"Panther, you are in a room in a temple.  Does that make sense?  If you wish to be outside, then we can help.  We need to end whatever curse is going on here but we can then take you outside." Bernard responds.

Abstract ideas provided by an incorporeal voice do not seem to get through the dumb animal skull but panther growls again: "Meat! Smell meat. Do not see meat! Need meat Master!" It pounced on one of the bone but not finding anything eatable on it resumed pacing again.

(What is happening with Leon's owl then?)

"The panther wants meat and is pretty agitated.  We might be able the calm it if we feed it meat otherwise I fear it might attack.  Oh, also, I think its blind."

Bernard will pull some trail rations from his bag.  The dried meat might do something for it.  He tosses it near the panthers face.  "Here is some meat for you, will you tell us of this room or your master?"

((Forgot about owl! Very sorry))

Leon's familiar quietly flew up to find itself in another room - relatively big, but the owl did not have much time to look around. There was a creature, resting right by the opening and listening (as it seemed) the conversation down below. It much resembled that horrific statue you saw, but in colors with blue skin, dark hair, and a pair of short ivory horns protruding from it's foreheads. Creature tried to snatch owl from the air: grapple attempt 6

(Leon - Strength or Dexterity check for owl, please)

Panther meanwhile smelled the dry meet and tried to catch it: 15  (Bernard - pure Dexterity check to contest? Might be Sleight of Hand, though)

Both checks are the same so dex check 7 

The panther's claws yanked the piece of dry meet from Bernard's hand and cat swallowed it in one gulp. "Meeeet!" The panther licked it's lips, smelled the air again, walked to the well of light and looked up growling again "Meet, Master?".

Bernard says to the others, "He wants us to meet his master."  He draws a dart and gestures for the others to do the same.

"Where is your master panther?" Bernard asks the panther.

Alyssa's ears would twitch. She was listening.

Ramious nods to Bernard, and glances upwards towards the hole, but stays back for the moment. He frowns and holds his axe in his off hand...and holds his other hand out, ready to cast magic to attack. 

(As the owl has flyby and still had movement to spare, it wouldn't have been able to be grappled. It would have simply dove back out of range and been safe. I will roll anyway, but, unless the being up there had readied an action for this, there is no mechanical way it could go after the owl.)

Acrobatics check: 21

"There is something up there." Leon says as his owl dives back out of the hole in the ceiling. "Hello up there!" Leon calls out. He glances to the better speakers among the group though. "Someone want to take over here..."

(The creature did not hunt the owl specifically, not now at least.)

Everyone was looking up, but the answer came from the well filled with luminous liquid (a liquid light itself, it seemed). Rough voice asked in a language that sounded nothing like the ancient language you heard so far from everyone here. Alyssa understood it as "Who are you and what do you want here?"

Bernard looked at the others and shrugged, "we need to get to the heart of this temple."  He hoped that was truthful enough yet vague enough not to cause issues.

Ramious looks to the well, then to the voice speaking an unintelligible gobble gook. He looks back to the blind hungry panther. He scratches his crotch absently and sighs, waiting impatiently for something he knows how to deal with to occur. 

Alyssa had a couple school of thoughts flash through her mind as she observed the other’s investigations. One of them could be a stretch, but she was curious if it was related.

”Rami, you still got those gems you dug out of that statues eyes?” The wizard wondered if they could be connected. But, she knew it could also be coincidence too.

Should the rough voice not respond to Bernard, the elf would approach the pool to address it in it’s native tongue. “I am the Pale One. We search for the heart of the temple and I seek the Dark One.”

After a short pause the well (the voice was still coming out of there) said in a rough but recognisable Common "The heart and the Dark one... Why don't you come here and I can share all I know? Here, I will help you." From the opening above the well dropped the rope, long enough just no to touch the light in the well and voice invited again: "Here, climb up and we shall talk".

Ramious looked about, "What is that voice saying? What are you saying?"  He fishes the gems out of a pouch.  "Ya, I got 'em. Should I throw them in the well, or...up the hole, or....at the panther."  He looks around totally confused. "What's that rope for?"

"I thought the gems might have been the panther's eyes. And maybe that's why it was blind." The elf would shrug as she'd admit her thought out loud.

Alyssa would move forward to stare up at the rope. "I introduced myself and asked what Bernard did. It wants to share its knowledge of this place..." She'd start reaching a hand towards the rope.

Insight on the voice?: 7

The voice certainly wants you up there. The talking part... might concern you in this place. The rope feels solid, climbing some 30ft is not overly difficult (though Alyssa's sudden weakness did not go away), so, getting up there is possible.