<strong>Aleria</strong><br/><br/>The young witch managed to recover from the jolt she received and looked a bit disheveled. Whatever wards the general wanted her to break this sure as hell couldn't be it... there was no way she could force her way through without the enchantment of the pool, so it was either going back to the zombie horde or waiting here until she was discovered.<br/>Then another possibility came to her: maybe she could trick her way through the trial? The protective wards were too powerful sure, but she might still be able to manipulate the pool! Of course even if she succeeded, her chances weren't good if she advanced, but it surely seemed better to stick with the others than either of the other options. After all, what if the enemy came looking for her eventually? Could she fend off an orc search party on her own? With the others she could at least use them as distractions...<br/><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Accessing the pool</div><div class="spoiler_body">You can use detect magic to identify how the pool works and you can try to manipulate it with spellcraft. Every attempt you make will take 1 minute and due to the risk of magical feedback you can't take 10 or 20. If you choose to try and work your magic on the device, roll a spellcraft check against DC 20.<br/><em>Fail by 10+ points:</em> You experience potent mental feedback knocking you unconscious and alerting spellcasters in the tower to your meddling.<br/><em>Fail by 5-9 points:</em> You experience mental feedback, taking 1d2 nonlethal damage and experiencing a nightmare or disturbing vision of your demise, likely resulting in your screams and other noise (possibly drawing attention to yourself).<br/><em>Fail by less than 5:</em> You fail to manipulate the magic of the pool and there is 50% chance that you'll be put into trance to experience a vision.<br/><em>Succeed by less than 5:</em> Choose one - take a glimpse into the vision of anyone else who has undergone the trial, attempt to contact the High Priest through the pool or weaken the ward on the gate (reduce its DC by 3).<br/><em>Succeed by more than 5:</em> Choose one - experience the full vision of anyone else who has undergone the trial, contact the High Priest through the pool or weaken the ward on the gate (reduce its DC by 5)<br/><em>Succeed by 10 or more or natural 20:</em> Choose one - observe the vision of anyone who has undergone the trial, teleport to any other chamber within the tower (both trial chambers and the high council's room at the top floor), summon an aligned outsider to help you or completely dispel the ward on the gate.<br/><br/>You can try spellcraft multiple times, risking the consequences every time... on subsequent success you can choose each option more than once. The DC reductions for the gate stack up to -15 at which point the total DC is effectively halved.</div></div><br/><br/><strong>Bremorel</strong><br/><br/>The half elf concentrated on the second pool, and could feel herself drawn into the waters, as if her spirit was sucked out of her body and transported somewhere else, to be witness and observe events happening elsewhere, to another person...<br/><br/><em>The warcamp was running with minimal staff, nearly all of them noncombatant. Lady Judith was preparing a rabbit for the hungry soldiers she hoped would return from battle. She was humming softly to herself, a sad tune that Bree didn't hear before. The widow never really showed her sadness or bitterness to the others, instead she tried to keep the troops morale up with her little contests of cooking great food for the bravest slayers. Now she was alone though, and regret was clear in her eyes. Perhaps it was regret that she didn't die with her family, or regret that she wasn't able to fight herself to avenge them. Either way it was clear that whatever she was doing now wasn't enough for her.<br/>Just then, there was a noise behind the tents that interrupted the woman's work. From the sides of the camp, orc and gnoll ambushers approached with bestial chuckles and unsheathed spears and axes, some of them still wet with blood. Without a moment's hesitation, Lady Judith raised the knife she was working with and reached for her spoon with her free hand.<br/>"Come you vile beasts. Grant me what I was longing for all these years..."</em><br/><br/>Bree could feel herself pulled away from the scene, unable to say or do anything as she was in thought flying high over the raging battle between the hills and before the Spire, phasing through the outer wall of the tower and into a side room at the top floor...<br/><br/><em>The edges of the Finna's lips were still smudged with a man's seed, stripes of a whip covering her hard back and exposed round bottom, tatters of her leather armor and clothing lying everywhere. She cried out with each heavy stroke as the sleek green orc hammered into her with a cock like a mace. He gave a delighted grunt with each push. He had the shield maiden bent over a table with one fist twisted in her hair. Her generous breasts that smothered Bree not so long ago rolled along the table with the force of each humiliating thrust. The glistening nectar of her forced arousal trickled down her silky inner thighs, as the superior warrior claimed her as his prize, the once proud woman seemingly too weak now to resist her rapist who was just getting into the act... <br/></em><br/><br/>When Bree regained her senses, she could feel the enchantment of the pool wash over her being once more. She could pass the next gate safely as well. There was another message in her mind, and she settled back into her physical shape. "One life touches many, but is anyone truly responsible for the paths of others? Only you know the answer, and must face the future with the truth in your heart."<br/><br/><strong>Hunter</strong><br/><br/>Hunter could see Bree start the same ritual at the pool that they both did in the previous chamber. She could join her if she wished or go after her, but when she eventually gazed into the pool, she would have felt the same feeling of an out-of-body experience as the pool pulled her in...<br/><br/><em>"Where the fuck is Kardur!?" the halfling screamed as a large gnoll he was riding with his daggers embedded in its back collapsed to the bloodstained ground of the battlefield with him. It was the same guy she met the other day, the one who was cheating the soldiers out of their coin.<br/>"He's pushing forward. Damn, he's going in too deep, too fast!" another soldier she didn't know yelled while catching his breath, having felled an opponent as well. "He's getting carried away again, I can see the orc heads flying from here!"<br/>"So, fight bettah and don' let the sod take all the glory, eh!" Edge shouted back as he stumbled to his feet and pulled his blades from the dead hyena-headed monster. "Why don't we-" <br/>He was interrupted when a deafening orc warcry filled the battlefield around them, and the rogue turned to face a charging brute running towards him, the spear of the barbarian pointed straight at the halfling's head. The loudmouth was at a loss of words and his eyes went wide when he realized there was no time for him to avoid the charge now... then Theo the bard came flying out of nowhere, leaping into the orc's path and intercepting the attack. The spear ran the man clean through, probably tearing lungs as he gave a silent scream and caught blood. He didn't have a chance to even look at his friend he just saved... with his last strength he pulled the trigger on the crossbow he still held, and the bolt fired and lodged into the barbarian's skull with a sickening *thud* before they both fell dead to the ground. The halfling yelled for Theo as Hunter was drawn back to her physical self, but the bard couldn't hear the short rogue's insults anymore.</em><br/><br/>Hunter woke from her trance and felt the magic of the place fill her up, just like before. She knew she could now pass the next gate safely... the others have bought her time paying a dear price. As she was standing to her feet again, she heard the same voice speak its message to her: "One life touches many, but is anyone truly responsible for the paths of others? Only you know the answer, and must face the future with the truth in your heart."<br/><br/><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Bree and Hunter</div><div class="spoiler_body">The two can now move freely between the first 4 levels of the tower, but every time they leave their current location, roll a stealth check.</div></div>