Toc looks to Mirica, "He never ate. Sometimes we would swap clothes in the morning and act each others role, so....if he was eating then, that was probably one of my Tic days. But yes, a construct, though to call him 'just' a construct is like calling a piece of art 'just a painting'.  Regardless, he took a lot of time, energy, and cost to create, and had a spark of myself in him."  He sighs heavily.  "Is it strange that I'm going to miss him?" 

Fianna runs away to try and rescue books.  Nobody answers Sebastion's question. 

Fianna, you run downstairs, the black smoke pouring out of the stairway is rather thick.  As you get to the statue room, the smoke is very thick and you find it difficult to breath. The fire in the library isn't a raging inferno, but the smoke has nowhere to go except into the statue room and then up the stairs, and with a single doorway leading out, most of the black smoke is caught in here. You're not sure you'll be able to breath if you stay in here, so you back out. Unless a solution for breathing the smoke can be had, you're not going to be able to get in there until the fire burns out and the smoke can clear. 

Chen looks down at the remains of Tic and says nothing. Without a word he turns and descends the stairs again, going to check on Fianna and make sure the demons haven't teleported back into the room. Seeing that she is trying her best to salvage books, he does what he can to help...

(Chen can hold his breath for a long time based on his CON, and has fire resistance, but probably can't see in the smoke. Perhaps if Fianna can see, she could direct him by voice?)

Mirica (who probably became visible again by this time) gave Toc a long look of a sad disbelieve and quietly and very seriously said: "Toc, you need help. It might be already beyond most druidic circles I know of, but there some temples where people do that - restore troubled mind and soul. I can get you there. If our adventure would not kill us. But please, believe when I say - you need it."

"I... I'll check on Fianna." She will go down and use her last Wind Wall to get rid of smoke. May be there is a puddle outside where water can be gathered to put down the fire completely.

     Choking and coughing, Fianna begins to back out, defeated...  But seeing Chen and Mirica coming down to her aid she is emboldened.  

     "I have no idea what is in the books," Fianna explains quickly, "But they ate out spells with ease so I cannot help but think there is powerful knowledge inside them.  Perhaps if we coordinate we can still save some and get some clue...?"

     Fianna will suggest that if Mirica can use her Wind Wall to channel the smoke out of the library and outside, leaving us enough room to breath some hopefully decent air... Then Fianna herself could attempt to use a Wall of Force to encase as much of the fire as possible and choke it off from the air.  With no air the fires will die, the smoke will end, and perhaps there will be books enough to learn something from...

Toc looks to Mirica and replies with a dismissive, "Pfffff" before they turn towards the stairs with the column of black smoke pouring up from it.  Mirica rushes into the smoke followed by Chen.  Toc shrugs, wets a cloth, and wraps it around his face before moving into the smoke. Down below the black smoke is thick.  Mirica casts her wall of wind, trying to make a bit of a funnel to pull the smoke out and away.  Fianna and Chen meanwhile try to find some books worth saving.  Water skins are depleted spraying water on burning books as the group tries to douse the flames and clear the smoke.  The two doors are open to the other room as well on the other side of the library where the crypt and the moldy remains are.  Smoke has likewise filled that room which the group keeps an eye on as they manage the fire. 

The group has managed to collect a good number of books (22 59 21 76 63 3 <70) on the far stone table as the last of the flames are extinguished...though your nostrils are all flared with black soot as are your mouths, by the time you're done, and the sound of coughing and hacking from everyone is near constant.  Toc notes that three of the books that have been rescued appear to be magical.  All of the books were chained into the bookshelf but the chains are pulled off easily enough to let them free. 

Sebastion and Jahren have come down to join the group and try to help. 

It's been about 20 minutes of fairly intense fire fighting and book saving.  With the fire out, the room is dark, but Toc has tapped the mantle of the fireplace with his staff and a cold blue'ish magical light fills the room. 

Fianna is poking through the books at the end of the room, seeing what's salvageable when she spots some movement.  Glancing towards the crypt room around the corner, she sees the bug demon creature. It's poking its head up out from within the crypt, its insectoid black eyes staring at her, and then ducks down in an odd way, disappearing from view. 

"HOw is everybody? Sebastian breaks the silence

     "We've been spotted," Fianna says, advising everyone else of the peeping-Bug.  "Do we press on or find somewhere to rest?  If we wait here too long we may have more visitors..."

     Saying this, Fianna will pack up the rescued books and get ready to move.  She is eager to peruse the books and find out exactly what they are, but that will have to wait for a more relaxed time.  

*Cought-cought* "Never been better." Answered Mirica to Sebastion almost sincerely: simple intense physical exercise - like putting down fire - was always the best way clear the heads and calm the nerves. The latter, though, was immediately taken away. "There is a crypt through that door. A small passage - and then crypt, to be precise. Glyphs, sarcophagus and piles of bones, nothing else, no exits either. But those things re teleporting..." "Shall we try to finish them off?"

"Im game if you are, as they say

"Then let's do it." Mirica called the light of her warhammer, adjusted the shield and simply walked towards the crypt.

Sebastian follows on Mirica's left his shield partially covering her

The two of them stride past the two sets of double doors. A large, scorched glyph is burned into the floor just inside the room, as Mirica described. At the far end is a sarcophagus on a pedestal. Imagery of thorny vines wrapping around it are carved into the stone. A pile of bones and moldered cloth lie nearby.  Fianna points to the open sarcophagus.  "I saw the demon sticking his head out of there...."

Despite Mirica's words about Toc's mental health, Jahren then comes over and pats him on the shoulder.  "It is not so hard to understand.  He was, in many ways, quite real.  I have seen such a thing before, but I think he was the best of them."  He smiles and Toc once more, pats him on the shoulder, but then remembers the books that he too hated to lose, and rushes to join Fianna and the others in trying to save a few.

To Sebastian Jahren replies "I cannot complain, although we are expending magic quickly in such encounters."  "We have strength left to see this through though, I'm sure.  And you?  Well done, I must say, despite the chaos."

Before the group presses on Jahren takes what time he can to study these new rooms that Mirica just opened for them only minutes before.  Although quite interested in the books, he also looks for anything else interesting or helpful in their understanding of what happened here with Adlas Sodhese.

Jahren glances around the library. Fire is...destructive. The ceiling and walls are black with smoke. Three of the walls of this long room were coved with books, each individually chained in place on its shelf. Now however over half of the books are charred beyond recognition, and chain hang in blackened bits on the burned out wooden shelving or lay across the ground along with piles of ash. All of the books not burned beyond use are being piled into Fianna's bag.  A hearth is on the wall between the two sets of double doors into the library and two reading tables run down the long axis of the carpeted room, one is covered in ash, the other in the dirty flakes of burned books that were piled on it. 

As for the next room, it appears very much like a crypt. It's the same size and configuration as the statue room, 55 feet across. A burned out (and now powerless) glyph on the floor was clearly triggered at some point. The sarcophagus, 45 feet across the room is large and covered in intricately carved vines that wrap entirely around the stone coffin.....but...the sarcophagus is not so large that a bug creature could stand in it. If it was "poking" it's head out of the crypt it's either on it's little bug hands and knees inside it, laying down, or...something funny is about.  As for the body on the ground, it is dressed in the moldering remains of a wizardly robe with the symbol of Netheril upon it...though, even from here Jahren can tell that it's an elven skeleton, not a human one.  

Something funny... Like a staircase funny may be? A common practice in treasure labyrinths, if you believe adventurers, and even if you do not - a logical explanation. Mirica approached the sarcophagus, trying no to step on the glyphs lines (dead as they were) or bones and peeked inside. 

Chen helps collect the books, looking to see if any contain anything that resembles recipes. But before he gets too far, he hears Fianna's warning. He has had enough of these irritating bugs that won't die and won't stay put, and wants to squash them once and for all. He drops the books, hefts his axe resolutely and strides into the crypt with the others, ready to strike at any bug that he sees inside.

     After stowing what books she can, Fianna Reaches into her Bag of Tricks and pulls out two critters, all the better to even the odds, or just help explore and detect, depending what she draws forth.

1  Mastiff
8  Rat

     After summoning her newest companions, they’ll all catch up with the others at the sarcophagus. 

     “You play guard dog, big fella,” Fianna commands while scratching the big dog behind the ears.  “And you can scout ahead, run back if you see trouble,” she tells the rat.   

Jahren focuses on his spell storing ring and casts Detect Magic from it.  He then walks about the crypt room, quickly bringing his focus to the remains on the floor and the sarcophagus.  He is running low on energy to cast spells, but thinks just a bit more is a small price to pay for knowing the dangers the party faces or finding secrets worth knowing here.

The picture had to be hilarious - five creatures covered from heat to toe in soot and ash peering into the darkness of sarcophagus. For any outside look it would be hard to tell heroes from demons here. 

Mirica did not insist on a scout role and gladly allowed the rat to jump in first.

Jahren casts detect magic. The glyph on the floor is certainly not magical anymore, though MIrica avoids it.  The groups walks towards the crypt. Jahren sees the outside of the crypt is magical.  Warning Mirica, she approaches but stops within a few feet, she notices that indeed, there is a stairwell inside the crypt.  Her foot steps on a stone and there's a definite "click" as the panel depresses.   A loud grinding mechanical sounds is heard as the intricately carved vines all over the outside of the crypt seem to break off of the crypt itself and are swung around the room 2 feet off the ground in a powerful sweeping motion, the stone vine clattering as it rips around the room in a rapid circle. 

Mirica: Attack: 14 Damage: 14

Chen: Attack: 26 Damage: 18

Fianna: Attack: 30 Damage: 18

Mastiff: Attack: 17 Damage: 23

Rat:  (spiked stone chain flies over the Rat's head). 

Sebastion: Attack: 15 Damage: 22

Toc: Attack: 31 Damage: 24

The spiked stone chain vine slings itself back around the sarcophagus, magically merging with the side once more. 

(Wow, those are some wicked rolls....)