I pushed open the double doors leading further into the vault, and was greeted by the sight of wooden walls and stone floors, lit by everburning torches of a slightly different shade than the room we were just in. More importantly, though, I saw more statues, seemingly identical to the ones in the room behind us. Many statues, lining the halls wherever there wasn’t a torch or a door.

Looking over my shoulder, Siora clicked her tongue. “We can’t check them all, even if we knew what to look for. There’s too many. Eventually, someone is going to come and check on the vault, and we wouldn’t want to be here when that happens.”

I nodded slowly. “We’ll just have to take it slow. Start with the left, and then clear our way back?”

Fartooth nodded. “Good a plan as any.”

Ebonheart stomped the floor angrily. He was currently squeezing between the statues. “I can’t fight like this. Those corridors were not designed with me in mind.”

Vestele nodded. “Yes, you wouldn’t even be able to turn around in there, it looks like. Perhaps you could guard the entrance, and ensure that nothing comes up after us.”

“Bah. Beats squeezing through here.”

As Ebonheart made his way back to the sewer, I frowned. “I’m worried about him. He has been cooped up far too long of late, first on the ship, and now here. He isn’t the kind for an easy life.”

Vestele shook her head. “Well, once we get outside of the city, he’ll be able to run as he pleases. And we will be going and hunting down a rogue archon, after all.”

“True.” I took a breath, and moved slowly to the first door, on my right. In Celestial, there was a single word written across the door: Amulets. Gingerly, I reached out to touch the handle. Was it trapped, or locked? Or would it open, and rely on other defenses to keep people out? The answer would determine a lot about how quickly we could move through this vault.

The door opened. Whether that was a good sign or bad, I wasn’t sure, but it opened, with the slightest turn of the knob, and no traps went off. Inside, I saw shelves, with glowing orbs placed upon them. Each orb contained a necklace, gorget, or amulet, floating inside the blue-tinged magical field.

The only problem was that there were more statues in there, and they were blocking the path, so that you could just barely get into the room, and certainly couldn’t access most of the items held within. Cautiously, I stepped through the threshold, watching the statues. So, I saw when the stone statues suddenly became metal, and turned to face me, and a bellowing voice rang out throughout the vault.

“ALERT! INTRUDERS IN THE VAULT! INTRUDERS HAVE BROKEN THROUGH THE SENTINEL! ALL GUARDIANS CONVERGE!”

Initiatives

Fartooth

Melinda

Siora

Warforged Guardians

Vestele

Fartooth’s Swarm of Arrows: 1d20+37 = 50

Damage: 1d6+14 = 22 (Piercing)

Fartooth, quick on his feet as ever, stepped up to adjust his position slightly, and then unleashed an absolute storm of mental arrows at the machine-men around us. I was not the only one surprised (and grateful!) to see that the arrows actually hit home, instead of just being a distraction. The little kobold laughed. “These ones aren’t like the other one. We can take them!”

Melinda’s CL Check: 1d20+28 = 44 (Success)

Utterdark Line damage: 16d6 = 44 (negative)

WG1’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 29 (Fail)

WG1’s Fort Save: 1d20+33 = 38 (Success)

WG2’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 33 (Fail)

WG2’s Fort Save: 1d20+33 = 39 (Success)

Fartooth’s words caused me to look closer at these new constructs. The Sentinel was a silvery, almost chrome color, when it wasn’t pretending to be a statue. These beings, on the other hand, were grey. The same shade of grey as some ordinals appeared to be.

On a hunch, I unleashed a blast of magic in a line, hitting both the machine-men in front of me. Not only were they too slow to get out of the way, but they were definitely injured by that, and visibly so! With a grin, I said, “The kobold’s right. These are much easier to hit and damage than the last one. Take them out quickly!”

Siora’s CL Check: 1d20+25 = 44 (Success)

Mass Whelm Damage: 10d6 = 36 (Nonlethal)

WG1’s Will save (Mass Whelm): 1d20+16 = 21 (Fail)

WG3’s Will save (Mass Whelm): 1d20+16 = 28 (Success)

WG4’s Will save (Mass Whelm): 1d20+16 = 19 (Fail)

WG5’s Will save (Mass Whelm): 1d20+16 = 18 (Fail)

WG6’s Will save (Mass Whelm): 1d20+16 = 19 (Fail)

WG7’s Will save (Mass Whelm): 1d20+16 = 18 (Fail)

WG8’s Will save (Mass Whelm): 1d20+16 = 31 (Success)

WG9’s Will save (Mass Whelm): 1d20+16 = 30 (Success)

WG10’s Will save (Mass Whelm): 1d20+16 = 29 (Success)

WG11’s Will save (Mass Whelm): 1d20+16 = 24 (Fail)

WG12’s Will save (Mass Whelm): 1d20+16 = 28 (Success)

WG13’s Will save (Mass Whelm): 1d20+16 = 25 (Success)

WG14’s Will save (Mass Whelm): 1d20+16 = 17 (Fail)

WG15’s Will save (Mass Whelm): 1d20+16 = 31 (Success)

WG16’s Will save (Mass Whelm): 1d20+16 = 17 (Fail)

WG17’s Will save (Mass Whelm): 1d20+16 = 35 (Success)

WG18’s Will save (Mass Whelm): 1d20+16 = 17 (Fail)

WG19’s Will save (Mass Whelm): 1d20+16 = 31 (Success)

Siora grinned. “Well, since they seem to be weaker, why don’t we see how much weaker they are?” And, with that, she unleashed one of her spells designed to subdue her enemies, and, to my surprise and pleasure, the Voice of the World revealed that several had indeed suffered the effects of the blast. Of course, the fact that the Voice of the World also informed us that there were QUITE A LOT of the Guardians in range of the spell was also a surprise.

WG1’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+39 = 52 (Miss)

WG1’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+34 = 47 (Miss)

WG1’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+29 = 31 (Miss)

WG1’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+24 = 29 (Miss)

WG3’s Attack (Siora): 1d20+39 = 42 (Hit)

Damage: 1d8+23 = 27 (Slashing) (DR 15/Adamantine)

Axiomatic: 2d6 = 12

WG4’s Attack (Fartooth): 1d20+39 = 40 (Miss)

WG5’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+39 = 44 (Miss)

WG6’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+39 = 51 (Miss)

WG7’s Attack (Fartooth): 1d20+39 = 52 (Miss)

WG8’s Attack (Siora): 1d20+39 = 42 (Hit)

Damage: 1d8+23 = 26 (Slashing) (DR 15/Adamantine)

Axiomatic: 2d6 = 9

The sound of metal footsteps upon stone resounded throughout the vault. Many, many footsteps. I was more preoccupied by avoiding the strikes from the guardian in front of me, and a couple others that came down the hall, but I heard Siora cry out as she hit suffered a couple hits from the glowing blades.

Vestele’s Attack (WG3): 1d20+30 = 50 (Crit Immune)

Damage: 1d6+11 = 16 (Slashing) (DR 2/Adamantine)

Prismatic Crystal: 1d6 = 6 (Acid) (Acid Resist 10)

Prismatic Crystal: 1d6 = 4 (Cold) (Cold Resist 10)

Prismatic Crystal: 1d6 = 4 (Electric) (Electric Resist 10)

Prismatic Crystal: 1d6 = 3 (Fire)

Vestele’s Attack (WG3): 1d20+25 = 34 (Miss)

Vestele’s Attack (WG3): 1d20+20 = 36 (Miss)

Vestele lashed out with her whip-dagger, and I could hear the crack of it against the enemy’s armor. As she stepped back, she called out, “Mel, there’s too many! Fall back to the doorway. We can hold them there!”

Fartooth’s Tumble Check: 1d20+36 = 54 (Success)

Fartooth’s Attack (WG3): 1d20+37 = 40 (Miss)

Fartooth rolled back, scurrying out of the line of fire. He still managed to launch a half-aimed arrow at one of the closer enemies, but it missed. No matter, he was back, away from the main fighting. “Melinda, quick!”

Melinda’s Tumble Check: 1d20+49 = 57 (Success)

Melinda’s CL Check: 1d20+28 = 45 (Success)

Frostfell Doom Damage: 16d6 = 46 (Cold) (Ignores Cold Resistance)

WG1’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 23 (Fail)

WG3’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 35 (Success, Half Damage)

WG4’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 34 (Success, Half Damage)

WG5’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 37 (Success, Half Damage)

WG6’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 36 (Success, Half Damage)

WG7’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 22 (Fail)

WG8’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 24 (Fail)

WG9’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 27 (Fail)

WG10’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 35 (Success, Half Damage)

WG11’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 22 (Fail)

WG12’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 31 (Fail)

WG13’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 26 (Fail)

WG14’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 26 (Fail)

WG21’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 25 (Fail)

WG22’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 25 (Fail)

WG23’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 26 (Fail)

WG24’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 27 (Fail)

WG25’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 19 (Fail)

I tumbled backwards through the doorway, rolling around one of the Guardians’ feet to get into the space that Fartooth had been standing a moment before. “Right then, why don’t you metal men play with me instead?” And, as I said that, I unleashed a radial blast of frigid cold from one of the elemental planes, striking all the enemies around. “Siora, fall back! I’ll hold them off!”

Siora’s Attack roll (WG3): 1d20+26 = 39 (Miss)

Siora stepped back, getting out of the doorway to the room we fought the Sentinel in. A moment later, an arrow came flying past, deflecting off one of the Guardian’s shield. “I’m back, Mel! Go to town on them!”

WG1’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+39 = 52 (Miss)

WG1’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+34 = 52 (Miss)

WG1’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+29 = 37 (Miss)

WG1’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+24 = 43 (Miss)

WG3’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+41 = 49 (Miss)

WG3’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+36 = 45 (Miss)

WG3’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+31 = 39 (Miss)

WG3’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+26 = 41 (Miss)

WG4’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+41 = 48 (Miss)

WG4’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+36 = 37 (Miss, Drop Weapon)

WG5’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+39 = 54 (Miss)

WG5’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+34 = 35 (Miss, Drop Weapon)

WG7’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+41 = 42 (Miss, Drop Weapon)

WG8’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+41 = 49 (Miss)

WG8’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+36 = 43 (Miss)

WG8’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+31 = 39 (Miss)

WG8’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+26 = 40 (Miss)

My actions definitely got the Guardians’ attention. Glowing blades descended upon me from all sides, as they tried to cut me apart in repayment for my transgression, but I nimbly danced between them, never once allowing them to touch me. Indeed, several of the Guardians were so off-balance by my dance that they lost hold of their weapon entirely! But even so, I could hear the stamping of metal feet as more and more Guardians approached.

Vestele’s Cure Light Wounds (Siora): 1d8+1 = 3

Vestele’s shield glowed softly as she touched her sister’s shoulder, laying a healing spell upon her. “It isn’t much, but I think it is best if I save the bigger spells for later. This looks as though it will be a marathon, not a sprint.”

Fartooth’s Attack (WG3): 1d20+37 = 49 (Hit)

Damage: 1d6+14 = 20 (Piercing)

Fartooth’s Attack (WG3): 1d20+37 = 50 (Hit)

Damage: 1d6+14 = 16 (Piercing)

Fartooth’s Attack (WG3): 1d20+32 = 36 (Miss)

Fartooth’s Attack (WG3): 1d20+27 = 46 (Miss)

“These things are tough, and resistant,” Fartooth grunted, as he launched a bevy of arrows at one of the Guardians, scoring two hits. “Against anyone but Melinda, they would be an unstoppable force, coming all at once like this, in an unending tide.”

Melinda’s CL Check: 1d20+28 = 37 (Success)

Frostfell Doom Damage: 16d6 = 66 (Cold) (Ignores Cold Resistance)

WG1’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 31 (Fail)

WG3’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 20 (Fail)

WG4’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 28 (Fail)

WG5’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 22 (Fail)

WG6’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 30 (Fail)

WG7’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 18 (Fail)

WG8’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 25 (Fail)

WG9’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 37 (Success, Half Damage)

WG10’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 27 (Fail)

WG11’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 26 (Fail)

WG12’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 22 (Fail)

WG13’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 23 (Fail)

WG14’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 37 (Success, Half Damage)

WG21’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 22 (Fail)

WG22’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 36 (Success, Half Damage)

WG23’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 26 (Fail)

WG24’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 31 (Fail)

WG25’s Ref Save: 1d20+17 = 27 (Fail)

“Well, don’t get cocky. They could still get lucky. And if the people who made this vault went to such lengths to protect it, I’m willing to bet there are bigger problems in store.” As I said that, I unleashed another torrent of icy energy, washing the enemies in the frigid power that denied all attempts at resistance.

Siora’s Attack roll (WG3): 1d20+26 = 33 (Miss)

Siora unleashed another arrow from her bow, but decided better of any follow-up shots as the Guardian blocked it easily with its shield. “That is true. I don’t imagine that they would be willing to easily allow these items to fall into enemy hands.”

WG3’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+41 = 49 (Miss)

WG3’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+36 = 40 (Miss)

WG3’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+31 = 31 (Miss)

WG3’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+26 = 45 (Miss)

WG4’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+41 = 43 (Miss)

WG5’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+39 = 58 (Crit) (Auto-confirms)

Blur Miss Chance: 1d100 = 43 (Hit)

Damage: 2d8+46 = 55 (Slashing) (DR 15/Adamantine)

Iron Vulnerability: 1d6 = 6

Axiomatic: 2d6 = 7

WG7’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+41 = 45 (Miss)

WG8’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+41 = 53 (Miss)

WG8’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+36 = 48 (Miss)

WG8’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+31 = 38 (Miss)

WG8’s Attack (Melinda): 1d20+26 = 37 (Miss)

As they stepped forward to press the attack, the Guardians that had lost their blades simply held out their hands and the blades returned to their hand, ready to strike. And strike they did. Again, I danced, but one blade managed to slip through my defenses, catching me under the rib as it tore through my flesh.

Vestele’s Concentration check: 1d20+30 = 35 (Success)

Vestele’s Mass Cure Light Wounds: 1d8+25 = 28 (Healing)

Vestele frowned, and offered a quick prayer to her patron demon goddess. Healing magic fell over both Siora and myself, healing the better part of our wounds. “Whatever it is, I’m sure we won’t like the response.”