"Yes. We dedicate our lives to protecting the weak." Ruby smiled. "I was the leader of my team with my partners Weiss, my sister Yang and Blake."
"Oh well then we definitely need to get you home. It 's not right to keep a leader from her team." Gale ruffled her hair.
"Hey stop that, I hate it when Yang does it. I don't need that here."
There was a loud noise as wyll pulled a iron ring set in the far wall of the chamber. Behind them they heard the locked door swing open. "Found it." He laughed.
"Don't go pulling things that you don't know what they do. We're already on edge for traps." Shadowheart scolded him. The group headed back to the formerly locked door and made their way deeper into the temple.
Chapter 4: Withers
Ruby and the others descended the stars heading down into the darkness till the reached a subterranean chamber. A few old pots and the chest were in the chamber. Ruffling through their contents gave them more scrolls that Ruby didn't understand but Gale was happy to store in his bag, a few pieces of silver jewelry.and some ornate cups and plates.
"At the very least we can sell them to get some better gear." Shadow heart remarked. on the left and right walls were these massive oak doors reinforced with iron metal work. The door to the left was locked. Heading into the right chamber revealed a burial hall lined with warrior states that have degraded over the centuries.
As Ruby was about to step in Astarion held up his hand. "Wait... traps." He stepped ahead tool kit in hand as he kneeled down prying up a hidden vent in the floor with a thin prybar. "Greese traps." Makeing his way around the chamber he disabled the vents before reaching the gargoil statues Ruby hadn't seen in the darkness.
"As I thought these shot a wave of fire bolts." Astarion remarked as he disabled each statue. "Whole chamber was rigged to blow the instant one of us touched the central sarcophagus." Astartion said as he hooked a knife under the lid slashing the trigger. A series of clicks ran through the room but nothing happened. "All safe."
Ruby walked into the chamber approaching the sarcophagus that Astarion stood next too. "All yours." He smiled in the dim light of the crypt
Ruby swallowed hard as her hands rested on the stone lid before pushing it open. As the heavy stone lid hit the ground with a thud inside wasn't a body or skeleton. Instead was a finely crafted spear. "That's interesting." Gale said looking at it. His hand hovered over it as he cast an incantation. "It's called the Watchmans Guide. Not a particularly powerful magic weapon. Shadowheart you use a sheld, you familiar with a spear as well?"
"Of course." She said as Ruby picked it up by the haft and tossed it over to her, she caught it with ease in her hand. "Should be good enough to deal with the goblins."
Ruby looked back at the sarcophagus and spotted an old bronze key. "This might open the other door."
Wyll pushed another lid over. Inside was a set of ring mail armor. Bones falling out of the old armor as he set it to the side. Next was a short sword and a sheild. Shaking the dust off off everything a few coins came lose. A few gold copper and silver coins but also one much heavier. It hit the stone floor hard.
Wyll knelt down to pick it up turning it over in his hand. "What's a soul coin doing here?"
"Soul coin?" Ruby asked.
"The currency of the hells, Their exactly what they say they are, the sound of a mortal trapped in a coin. Used to bargain with devils." Gale explained. "Never seen one in person, exceedingly rare outside the hells."
Ruby nodded as Astarion moved to the rear of the chamber posing the lock on a old iron chest. "Ah more thieves tools" He said pocketing it. "Potions, a bottle of poison, and a coin purse." Astarion tossed to coin purse to Wyll who caught it easily.
"Should we trust potions we find in a old temple like this?" Ruby asked cautiously as the pale elf pockted them.
"Oh please, their just like two hundred year old wine, the bottles have minor enchantments to preserve the contents until their opened. Potions are valuable, so those that spent their money on them would want them to last. Speaking of which... oh my this brand went out of production nigh eight hundred years ago. My father had some in his cellar when I was a boy in Bauldr's Gate two hundred years ago. It was inherited from his father's collection. Silver Weave Hearth from the Misty Forest. Those moon elves sure know how to make fine wine."
"Fine wine yes, but I prefer my local village beers and whiskeys. They always accompany fine feasts after the slaying of a great beast." Wyll beat his chest over his heart.
"Well it's not everyday you get to taste something like that, it would go for a small fortune back in Waterdeep. Of course back in my home I have several bottles in my collection, excellent for a night by the fire with a exotic tome of magic with my assistant tresseym Tara and my dear... nevermind. Say Ruby, dose your world have fine wines brewed over centuries?" Gale mentioned happily.
"Um I'm wouldn't know, I'm not old enough to drink alcohol." Ruby said a little blushed reminded that she is the youngest of this adventuring party.
"Not old enough? What do you men? How old are you Ruby?" Shadowheart asked.
"I'm fifteen." She said. "Legal drinking age is 18 in Vale."
"Well, there no such thing as a legal drinking age here, since well It's safe to drink alcohol then water without boiling it." Gale rubbed the back of his head.
"We aren't going to spend an hour boiling water every day, especially after we leave the grove. We'll buy water from Arron that has already been purified but Ruby you will have to drink some alcohol with us. We aren't looking to get drunk. Enough to keep our bellies full till we get to the city." Wyll stated as he opened another sarcophagus. Pulling out a few silver rings and a dozen loose coins.
"I understand." Ruby said as Shadowheart opened the last stone casket. She lifted a necklace and a potion bottle stashing them in her bag before pulling an old scimitar. stashing it in her bag as well.
"Next room?" Ruby asked.
The group headed to the next chamber the key clicking in the lock, the great doors swung open to reveal a grand chamber. The right hand wall had collapsed opening a cave that connected to the river. Skeletons on the floor infront of a giant statue of a Skeletal scribe.
"Jergal... I didn't think any temples of his were still standing. Much less worshippers of the scribe of the dead had existed long enough for their remains to still exist." Shadowheart remarked.
"Jergal?" Ruby asked.
"The scribe of the dead, once the God of death, thousands of years ago he oversaw the death of every mortal life, a feared God to be sure but a respected one as well. Over the millenniums of his eternal life he grew tired of his duties till one day in his own divine realm three adventures attacked him." Gale explained. "Jergal was tired and didn't desire to remain at his post, so instead of fighting these mortals, he spilt his the worst aspects of his divine domain to them, granting the God hood they sought. These three new gods would become known as the Dead three."
Gale took a breath. "Bane God of tyranny, Bhaal God of Murder, and Myrkul God of Death. Due to the actions of these gods many tragedies have befallen the material plane. The Spell plauges when Ao cast the gods from the heavens to walk the world in mortal form as magic ceased to function. Then Jergal stepped back from his duties, eventually becoming the Scribe of Kelemvor The God of death and the judge of the damned. The dead three would die, though nigh a hundred years ago there was a plot to revive Bhaal."
"Wait you just said Myrkul was the God of the dead, how is Kelemvor also God of the dead?" Ruby asked somewhat confused.
"Kelemvor is the God of Death, the actual death of mortal life as all souls pass through his plane to their gods divine realm remember the records upstairs? It is Jergals duty to record everysoul that passes through Kelemvor's realm. Myrkul is the God of the Dead, he has no concern of where souls go to after death other then to empower themselves and the others of the dead three, the souls murdered by Bhaal's champions are stolen from their rightful afterlife. Bane seeks to rule the mortal world through tyranny. The living souls empowering him."
"Since Jergal gave them these domains, wouldn't that mean he was also the God of these things at one point?" Ruby asked.
"Ah Jergal was a cold and dispassionate God yes, but he wasn't needlessly cruel. He was the embodiment of death and the dead, the tyranny of the fact that all mortal life must end. His domain has split to dozens of minor and greater death deities. Out of all the old Gods, his Domain was split the most."
Ruby nodded as then set to salvage what the could. From the skeletons they secured several staffs, a scimitar and two daggers, and another spell scroll and a key. From the two chests in the room they found more scrolls and more jewelry.
"Armed scribes, what was so subversive about their words they demanded protection?" Wyll asked.
"Well if they were worshippers of a death God that over saw burial rites, why weren't they buried?" Ruby asked. "Why were they locked down here?"
Astarion frowned at that. "That's a good point, there's no traps in this chamber...and no food supplies, no signs of battle either otherwise this place would be picked clean. The bodies are spread out..."
"It doesn't make sense." Shadowheart said.
Ruby opened a small door on the lefthand wall of the chamber to find another few sarcophaguses, a chest and a shelf with a golden locked book. Rifling through the sarcophaguses came up with a sword and old chain shirt. Opening the chest with the second key she found rewarded her with several gemstones and a few dozen gold coins and another soul coin. Grabbing the locked book sheared back to Gale.
"Found something?" He asked as she handed him the book. His brow furrowed as he used his magic to pop the lock open. "These are names, names of dead gods... why would a temple of the scribe of mortal lives have a list of dead gods?" As he a Ruby flicked through the pages, the last page had three names smugged out and unreadable.
"That's odd..." Gale said. "Here, hold onto this. Might be able to get answers in Bauldr's Gate."
As Astarion poked around the walls by the statue of Jergal, he brushed his fingers over a hidden button. "Found a hidden button... I think this section of the wall is a hidden door."
"And if it isn't?" Wyll asked, walking up to him.
"Then we all die in collapsing crypt. If it were rigged to fall, then it would have done so already." The elf replied sarcastically.
Pressing the button did open a hidden door. But at the same time, the rattling of old bones erupted around the chamber. Wyll drew his rapier, Astarion held twin daggers, Gale's hands thrummed with magic. Shadowheart braced her sheild and spear. and Ruby drew her scythe.
The nearest rushed Ruby, it's skeletal hands swinging at her, dodging easily the reaper hooked her scythe around the undead foe and fired a single shot splitting the ancient spine and ribcage as bone fragments scattered across the room, the shot from Crescent Rose shattering the skull of another.
Shadowheart bash her sheild against the skeleton that rushed her. As it stumbled back, a thrust of her spear removed it's head as the body crumpled.
Wyll deflected a bolt of flames with his rapier before his freehand charged with dark magic and burst out smashing through a skeletons ribcage. Another rushed him and with a deft thrust of his blade it sunk deep in it's eye socket.
But it wasn't dead as the stark white bone hands clawed at him before Astarion appeared behind it, sagger blade severing the skull from the body.
Gale held out his raised staff as three of them rushed him. "You shall not pass!" He shouted as he slammed in down and a thunderous wave of magic smashed them apart.
Looking around there were no more undead. raising to face them. "WE DID GREAT!" Wyll shouted in joy.
"WHAT?!" They all shouted back as the ringing in their ears hadn't subsided.
Taking a few minutes to let the ringing subside the looked into the hidden chamber. A few pots on shelves, a chest and a sarcophagus. "Why go through all this effort?" Ruby asked as they opened the chest. Pulling out a amulet that Gale took.
"This allows you to speak with the dead... I'll hold onto it." He said hanging it around his neck.
Handing the coins and gems to Wyll Ruby turned to the Sarcophagus. It was richly adorned. Pushing the lid slightly before the cadels that surrounded the coffin all ignited and turned green. The lid slid off on it's own and a figure rose up. A bone dry mummy with gold jewelry and dusty old robes with scrolls poking out of a satchel.
It landed and took a few steps forward. His deep set eyes deceptively full of life and knowledge. "So it has been written, you have arrived."
"I'm sorry what... are you?" Ruby asked.
"It matters not what I am for I neither living or dead, nor undead. To you I am a Scribe, now can you tell me what is the value of a single mortal life?"
Ruby stood straight at that question. "Well mortal life is something to be cherished, we only have the one and as a huntress I would sacrifice my own in order to save another's."
"And thus balance will be achieved. Very well Huntress. I shall wait for you when next you camp, we will have much to discuss." The mummy said.
"Wait... what do we call you?" Ruby asked.
"Withers." And the old mummy left.
"Well... not everyday you see a friendly undead... though he claimed to not be undead... perhaps a divine champion." Gale speculated.
"Can't say I've ever heard of a champion of Jergal... bit given how secure this sarcophagus was, that was for a reason." Wyll said.
Inside Withers sarcophagus was a large amount of gold, a third soul coin and a few health potions. Stashing everything away the group made their way out of the temple trudging back up the hill towards the grove.
It was midday by the time they arrived only to have Zevlore run up to them as they arrived. "Thank the gods you're here. The druids have gone mad! Kagha is demanding we leave the grove while holding a girl for trial!" The clear stress of the situation marking a bulging vein in his fore head.
Hey got chapter 4 done, let me know what you think, follow and favorite if you want updates, and maybe check out my other stories.
Ruby Rose stats, class and Racial abilities
Class Fighter lv 3
Subclass Champion
Great weapon fighting style (rerolls one's and twos on damage)
Hp: 28 (3 d12 plus 0)
Strength: 18 (base 17)
Dexterity: 16 (base 15)
Constitution:10
Wisdom: 8
Intelligence:12
Charisma: 10
Race Human Variant (Remnant)
Feats:
Ability score improvement: plus 1 str plus 1 Dex
Base Speed: 40 ft
Aura: 10 temp hit points per level (30 Thp)
Semblance: Petal Dash; Dash action is now a bonus action
Improved Critical: reduces critical requirements by 1 (19-20)
Action Surge: Gain an extra action
Gear:
Crescent Rose: 2 to damage and rolls to hit, 2 d 12 slashing plus strength. 2 d 8 Piercing plus Dex when firing.
All but Ruby Rose have disadvantage with this weapon.
Elemental bullets: 2d4 elemental damage added to ranged attacks.
Two handed, heavy, extra reach
cleave lacerate trip enemies, peircing shot
1 Half plate armor: Ac 18 (16 plus 2 dex) Medium armor. Reduces piercing damage by 1.