As the Ashen Company descend the stair case to the next head in the wall they see the face of a beautiful young woman; adorned in exotic jewellery her voice echoes as she speaks her request for a demonstration of illusion magic. Berrick casts seeming on the group and they all appear to look like Flynn - albeit Null & Berrick slightly larger versions.
Satisfied with the demonstration; her demand to break to seal is to craft an illusion she can not see or provide an item infused with illusion. Null graciously pushes the (6" diameter) nightfall pearl in to her mouth and somehow she still breaks the seal.
Next is the inevitable head of death, a cold and dark skull emanating the smell of rotten flesh. The skull introduces themself as Sarnec, the holder of all you need to pass on. The demand is for a soul or to watch someone die.
A weird and sadistic request that, sadly, doesn't surprise the Ashen Company at this stage. Straight down to business Flynn takes off his jacket and whispers to Null to do the deed. Before Null has a chance to slit her friend's throat the skull calls out that it has to be someone else, Null is tainted. Berrick doesn't put it quite like that but stops the kill. The Ashen company awkwardly look at each other working out the practical logistics of who is most difficult to kill, who can do the most damage quickly and who's desire to sacrifice themselves for the group is the the strongest.
Berrick, ever the practical guy, casts disintegrate on himself - knowing it won't do enough damage to kill him but it makes the decision for the group. If she wasn't already messed up enough something in Lotty snaps, with the reasoning of not wanting to waste Berrick's sacrifice she holds the thought of the loss of the majority of people she's ever known and bears her loathing of death straight in to the eyes of the skull as she grasps Berrick's throat and finishes the task.
Revivify potions administered and the final seal on the door broken the Ashen Company need a moment to deal. As Flynn takes a catnap and Berrick takes a long night potion Lotty & Null act as cushions (and hairdressers) for them. As the ladies de-brief Null tries to comfort Lotty's guilt but ends up telling her what a slow painful death she must have given Berrick. Null confesses that she sees everyone shivering and uncomfortable here but for her she's toasty, comfortable and never felt like she's more at home. Null's worried Azher is having some kind of influence on her when she's so close to his domain. Lotty does her best to reassure Null she's her own person and incredibly strong with it.
Rested and slightly more scarred for, what's left of, their lives they go through the next portal and find themselves in an M. C. Esher-esque cube. On each of the six sides of the cube have tiles of constellations and a window to the outside with another, different, constellation in the sky.
After a lot of confusion and puzzling they eventually work out that the tiles need to be willed in to place to match the constellation outside the window. If an attempt is made and failed to move the tiles it takes it's toll and moving from one wall to another takes a lot of strength and hursts if you fail. Even when they are successfully moved they will hurt and blind all your friends.
Eventually the group work it out, they're exhausted and hurt but when they leave the cube they find themselves standing next to a tiny cube on the floor. Taking in the landscape they find themselves on a floating platform of stone hands looking as though they were both holding up and a part of the landscape.
At the head of the platform is a giant head with wings of hands, the mouth seems to be the opening to get out of here. As they approach the Ashen Company see four bug-like creatures coming from the mouth looking for a fight.
[Honestly - a bit hazy towards the end, that might not be a great description!]
Soul Turbine Tower levels:
- Entry - Aspect of Azrael
- Necro fruit- Rune scarred cultists
- Clockwork - Lich & death knights
- Graveyard - Rune scarred banshees (Hi Eleanor!)
- Lava - Rune scarred balor
- Ice tundra - frigid cold
- Swamp - Rune scarred basilisks
- Snow farm - Rune scarred zombie giants
- Classroom - Alistair's riddles (+book on Soul Transference)
- Underwater - Kraken
- Wall - Spikes of agony
- Ashen Company Villa - duplicates
- Sands - Silas
- Azher's tower entrance (Astral Plane?)
- Inverted Tower ft. Magister Peanut Gallery
- Puzzle cube
- Handsy platform - bug creatures?