for he who enters here with an impure heart.
While he's next to the doorway, Halifax will be able to see that the passage goes down roughly 23 feet, then takes a turn to the left.
"23 feet down, then to the left," Halifax says nervously. "So if you aren't afraid of heights or the dark, and you have a pure heart, step right up."
Halifax steps back pointedly.
Athens lights a cigarette and gives a short bark of a laugh. "I think they mean me, but 'certain death' is a phrase that seems thrown around too lightly anway. If someone will carry a torch with me, I'll go first."
Hassan sighs and gets a torch. "If Halifax won't come, we will need Recife or Millie at the very least, in case there is more writing."
Millie shrugs and says "I'm game." Looking around the group, she says "I figure my heart is at least comparatively pure."
"Oh, I'll go," Halifax says hastily. "I just didn't want to be first."
"I can't read any of that ancient mumbo-jumbo," says Sydney, shrugging, "but I'm willing to go in, too. I guess my heart's about as pure as anybody's here."
Recife, "I will go in. I will even go first but I would like a rope tied around me so I do not fall to far down a sudden pit. I also want nearly everyone to bring a lit torch and few spares. How many lanterns do we have?"
Hong Kong spends a moment hanging back, looking over the door and the intimidating entrance. He's not a physically strong man, nor is he one most would call brave. But it isn't every day one gets to descend into ancient ruins. Scholarly curiosity gets the better of him, and he steps forward.
"I'll go, too."
After looking through their supplies, there appears to be just enough rope to tie three or so people together. There's more on the ship, but that's a lengthy ride away. There are ten lanterns.
"Define pure." Berlin pauses taking a deep breath in through his nose to see if he can catch any interesting sents coming out from the darkness.
"humm, interesting. Okay I'm in, Just don't shoot me if I come up along side you, the torch light will reek havoc with any night vision I may have in there." he nudges Athens with an elbow lightly in jest.
Berlin is able to identify several scents from the passage for the rest of his party. Dust, frankincense (but no myrhh, which would be expected in a tomb), copper, ozone, and a single human being, though that scent is somewhat...off.
"If Berlin can see in the dark, maybe he should go first," says Millie as she examines the lanterns.
Recife, "Just get two fairly strong people behind me on the rope. That should help."
Sydney carefully winds the rope around his arm on belay, and asks Halifax to do the same. He claps Recife on the back, and nods for him to go on in.
Halifax takes the rope and his position.
Millie picks up a lamp and cautiously follows.
Inside the tunnel, it's cool in comparison to the heat of the sun outside. At about fifteen feet in the temperature seems to have settled at around sixty degrees. With their skin covered in sweat from having been out in the Egyptian desert, they now find themselves feeling a bit chilled by the change.
Twenty-three feet in, they reach the curve. There are stone steps carved into the tunnel, moving downward. At the bottom of the stairs is a surprisingly large doorway. Four theriocephalic statues flank it. The animal heads on the statue are difficult to identify. They look somewhat like narrow-snouted dogs. Recife, Halifax. and Millie will recognize it as the "Typhonian animal", the beast associated with the Egyptian god Set. Each statue is carved from a dark stone and stands at eight feet tall. Unlike the slender statuary favored by ancient Egypt, these are bristling with muscle and look quite brutish.
They also appear to be breathing, with their strange heads turned toward the party.
Millie gasps. She raises her lantern and moves it back and forth to see if the statues heads follow the light.
The statues' heads turn to follow the light, though they seem unable to focus on the party itself. If it were possible to blind a statue with light, that could be the cause. As Millie moves the lantern it also casts additional light on the bodies of the statues, revealing that each one carries a spear as long as its body.
Recife prepares to duck, dive or whatever is needed if they attack. He makes no sudden moves. He raises on hand slowly to signal a halt.
Halifax freezes in place. Out of the corner of his mouth, he says, "Anyone speak ancient Egyptian?"
Athens brings up the rear and steadies himself. Knowing better than to fire bullets at stone he stows away his beloved, although somewhat so far useless Thompson, and rolls up his sleeves. If these things really are made of stone then he has a better than fighting chance at attacking with his special power. If he can get past the spear he can bend it, and if he can leap at them he can go for the eyes, but not wanting to be rash he waits for them to make the first move.
Speaking in a low voice while continuing to move the lantern, Millie says, "They seem to be distracted, someone try moving toward the door."
Suddenly, the statues move. The four move to block off the doorway behind them with their bodies, their spears extended so that there's no way to approach without being faced with one.
From beyond the statues, a man's voice calls out. He asks a question in a strange language, then switches to another language. Then another. He cycles through six of them. Several sound extremely familiar, bearing vague similarities to modern Indo-European languages.
Hassan hesitantly speaks up. "I'm not sure, but I believe we're being asked, 'are you openers or closers?'"
"Do you savvy well enough that you think you could answer and they would understand?" Halifax asks. To the others, he says, "Personally, I think we're openers, but it doesn't automatically follow that that's what we want to tell these gents."
Hassan answers, "The vowels are all different, but yes. I think I can."
As all this transpires, Hong Kong gives a longing look back to toward the entrance. He's certainly not leaving, though he is questioning his decision to come.
"Can you ask them what opener and closer mean?" asks Millie. "I don't want to give these fellows the wrong answer." She goggles at the gigantic moving statues.
Recife, "Quite frankly, I have no clue. Giant scorps are easy to mentally deal with, if they are attacking, try to kill before we are killed. Riddles without clues are tough, did I miss any clues? If we are unsure I can flip a coin, I am usually right but it only absolutely turns out right for me."
"Wait a minute," Halifax says, looking at Millie. "Didn't that crazy rat back on the boat say something like the doors will open? And he relished the idea, which made it pretty clear that we shouldn't."
"Hassan, I think we're closers."
Hassan stumbles over trying to ask Millie's question. After a moment, there's a response. His brow furrowed, he repeats it to himself several times, then turns to Millie.
"Do we seek to open the gates for N-Ny--" Hassan pauses, trying to figure out the name again "Nyarlathotep, or to keep them closed? It sounds Egyptian, but it's not. It's just nonsense."
Occult: Does the name Nyarlathotep ring a bell to Halifax?
The name Nyarlathotep strikes a chord in Halifax and Recife both. It is recognizable as a deity associated with sowing chaos and madness.
At the halting mention of the horrible name, Halifax snaps his attention from Millie to Hassan.
"We are most definitely closers, my friend. Let's hope they are too."
"Openers, closers, what's the difference when we don't know? Ask that voice who the hell he is and what the hell is going on in this damned tomb before we all end up skewered by answering anything." says Athens to Hassan.
Hassan translates Athens' question. There is a long pause, rather than an immediate response.
A movement can be seen behind the statues as a man steps up behind them, squinting against the light. He's handsome and appears young, though it's difficult to tell. He could be anywhere between his early twenties or thirties. His head is shaved, skin bronze. He has light colored linen robes on, decorated in arcane symbols. He responds in annoyed tones.
"Para'emhab, priest of Set," Hassan translates. "He guards...I don't know what that word is. Something having to do with the gates. A lock, maybe? He thinks we're idiots."
"Can you explain to him that it's difficult to not be an idiot when you don't have access to much information?"
Millie has moved on from goggling to gaping.
"I've heard of that Nyarla-whatever cobber before, and he's no good," says Sydney. "No good at all. So I'd definitely say we're closers."
Hassan looks at the party. "Do you want me to tell him that?"
Halifax raises an index finger by way of affirmative vote, then looks around to the rest of the assembled party.
Recife has a coin handy but abstains.
"Sounds good to me," says Millie.
Hassan translates. The priest looks at them for a moment, then gives a small nod. The statues move out of the way as he comes forward. Now that they can see him clearly, the party will notice a large bronze sword in his hand.
He says something and Hassan translates again, "He wants us to prove that we're closers. A volunteer to come to him."
Halifax, his voting hand still raised, raises it slightly higher. Glancing around to see if anyone else is volunteering, he steps towards the sword-wielding priest unless someone objects.
Sydney would've volunteered, but is confident that Halifax is up to the job.
The priest nods, satisfied with that. As Halifax steps forward, he does as well. He places the tip of the sword over Halifax's heart, then thrusts forward with it. It slides through Halifax without pain or blood.
Dear God! Knowing that some of his friends are, shall we say, men of decisive action, Halifax quickly says, "I'm all right, ladies and gentlemen! Some sort of illusion...I guess." Halifax, through conscious effort, resumes breathing.
The priest nods, satisfied, and withdraws the sword. He begins speaking again, directing his comments to Halifax. He speaks slowly, with hand gestures.
Hassan translates, though it's obvious there are still subtleties in the language he's missing:
"Nyarlathotep walks the earth and does the bidding of even darker creatures. He seeks to open the gates to let those creatures through. There are many locks and many keys. The Openers have tried many times before and they have partially succeeded, by opening the gates long enough for children to be altered. So long as seven new locks are cast into the gates, they will close again."
The priest pauses, holding up all five fingers on one hand, then flashing two more for seven. It would appear he wants them to remember that number.
"I have a lock, but it takes many years to create a new one so do not lose it."
As the priest has been speaking, a statue has gone through the doorway. It comes lumbering out with what looks like a stone vase in its hands. It's covered in markings and appears to be completely sealed, with not so much as a seam at the top of it.
"This is Set's Urn of Storms. Who will carry it?"
Athens sighs to himself and speaks up. "Does anything we ever talk ever make any sense? What are the two of you on about? Locks, keys, gates? This makes sense to you?"
Halifax steps back, thinking that giving the valuable and difficult-to-replace stone urn to the blind guy is probably not such a hot idea.
How big is the urn?
The urn is eight inches tall. Aside from the fact that it is sealed, it's similar in shape to:
http://www.csa.com/discoveryguides/c...es/battery.jpg
"It sounds like the gates being opened is what made us ... different, Athens" says Millie, who is really not liking the sound of 'darker creatures'. "I suppose I can carry the urn - I haven't had any destructive mishaps yet."
Is this the individual who is projecting the sadness and loneliness Mille felt earlier?
It is.
Hassan translates and the priest gives a short nod. He takes the urn from the statue and carries it to Millie to hand it to her. He says something with a faint smirk.
"He says, 'be careful, mishaps will find you now.'"
When Millie takes the urn she will feel a faint tingling, similar to static electricity only not quite so strong and more constant.
"Yipe! Um ... alright. So is this the lock? How would I ... lock things with this?" She looks from the jar to the priest and asks "how long have you been down here?"
As the sword is thrust through Halifax's chest, Hong Kong tenses, ready to rush to the other man's aid. When Halifax doesn't scream or bleed, though, he relaxes again. Despite a strong urge to examine both the sword and the wound it should have made, Hong Kong stays back.
The priest waits for the translation, then smiles slightly. "It is one of the locks. If you cannot stop the Openers, then when they attempt to open the gate you push the locks through it. They will help it close again. Where the gates are changes each time, so I can't help you determine where to go or how to find the other locks."
He frowns at the last question. There's a brief moment of confusion as Hassan asks him several questions to confirm before translating, "Nearly five thousand years."
"Someone should leave him a book" laughs Athens. "Ask him if he's got any other useful information for us before we go back up and away from this crazy place."
Knowing that exits can be just as risky as entrances, Athens again cradles this Thompson in his hands in preparation to lead the party back up and away from the tomb.
Sydney lets out a low whistle when he hears how long the guardian has been here. He also has an odd thought after Athens's jest, and says to Hassan, "Please ask the poor bastard if we can leave him anything now, or bring him back anything if we ever come by this way again."
Berlin has held back during the interaction, the hair on the back of his neck rising when the sword is used but apparently causing no damage. These things are in no way his expertise! The Jar catches his attention though and he slides up beside Millie to get a better look at it.
Hassan translates Athens' question, then struggles a bit trying to figure out what exactly he's being told again. "The Openers will have an easier time finding you when you carry locks. They're always looking for those that may try to stop them. If you follow the--I don't know what he's trying to say--some sort of lines? A river? Current? If you follow them from the places where omens begin to occur, you'll find the gates. Omens are odd happenings, apparently."
When Hassan translates Sydney's question, the priest laughs, then responds with a suggestive quirk of his eyebrow. Hassan turns red as he tries to translate. "Writing to learn your foreign tongue would be pleasant as would...um...a woman's company."
Berlin's accute senses will notice a few things about the urn. Despite the fact that it appears to be quite solid and dry, it smells of damp earth. The whiff of copper and ozone he'd smelled when they entered the tunnel is apparently coming from it as well.
When there's a free moment, if this is feasible, Sydney will take one of the novels from his baggage and, with Hassan's help, write a short English-to-hieroglyphic glossary on the inside covers. That should get the ancient guardian started, at least (and it appears that he has plenty of time to learn).
As for his other request, I don't suppose any of our party's women would care to volunteer...? Er, no, never mind.
Sydney also says, "I guess I don't quite understand why we're supposed to take the urn with us. Wouldn't it be safer here?"
As soon as Hassan finishes translating Sydney's question, the priest is stepping over to Millie again. He gently plucks the urn from her hands, turns back toward the doorway he had come through and touches several of the symbols on its side.
Everyone except for Halifax is temporarily blinded as a lightning bolt shoots out of the urn. It lights up the other room, which looks like an ancient Egyptian laboratory with all sorts of strange instruments in it. The bolt hits a post of copper near the far wall, buried deeply into the ground. To Sydney it would appear to be roughly equivalent to the maximum amount of electricity he can manipulate in a day.
"It is Set's Urn of Storms," he repeats.
"Well, that's a handy little stunt," Halifax says. "Hassan, would you ask him if just anyone can make it do that, or is there some trick to it?"
Millie cocks an eyebrow at Sydney. "Volunteer? she whispers. "Really?"
After the priest performs his demonstration and Halifax asks his question, she asks "does it have to do with the writing on the Urn?"
After Hassan translates Halifax and Millie's questions, the priest looks quite pleased.
"Only those with the mark of the gate on them can use it. Your entire party can. Yes, it is the writing."
The priest turns the urn in his hand as he demonstrates which symbols to push and in which order. There are three, in this order: the "squiggly line" water symbol, a quail chick, and a crocodile's head.
"In this order only. Any other and it will kill the one holding it."
Millie cautiously takes the urn back, closely examining the symbols. "How often will it work? May I try it?"
The priest seems to be quite pleased with all of Millie's questions. As soon as Hassan has translated, he responds. "Three times a day before it needs to recharge. Only do it through that doorway away from everyone or you'll be traveling alone."
"Well, we couldn't have that," smiles Millie.
She carefully positions herself as the priest was standing and very carefully touches the water symbol, the quail chick and the crocodile head.
When he sees what Millie is doing, Halifax immediately drops flat to the floor, prone, and covers his head with both hands.
Just as before, the urn shoots lightning across the room to strike the copper post. Millie will feel it grow warm in her hands and that tingling she'd felt before grows stronger. She'll feel it in her feet, as well.
The priest says something, which Hassan translates. "He says that using it will attract attention and we should be on our way again quickly. To the north of here there's an island where we may be able to find more information and another lock. I...think he's describing Crete."
Halifax stands back up and dusts off with a small smile.
Sydney sidles up to Millie and says, "Thanks for agreeing to carry the urn. It'll be good to have someone else in the party with an electrical talent. I'm, ahem, positive it'll come in useful."
Millie beams at Sydney and Halifax, saying "all of a sudden I don't feel quite so bad that I never learned how to shoot a Tommy gun."
She nods and smiles at the priest. "Thank you very much."
Recife, "Ah Crete, I have always desired a visit to Crete. Do you suppose we might journey to the labyrinth? After today I would not be surprised to get the next piece of the puzzle from the Minotaur himself. By the way, remind me to pick up some heavier arms. Maybe something that is armor piercing."
The priest smiles and nods to Millie. "He says you, specifically, are welcome to return any time you like."
Athens nods to Recife, "I may know of a place where such things could be obtained in Crete. However it is very important that we remain, ahem, discrete while visiting. There are many kinds of unwanted attention we could attract."
Recife replies, "Thanks Athens, let's also plan on a small shopping trip for the group on my expense. So if you come up with something and we can buy it on the way to Crete let's do so. Greek and Italian ports would hardly be out of the way by much."
Mille takes a break from blushing to reply to Recife: "Shopping would be a good idea; I didn't exactly pack with an eye towards tomb-raiding."
As the party discusses the next leg of their adventure, there is a sound from the room behind the priest. It sounds somewhat like cymbals rattling. The priest turns back to the party and says something sharply.
Hassan translates, "He says we must leave now and hurry. The use of the urn is already being noticed. There's no more time."
"I'd ask what that noise is, but I don't really want to know," says Millie as she unconsciously starts backing up. She looks at Hassan: "Is our friend going to be safe down here?"
Hassan translates and the priest responds, "Put the stone in place as you leave and leave quickly for your own sake. It's doubtful anything will enter here because of my defenses, but you can be trapped."
"All right then, it's time to go! No need to stand here gawking." Holding her lantern in one hand, and the urn underneath her other arm Millie starts making her way out the way they came in.
Sydney will bring up the rear, ushering the others along ahead of him if necessary, and watching for any attack from behind.
The party makes it out of the tunnel easily. The sun blinds them when they first step out, however, and Millie will notice that same unpleasant atmosphere she had felt in Rosetta. There are no people in sight for it to be coming from, however, and while the horses seem uneasy it isn't coming from them.
On the eastern horizon it appears that storm clouds are accumulating and moving quickly in their direction.
"How long is the ride back to the port? Can we beat the storm?" asks Athens to Recife. "I don't want to wait it out down there and I don't want to get caught in whatever is coming with that storm."
Halifax bends his mind towards the oncoming storm. He allows his sight to show him what it will, hoping (but not expecting) that it's but wind and dust, nothing more sinister.
Halifax will see that the clouds are formed of something far worse the human mind could readily conjure. Behind the dust that's being stirred up by the movement, they are massive mounds of flesh, tar-like in color and consistency. Occasionally eyes seem to float to the surface of the bodies to look around or limbs lash out to pull them across the ground, but for the most part they are structureless blobs.
"I agree with Athens," Halifax says quickly. "That storm is bad news." He shares the details of what he sees with the group.
Upon hearing Halifax's description, Millie says: "Oh, well that explains it." She'll go on to describe the unpleasant, joy-removed feeling she's getting. "I felt it in Rosetta too - I don't know if it would be a safe place even if we could get there in time."
Do we have any chance of out-riding such a storm? Have any of my occult studies suggested an analog to what is being described? This sounds a bit worse than a spontaneous sponge migration.
At the speed the "storm" is approaching it's possible the horses could outrace it, but not definite. Recife does not recognize the creatures from the description.
"We must ride. Now." says Athens flatly as he mounts his horse.
(Silently) thanking God that the Greek meathead doesn't seem to want to try to fight these things, Halifax mounts up as well.
After taking the time to carefully wrap the urn in a spare blouse and packing it in a saddlebag, Millie will also get ready to ride.
Recife mounts up fast and rides like the wind (well a little faster I hope). He realizes he is going to be hurting badly at the end of the ride but adds a few quick safety lines just to be safe.
Sydney, too, will take to the saddle and ride quickly, but will keep an eye out to see that no one falls behind.
"I've decided I dislike this place" Berlin mutters as he quickly reaches his horse and mounts up with the others spurring his mare into a full gallop away from the storm-thing.
"I've decided I dislike this place" Berlin mutters as he quickly reaches his horse and mounts up with the others spurring his mare into a full gallop away from the storm-thing.