Korlan

I will cast [spell]light[/light] on a stone I pick up from the ground. I use it to look around the room for anything interesting. 

Investigation: 7

Quill and Demoiselle find that the murals are very old, and damaged in some places from where the tree broke through the wall, covered in dirt and dust.  As they carefully clear away some of the obscuring grime, they find one panel of the mural looks like the pool of water in the entrance of this very temple.  The water is filled with a mass of snakes and there is a woman submerged in their midst, one arm outstretched, her body covered only in serpents and water.  The expression on her face, turned up towards the unearthly green light, looks oddly euphoric, rapturous with joy. Another panel shows a bald bare-chested human man, wearing a skirt with religious symbols across the belt and a large necklace of fang-like teeth. His arms are made entirely of serpents.  He is sacrificing a halfling boy on a long altar.  Yet another part of the mural shows snake-headed men whipping humanoid slaves.  The largest part of the mural is on the wall behind the altar.  It depicts a powerful serpent creature wearing golden armor, only his arms and chest appear human, his head and the lower half of his body are an enormous coiled snake. Something black has fallen from the sky on a bright sunlit day and has punched a hole through his chest the size of a fist.

Esvaris finds that the book, though ancient and decaying, is not as dusty as the rest of the room.  Inside he finds illuminated pages similar to the murals on the walls, possibly done by the same artist.  One page shows the basilica as it stands now.  Another shows it before the basilica was built, when it was just the domed library and it appears that there was a smaller temple attached to the library, built half underground.  One picture shows a specific wall of the library, on the bottom floor on the south side.  There is a carving in the stone wall there that looks like this:

Some passages from the book that Esvaris can still read, though the pages are faded and crumbling with age:

Korlan notices interesting designs on the altar, suns with snakes curled around them.  The stones of the altar are less dusty on the south side. There are a few places along the north wall where the giant tree behind the temple grew into the room and then back out in a different spot, so it almost seems to be part of the wall now.  (Make a perception check)

Korlan

Perception: 3

Korlan has been holding the stone with his light spell cast on it a little too close to his eyes.  They feel kind of watery, making it hard to notice much.

Demoiselle frowned. "Look at these snake-people, mon frere, did not those pages from the Basilica detail some ritual about transforming into a yuan-ti? I could repair more of this mural with Mending, but I think the picture is starting to clear up anyhow. I think when we return we should have a quiet little get together and compare notes. I would be especially interested to see if our cultish 'friends' also have some tie to snakes."

Quill nods.

"I can hardly believe that all of this is happening. And Dawnlord Menges must be involved, somehow! Do you think," he asks, looking worried,

"that Dawnlord Wintermoon is involved? But he can't be...right?"

Korlan 

After blinding myself, I head down the stairs to try to find Friar Bernard. 

Korlan heads down the staircase and into the room with a pool and statues.  Standing in the doorway at the entrance of the temple is a small shadowy figure frozen in surprise as the halfling enters. They are roughly the same height. The figure darts to the right and rushes towards Korlan in the darkness. 

Korlan

Initiative (if it goes that way): 20

I pull a dagger from my belt. “Who goes there!? Stop this instant!” I ready myself to dodge out of the way 

Korlan:  The small figure attempts to stop, slips, and lands prone at your feet.  Looking up at you pleadingly, you hear a familiar little boy's voice, now full of fear and panic. "Please, Sir Cleric, you must come! My Ma sent me.  It's my Da and the big cleric.  You have to help them!"

Korlan 

I sheath my dagger. “Of course! Where is he?” After looking back and seeing no one else exit the room for the time being, I will rush off with the boy to his father and I assume Friar Bernard. 

Esvaris

I finish reading the what I can (it takes a while because I am not so good at the reading; the observant onlooker would notice me mouthing the words as I scan the page). I recognize the importance of what I have read, and say, "I have to show this to Friar Bernard" I pick up the book, and head for the stairs.

Korlan and the boy rush out of the temple and into the darkened veranda, the carved pillars casting strange shadows.  A figure steps out from behind a pillar near the temple entrance, aiming a loaded crossbow at Korlan.  In a grizzled old voice he says, "So, ye've gone meddlin' and pryin' and ye have seen what ye should not.  Now I canna allow ye to leave."  He looks grimly at both of you, and gestures with the crossbow for you to move back into the temple.

Esvaris: Just as you enter the room with the pool you hear old Fassil, the caretaker, speaking in a dark tone to Korlan outside.

The boy cries out, "But, me Da! They have to help him! Right now!"

Korlan 

I pull a dagger and rush Fassil trying to land an attack. I yell out to the boy, “go find the other clerics!”

Initiative: 22

Attack: 17 Damage: 6

Demoiselle, about two steps behind Esvaris, heard Fassil and muttered "You've got to be kidding me!" under her breath. She rushed forward, grabbed the boy and put on a burst of speed in the direction the lad seemed to be indicating.

Fassil's initiative: 19  

As Korlan rushes forward, dagger in hand, and Demoiselle rushes forward to grab the boy, Fassil fires his crossbow at Demoiselle (attack: 16 and damage if hit: 3), then drops the crossbow and uses his multiattack to make an unarmed strike against Korlan, attempting to knock the knife from his hand. (attack: 20)

Korlan easily evades Fassil's attack and strikes him with the dagger.  

(Demoiselle, if you are actually carrying or dragging the boy in any way, that will reduce your speed by half. With dash it should reduce it to just normal speed I think.)

Korlan: "You little nicker!" He's bleeding from the cut along his left side and now clutching it with his right hand.  "Me family's been guardin' this temple's secrets since the first High Lord's time, and now ye've ruined everythin'."  He spits at you and glares. "Tell your evil snake masters they'll be defeated again, no matter how many fake clerics they send here.  And Emeritus himself has consecrated the pool now, so you can't pull your trick no more." Then he slumps against the pillar behind him, blood leaking through his fingers.

 Demoiselle only just manages to bite back a curse as the bolt hits her. Thankfully it was a fairly minor wound and she kept on running.

Quill hears the commotion and rushes out.

"What's going on here?" he asks.

"The caretaker? Oh no! What happened?!"