[Happy new year everyone! Hope you all had a great holiday. We're resuming with the group digging out the holes that the hyenas had been working on earlier.]

The clay is rather tough to dig through, but the group is able to make get through it with determination and effort. It takes some time as the red clay begins to coat whatever you're using to dig. You're able to completely excavate around the obelisk. As you do, you find more of the celestian words inscribed into the stone. 

Those that understand Celestial can read:

 Feeling rather accomplished having uncovered the obelisk, you pause a moment taking in the sight of the monument. Those that had felt the magical presence earlier continue to feel the pull further below the ground prompting you to encourage those around to continue digging.  After some time, you sweep away the clay to find magical runes forming a circle in the ground. Above you, the obelisk looks to be suspended in the air through the power of some sort of divine magic. It's nearly seven feet above the runes. 

[If you'd like, you may roll an Arcana to look at the runes or a Religion Check to look at the obelisk.]

As Jubal looks at the monk, she seems mostly confused at what's going on. As the group begins to dig, the monk seems inquisitive at what they're doing but doesn't seem to be invested in the result. She seems full of scholarly wonder but still foggy from what had happened to her just a little while ago. 

(( Cailee will roll for Religion 11 ))

Cailee's connection to the site has only grown stronger as the obelisk is uncovered. This feeling has only been matched by the way she felt within the monastery itself. She's aware that there are other groves spread across the forest and that these sites had once been guarded by the most faithful of Lugh and were granted the title Warden. Their numbers have diminished so much that most people haven't encountered a Warden in their travels. 

Down below the obelisk, Cailee feels drawn to the runic circle. This is her fist time seeing something of this nature at the grove and it leaves her with a bit of wonder. 

Curiosity overcomes caution for Xinq as he ineptly inspects the runes.

((Arcana 3))

Xinq moves to examine the runes. It's unclear the nature of the runes beyond their strange glow that almost seems to guide the kobold toward the circle. Suspended above him is the large obelisk that points toward the sky through the clearing in the tree canopy. Above, Xinq can see the clouds slowly closing the canopy's view of the sky.

Religion 20

Vallen looks over the obelisk with a new found appreciation. Like a beacon, it invites him closer and provides a sense of comfort like he hadn't experienced in some time. 

Svent glances at the obelisk and the runic circle, not really trying to study them, but just to see if anything jumps out at him. Then he circles the clearing looking for animal tracks, attempting to determine when any non-hyena animals were here last. 

(Both rolls will be at disadvantage to represent the effort Svent is putting into these checks)
Religion: 3
Arcana: 12

Survival (for animal tracking): 11

Vallen looks to the obelisk and gives a small smile to it as he finishes cleaning off his shield of the dirt and clay as best he could.  He looks to the newly discovered words written he would speak them aloud, "Warden of Life. Shepherd of Death."

 (( Jubal's Arcana Check to examine the runes: 12 ))

Svent scans the obelisk and finds little noteworthy. The runes are a bit more interesting. They seem to be active from what he can tell, but he's not sure how to trigger them.

The grove seems to have been rather heavily visited in the past few weeks by all sorts of beasts. All the footprints that Svent can find seem to be of creatures native to this region. From what he can tell, most came to the stream for the water and there are no signs of conflict beyond the disturbed areas from the recent hyenas. 

Jubal moves to the runes and inspects them with a great intensity. They seem very familiar to the bard as he'd heard stories of similar circles before. 

The bard gasped, involuntarily. He recognized what sort of runes they had discovered... and was not amused. He quickly glanced around to see if anyone else seemed aware of what they represented; this was a revelation that ideally would require a conference with someone else in the know.

Not immediately catching anyone's eye, Jubal groaned inwardly as he closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead. He knew he should tell the others, but... what would they do with the information? "Screw it. I'm not going to try to manipulate them the whole time, so whatever happens, happens," he finally concluded.

"The runes are for teleportation," he briskly announced to the group. He paused for an instant before continuing, more slowly: "There are spells that can transport one to such circles, although I suspect that this one is tied to the obelisk. It may allow transmission AWAY from the circle, to another circle of runes someplace else, not just TO it."

Was it too much? Would they insist on just rushing and activating the setup? Jubal tried his best to appear calm and matter-of-fact, but inwardly he couldn't help but remain focused on the fact that something had manipulated a monk to try to open a gateway. He silently tried to will the group, "Don't do it, don't do it, please don't...."

Xinq cursed under his breath. His instincts had told him to bury this thing, not uncover it. And now it seemed like the bard was was trying to talk them into somehow activating it, no doubt hoping to win fame and fortune. If he, Xinq, was correct what he had surmised from his earlier scrying, that could have...unintended consequences.

Svent looks at the runes, then at Jubal. "I am not a shaman. Is the wisdom to use this magical thing or to re-bury it, again?" Svent hefts his shovel up on to his shoulder and stares out at the oncoming storm.

Vallen looks to the obelisk seeming lost in thought as he looked upon it.  His expression one of deep concentration and pondering.  Several things going through his head, mainly that it reminded him of the Shrine he used to serve at.  Also some confusion on why Shepherd of Death would be on a monument to Lugh.  

He blinked a few times and a deep breath and exhale, “Could this be a ward against the new Gods...” he spoke to no one in particular.   He then turned hearing the tail end of Jubal’s explanation, “Teleportation?”

Cailee was puzzled. Teleportation didn't seem like such a big deal in and of itself, if it was only meant to teleport to other obelisks. "Could it be that this is a point of teleportation between planes?" This made more sense to Cailee, since the ritual may have been to summon someone from another plane, but she worried that this was a sinister implication. Being so attached to her world made her feel a slight discomfort, or perhaps paranoia, about extraplanar nonsense. 

This once sacred site where animals gathered in peace had been changed quite significantly over the past few hours. With the creatures gone, the grove felt rather empty and quiet. The rushing stream nearby offers a slight drone that keeps the silence from building. Down in the hole, the group ponders what to do with what they've determined is a teleportation circle. It's unclear how the circle is activated, but the obelisk suspended above seems to play a role in it. 

Those that pray to the new gods (Aiden, Talos, Shamara, and Camiela) would in fact find that their connection to their god hindered here. While not visible. you all can sense a sort of serene sanctuary here that wards off the influence from the new gods. You realize that the obelisk itself seems to be the focus for that protection. Looking at the hole in the tree covering above, you can see that the obelisk points directly toward the opening as if it is aiming toward the evening sky beyond the storm clouds.

With the storm arriving soon, you're left with a few options. 

Do you

• Investigate the teleportation circle more?
• Return back to the caravan?
• Escort the monk back to the monastery?

[Also, this is a good time to have a role call for all the players. With the holidays passing through, it's a frequent occurrence for players to need some time off. I'll assume anyone not posting in the next few days needs a break or is uninterested in continuing. If anyone has any questions, please let me know and we can work them out! Looking forward to seeing where this story goes in 2020!]

Quote from Burl >>

 "I am not a shaman. Is the wisdom to use this magical thing or to re-bury it, again?"

Jubal gave a sigh and a shrug. "I've already made my feelings about it known. I see no wisdom in messing with this until we have more information--preferably, procured from an outside source, such as the monastery."

Quote from Lauralei_Redmane >>

"Could it be that this is a point of teleportation between planes?"

The bard quickly recalled his readings about the spell before responding. "It certainly can be used in such a manner. And if enhanced somehow, it may be far more capable than the normal such circle."

(( OOC: Still here, still engaged! ))