Protected as they were by Sirene's spell they also knew to emerge from its protection without any sort of personal protection was suicide.

Cor was the first one to propose checking the room

"Well, lets take a look around and see what this room holds. Careful ta not touch anything that looks interesting"

He looked at Ulthok as he said the last.

"Once we get more information we can chose our next step"

Cor moved towards the statues by the west door and as he made to move out from the protection of Sirene's spell he found himself grabbed by the Ranger/Cleric Roan.

"Hold sir Dwarf move not from the warmth of the Enchantress's spell until you yourself are protected."

Realizing that in his haste he had not cast any spell to cover himself he smiled sheepishly at his mistake. Helping to try and cover Cor's embarrassment Ulthok spoke up quickly.

"Well give one of those Endure Cold spells so I can leave Sirene's protective cocoon....Peri, you stay close the Sirene and anyone else wanting to explore have Cor or Rayne give you an Endure spell too."

Without another word Cor quickly cast two spells of Endure Cold on he and the Halfling Fighter/Mage and they headed out from under Sirene's spell Cor towards the Western door Ulthok towards the pool. to the door. Seeing this Rayne stopped herself from moving towards the pool and stood in place having no desire to waste a spell. As the two moved off Sirene looking around the room herself knew she had to be careful of where and how fast she moved. Doing what she did best she called up and cast the spell of Detect Magic.

Though her spell showed magic only coming from both doors it was very weak the magic flickering. She could only guess that perhaps the many inches of ice covering the doors was masking the exact strength of the magic detected. Calling a quick warning to Cor she along with the rest of the party kept watch. To be attacked now huddled so closely together under the cover of Sirene's spell would be bad, very, very bad.

Cor moving forward at once felt a small bite of pain and knew that even though protected by his spell he was still taking damage but only lightly. For the moment putting the knowledge aside he continued to move forward and upon reaching the Western door was cautious. Having heard the Mage/Clerics warning he took care not to touch anything. Clear to him both door and stone statues, for the first time clearly revealed to be female's in form, were covered by a thick slab of ice. Thanks to Cor's extensive knowledge he could see the ice was easily a half a yard deep in depth and had not been touched in a very long time.

For Ulthok the trip to the pool so not so much boring as just plain boring. The sting of the cold in the room to him just that he moved closer to the pool. Sirene's spell having shown no sign of any type of magic coming from the area he reached the pool to find small streams of air showing the water to be indeed warm but not appearing to be scalding hot. The exact temp he could only find out with removing his gloves and feeling the water. The water quite clear as if almost transparent like a pane of glass he could see the water flowing in and out from a pair of large holes just below the waters crest. Though to small for a giant they were big enough for even Lothor to swim through if desired. Perhaps some sort of natural intake outtake system?

For the moment the party yet alone waited, watched and would decide what to do next.

(OK Cor, Ulthok you guys are still taking damage but its only 2 points every 5 minutes so no huge worry. The cold is of a lower temp then the Endure spells can resist but without them you'd be dead. Talking about dead, Keeper, I used a DM discretionary die roll to see if Roan the NPC stopped you from dying. If the die roll had failed you would be dead. The temp so cold it would have frozen your lungs, skin and every major organ with your first breath.

Note to all players your in a very crucial part of the game where any omittance of detail can get you killed faster then you think. Be sure to let me know EVERYTHING you think might be important in a character post or if you forget something in the Q/A. Keeper saying he is moving Cor out to check the doors without casting some form of protection from the cold in his post is a sure fire way to end up dead. Honestly this dungeon in and of itself even without monsters, traps, or such, will kill you. I set it up this way to catch table top players who had gotten placid and over confident to teach them that anything can kill you here.

Not saying there are no Monsters, Traps or such here, I do have all the Grimtooth trap manuals after all, but just be very, very careful. As this Sunday is the Super Bowl the next post will be between Monday the 6th and Weds the 9th)

Ulthok called out to party that he saw small streams of air showing the water to be indeed warm but not appearing to be scalding hot. He could not guess the exact temp without testing, which he would leave to others.He described that the water was quite clear, as if almost transparent like a pane of glass. he told that he could see the water flowing in and out from a pair of large holes just below the waters crest. Though the holes were to small for a giant they were big enough for even Lothor to swim through if desired. Perhaps some sort of natural intake outtake system?

Turning to north end of the room he drew near the doors with the odd looking pillars. These too seemed covered in perhaps a foot and half of ice. Chiseling through that hard thickness would take time and the party needed to make a choice on how to leave this room. So deciding make it easier if they wanted to go this way he called a spell of disintegrate and removed the ice from the steel doors.

(Spell will clear a 10x10 space around the door, or maybe even take out the doors to make a 10x10 opening.)

Lothor was very careful to remain within the area of effect of the temperature spell. He had no desire to experience this place in its normal condition. He liked the description of the water tunnels as "big enough for even Lothor to swim through," but he had no intention of getting in that water. Unfrozen of not, he didn't think it would be healthy.

As usual, the Halfling was the first of the party to act, moving to cast a spell on one of the doors. Ok, then. Let us see what happens, he thought to himself. One step at a time. He held his distance a ways from the pool, but near the spell caster.

(If Ulthok's spell generates some significant effect he will not do the following action. If it does little, or even just opens the door and nothing notable comes through it, he will.)

Moving closer to the pool, but being careful not to leave the spells protection, Lothor took a closer look at things. Were there any salt deposits on the edge? Did the water give off any indication of temperature - a sense of hot or cold? Was there steam? He was careful not to touch anything, especially the water, but he looked for clues. Eventually he stood up and stepped back - putting at least 1o feet between himself and the waters edge. He pulled a copper piece out of his pouch and held it up so the others could see what he was about to do and back up themselves. Then he tossed it. He wanted it to land on the other side of the giant tub - so if anything happened it would splash his way or be right next to the group. Why did it seem like he was always saying "go for it" these days?

Aliya follows close with the others, staying within the warmth of the elven mage's spell. Looking about the cavern room, she makes note of all the major points as the others did - the pool, the doors, etc.

She thinks for a moment and prepares a spell, and turns to the others. "I have an idea. I'm going to change myself so I may walk about unhindered, and perhaps see things from the giant's perspective."

Aliya casts "polymorph self" and changes herself into a frost giantess.

Not willing to take too much of a chance just yet, she tentatively places her arm outside of the spell's protection, and gently waves it back and forth to feel the air temperature.

(OOC - if all is well, she will do the following)

Not feeling any coldness on her arm, Aliya steps beyond the spell's reach and carefully walks about, looking about at everything through her giantess eyes, and seeing the room from her new height and perspective. She will investigate the doors, looking for anything special that this height can show her, then she will move to the pool and look within, to discover if giant sight see anything different than her normal vision revealed.

There was magic, faint though it was. Even through the ice Siréne could feel its eldritch pulse, but she had no way of knowing its power. That worried her.

"There is magic beyond those doors, but it hides itself well beneath the ice. Tread carefully, my friends."

As the center of warmth and life, Siréne moved with the utmost care to ensure all remained in the circle of protection. Keeping her senses ever vigilant, she let the others focus on exploration while she kept them alive. In this, as in all things, they would work together.

Still, the cold was surely not the only threat hiding in these depths and she had to be ready to face them as well. They must make ready to face the unknown.

At once the ancient fey magic that flowed through her veins came to life. Speaking a word of power, the witch sent the magic to settle into her skin, hardening it to stone. She would be ready.

Siréne watched closely as each of her companions moved to act. Ulthok was the first to turn thought into action. Calling on his own magic, the halfling shattered the ice covering the door with a powerful spell.

Standing at the center of her companions, the witch watched and waited.

((OOC: Cast Stoneskin on herself. Siréne will be taking more of a supportive role right now, focusing on making sure everyone is able to stay in the circle of warmth. She will watch the actions of others, their surroundings, and respond as need. She is on high awareness right now)).

Cor listened to the various ideas and knew they all had risks and possible rewards. For now he was content to stand near Sirene and wait to see what unfolded as the others put plans into action.

Unfortunately for Rayne, her skill-set was not useful down in the caves. Hunting and tracking was not any useful in the oppressiveness of rooms or caves. In theory, she could summon a creature to jump into the water, but she doubted that Corellon would approve of such measures. As a ranger, it was her duty to protect nature, not kill it without merit.

For now, it was probably best to just wait for what the others, who were more suited for the current situation, discovered. She was ready to cast endure cold/heat on anyone who desired to leave the circle, and had her bow in hand, in case the giant happened to show up.

As certain members of the eight person party took in the room and the pool, others were debating what to do next and preparing for the worst.

With that information passed on Ulthok made his way to the Northern door and proceeded to inspect it. Deciding to try a spell he brought up Disintegrate and cast it. At once the spell did it's purpose hitting the frozen door and stone column's instantaneously clearing away a good 90% of the ice coating them. Ulthok could tell that though a good inch or two of ice remained clearing it would be a very easy task.

The stone columns the Halfling could now clearly see were crafted to be female in shape and face. The hands holding a pair of stone swords and though sculpted without helmets yet with what appears to be full female fitted plate mail.

Aliya staying within the warmth of Sirene's spell put forth the idea of maybe changing into a Frost Giant so as to be better able to withstand the killing cold. With the agreement of the rest she did so becoming a full sized giant in only a few seconds, gaining the creatures size and weight. However her hope of cold endurance turned out to be a failure as she reached out an arm and tested the cold. Almost at once pain snapped into her hand and if not for her quick dex reaction she might have lost it. Clearly though she was sized as a frost giant and could easily cover a lot of ground with it's stride, she did not have its natural immunity to cold.

Cor having surveyed the Western door and found he could do nothing to change it's frozen status moved once more back to stand in the center of the room within the Control Temp shield. Having nothing much to say he remained quiet watching as Ulthok checked the pool to reveal it to be warm but not hot.

Sirene ever the wise Enchantress knew better then most that her role for the time being was one of support. However never one not to stock the deck in her favor, she quickly cast Stone Skin upon herself. The extra armor, though not more protection from the cold, was meant as more protection from forces other then the cold. For now she like Cor, Rayne, and Lothor would watch and wait.

One door almost clear, a pool warm, yet not hot. The room empty its features and furniture frozen yet no signs of any life, the next move was yet to be decided.

(DM OOC: Ok as stated above one door almost clear enough to check for traps and if locked. The pool is filled with clearly warm water but not ‘scalding'. Ok next post, next Sunday unless real life intervenes.)

Aliya mentally curses herself for not remembering she wouldn't get the giant's cold resistance, but glad at the same time she didn't just walk away from the protection the warming spell provided. She continued to stay within the spell's reach, seeing if she can discern anything different about the room from her new height and perspective.

Ulthok's spell rang true, sundering the thick ice into crystalline dust. It was like snow, a moment of beauty in a dark dark place. Siréne was grateful for that.

With the doorway cleared she might be able to learn more of that magic that lay beyond. While her role her was to protect the others from the cold, she could still seek out magic.

Cautioning the others to keep near, Siréne began her spell. It was a simple thing, a wordless tone of power help attune her waking mind to the flows of magic beyond her. Once again she sought the magic that lay beyond the great door.

((OOC: Detect Magic))

Although the spell had removed most of the ice Ulthok was still disappointed. He'd read in this spell it could cut through ten feet of stone to open a passage ten foot by foot by ten foot. He'd used it to destroy the catapult that was used against Castle before they had left on this mission. But there stood the doors with still a few inches of ice on them.

But be that as it may things were as they were and they needed to to continue to gain information and move on quickly. Ulthok took the time to search the door threshold, pillars and space for tricks and traps. The tall female statues reminded him of Valkyries that had aided them and he hoped this was more a reference to them and not other Amazon warriors. The thief in him knew to check to see which way the doors were hinged and would move. This would help to figure how best to try to open them.

The clues they had discovered so far had not pointed them in sure direction. This way was as good ...or bad as any.

In one last test the mage pounded on the ice where to two great doors met to see if his strength was enough to flex and crack the remaining layer of ice, this should be its weakest spot. If he felt movement or saw cracking then perhaps Cor's mighty hammers would work to clear the last ice quickly.

Lothor stood with his coin in one hand as the ice by the door disintegrated it. Interesting. It had sort of worked. he slipped the coin back into a pouch at his waist. There really was nothing he could do at the moment - the giant would look around, the thief would look for traps, the mage would do her magic thing. And the warrior would stick close to Sirene for warmth and do what warriors did - he would watch and stand guard.

Others seemed to watching the statues carefully, so Lothor decided to keep his eye on the other side of the room - looking towards the pool and the entrance they had come down.

The disintegrate spell worked fairly well, removing most of the ice. In theory, it would be easy to open now, especially for the stronger of the party. Rayne found herself not overly useful here, standing with Lothor focusing on keeping watch. Neither of them were mages, though Rayne had some magical capacity, or had equipment that particularly helped them in this situation. Rayne, also like Lothor, was thinking back to the pool, specifically for a safe way to test the water. Perhaps dipping a hempen rope in would allow them to get a bit more of an idea? Despite these musings, they weren't currently standing near the pool (at least that is how I read it) so they would have to wait.

Aliya used her powers to give herself the form of a frost giant. She tested it out, carefully exposing a small portion of her arm, then withdrawing it quickly. Despite having the form of the frost giant, the spell did not allow her to resist cold well at all. It was a good thing she had been cautious and experienced enough to know not to run out into the cold without checking.

Rayne said, "Aliya, I have several uses of Endure Elements. If you want one, just let me know."

Rayne was confident in Lothor's abilities to watch the pool, so she kept her eyes on the doors. Even if they obviously hadn't been opened in a while, something big could come storming in. Maybe, this was the Cyclop's tomb instead of its keep. She smirked at herself, for being so wishful.

In one last test the mage pounded on the ice where the two great doors met to see if his strength was enough to flex and crack the remaining layer of ice, this should be its weakest spot. If he felt movement or saw cracking then perhaps Cor's mighty hammers would work to clear the last ice quickly

However Cor's hammers were unneeded as the remaining ice easily crumbled from both door and the female shaped stone columns under the strength of the Halflings gauntlets. As the rain of ice settled Ulthok could see for the first time writing engraved on the door.

Something tapped me on the shoulder
Something whispered "come with me
Leave the world of men behind you
Come where care will never find you"

"Come and follow, let me bind you
Where, in that dark, silent sea
Tempest of the world n'er rages
There to dream away the ages"

Heedless of time's turning pages
Leave the world of man behind you
Come where care will never find you
There to dream away the ages"

Something tapped me on the shoulder

Though Aliya now stood as tall as a giant of frost her perception of the room at first remained the same. However looking closer she did see a small, maybe the size of a human head, shaped hole above West door. As with the rest of the features in the room it too was covered in ice. Looking to the now cleared North door she saw no matching hole, strange.

Sirene being not one to leave anything to chance quickly cast a detection spell and was at once rewarded by a strong surge of magic coming from the cleared Northern door and the 2 stone pillars. However to the West the magic revealed on door and pillars was very weak, clearly due to the heavy ice surrounding. The pool however again showed magic, but of a different sort then that of the doors, a magic somehow familiar, yet never before known or used by the Elvin Enchantress.

With the rest of the party huddled within the safety of Sirene's spell they awaited Ulthok's findings.

(DM OOC: Again my apologies for the delayed post I hope you find it interesting. OK next post Fingers crossed will be in 2 weeks on Sunday the 12th as this next Sunday, the 5th, is my birthday and I will be out celebrating with a date and friends. And before anyone asks (Nomad, Odyson) Yes the date is female. Have a good 2 weeks enjoy the mystery of the writings on the door)

As the ice tumbled away Ulthok saw words appear written on the door.

Something tapped me on the shoulder
Something whispered "come with me
Leave the world of men behind you
Come where care will never find you"

"Come and follow, let me bind you
Where, in that dark, silent sea
Tempest of the world n'er rages
There to dream away the ages"

Heedless of time's turning pages
Leave the world of man behind you
Come where care will never find you
There to dream away the ages"

Something tapped me on the shoulder
"Oh my, that sounds a bit nasty."

Ulthok turned back to went back to the party and told them what he had read. As the warmth around Sirene started to soak into him he suggested they find out if there might be words on the other door.

Looking up at Sirene he saw the concentration on her face and guessed she was about to try something.

"Everyone backup behind Sirene, use the stairs to clear the room but stay in the warmth. Ulthok moved to the Enchantress's side and prepared to help or protect her.

(If anything should happen to Sirene to break her control Temp spell Ulthok will cast Leomund's Tiny Hut to provide a safe location from the cold for the party. It will cover the group.)