The Hidden Shrine of Tamoachan, Part 5
24 Marpenoth, The Year of Twelve Warnings (1494 DR)
Day 12 of 79
Hidden Shrine of Tamoachan, Jungles of Chult
The game of Pelota didn't prove to be as difficult for the adventurers as they thought it would be after Dr. Bones explained the rules of the game, a game played by Mazticans with the losers being ceremoniously sacrificed after.
After winning the game with the enchanted leather ball they played against not scoring one goal in the game, the group continued on their way hoping to find a way out of the shrine soon.
**
The next room they found was an oddly shaped room decorated in a cat motif. Three other stone doors led further into the shrine beyond the room.
The center of the southeastern wall was carved to resemble the face of a snarling tiger with hollow eyes. Near the center of the room was a stuffed tiger, posed as if on the prowl. The tiger's left ear had been torn off, leaving a jagged scar on the head. Near the middle of the room stood a stone statue of a tiger-headed man holding a spear.
In several other spots on the floor were stuffed domestic cats in various poses: sitting, stalking, pouncing, and one was begging, pawing the air. One of these cats in the center of the room had been knocked over and chewed on; its stuffing was falling out.
Hung on the walls were several skins of lions and leopards, tiger heads, and a cat-o-nine- tails.
Along the northwest edge of the chamber was a large calendar stone mounted on the wall above a stone table or altar.
The group examined the stone statue.
The statue of the cat-man depicted a tall human male with two extra sets of nipples. He seems to be wearing a tiger-faced mask and was clad only in a loincloth. A jagged scar ran across the left side of his chest, above the heart, and his chest was sunken and bony. The spear was stone-hafted but bore a silvery head.
When Tanjarra went to examine the spear, the statue suddenly came to life, its stone skin transforming into fur and muscled flesh.
It attacked the monk with animal ferocity and nearly killed him. Fortunately, the group was able to slay the cat-man. In death, the catman's form shifted into that of a young human male. Dr. Bones said he was clearly a Maztican man, perhaps in his early 20s. Why he became some kind of catman or why he was turned into a statue was a mystery. Perhaps he served as a guardian in the room?
After a potion was given to Tanjarra since Alice, the cleric of Tempus, had depleted her healing spells the group searched the room.
They then examined the stone calendar.
The calendar, a great wheel of stone, was carved from limestone. In the center of the calendar was a symbol of the sun surrounded by various sigils depicting seasons of the year. The stone was ten feet across and was mounted five feet above the floor over the stone altar. On the altar rested a ceremonial dagger of flint and a jade statue of a cat. At the foot of the altar is a stuffed cat, posed as if begging or attempting to catch something in the air.
Bolte took the dagger and jade statue.
When the large stuffed tiger was examined, a badly stitched up tear was discovered in the cavity of its chest. Inside, they found a mummified heart of a human.
The group deduced it may be the heart of the cat-man they fought.
When they opened the chest of the dead Maztican, they found that its heart was missing. In hopes of putting the man to rest, they placed the mummified heart inside the dead man's chest.
The group decided to continue searching the room before leaving the room through one of the other three stone doors.
Session played on August 6, 2020 (MILESTONE)
Plot type
Chapter
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