The Fallen and the Redeemed: Chapter 1

[THEChanger]

The Celestial sitting at the desk in front of you takes back the form, and looks it over. The form is then fed into a glowing machine, which spits back out a single sheet of parchment. "The System has calibrated what team you best belong to. Please enter the door behind me. And...good luck." Behind the desk is a shimmering door made of clouds, with two crossed lightning bolts gracing the mantle. As you pass through the doorway, you feel a small electrical charge pass through your body, and find yourself in a long, dark hallway, opening up into a great throne room. And there, sitting on a throne made of booming thunder, lit by the brightest lightning, is a man who could only be Heironeous the Lightning Blade. Simply looking at him, you know, this was Justice, the bearer of Hamarabi, a sword forged by Mirodin from the first storm. In his face you can see both fury and forgiveness, wrath and welcome, the urge to both save and smite. It was Heironeous' nature to want to create craters where you stood, but here he was, giving you a second chance.

"Welcome. You six are among the first to heed my call. You have shown to my servants that you are truly repentant, and for that, you have my blessing. But, sadly, your crimes are such that the forces which bind the universe will not let you into the hallowed halls of the Bright Lands beyond. Yet. So I now ask each of you. Are you willing to make the sacrifices that will be required to purify your souls? Will you undertake the tasks I set before you? Are you willing to learn what it means to truly be good?"

[Morcleon]

A white haired boy in a dark jacket strode forward into the room, glancing around in interest at the large chamber and its decorations. Underneath his jacket was a shirt, of the same pristine hue as his hair. Carrying naught but a matte black shield on his back and a several small belt pouches, he seemed woefully under-equipped for the challenges ahead. His bright azure eyes, lifeless, yet somehow full of life, slowly scanned his surroundings.

He listened to the deity's voice and offer, a slight grin showing on his pale face. As Telarys spoke, his voice was soft and cold, like the drifting snow. "Good, hmm? It certainly seems like a worthwhile goal... I accept this gracious offer. It is time for all of us gathered here to start anew, away from the war and strife that was our past."

[Aneurin]

Jessie

The figure ho walks in to the room is a slight, human woman with long brown hair with a blond streak down the front. She's dressed in a loos, low-cut green shirt and black trousers. Her eyes, however, are a little puffy and bloodshot and in one hand she clutches an empty bottle like a life preserver. Something about her stance says she really, really, really does not want to be here right now.

"I... I don't want to hurt anyone else. I saw what happens to them," Jessie shudders slightly. "If I can help them, I guess I'd like to. I don't know about the rest, though, but I'll try," she says in a very small voice.

[Dire Reverend]

Celeste approaches the being and curtsies to him.

"I am in your service, sir. I can only hope my actions from this day forward will be enough to forgive me for what I have done to all those people."

[Zaydos]

Morkali lowers her head, holding back any thoughts asking what took them so long.

"As you command," she says in a deep whisper.

[Wyntonian]

Torin Fenris paces into the room with his head held high, his armor covered in furs, with a remarkably small rune-engraved handaxe thrust through his belt. A necklace of fangs hangs around his neck, with more adorning his boots and leather bracers, some of which are suspiciously humanoid.

He walks like a great hunting beast, seemingly ignoring those around him, until he bares his neck to the great seated deity. "My respects, Great Father. I come as one who has lost his honor, and I offer you my allegiance and the strength of my arms. With you as my chief, I trust I will have many a chance to redeem myself in the eyes of my ancestors and the Clan of the Wolf."

[Jangoose]

The figure who slinks in last goes barely noticed, a savage wolf-like beast with shaggy fur as black as night. Though larger than any mastiff, his massive claws make not a sound as he pads to join the others. All the while, his body shifts and contorts, until finally, an altogether different beast meets the unlikely assembly.

Rhask steps out next to his companions, his lean goblinoid body tall and slender, beneath mottled gray skin and dark clothing. Though the light of their deific host fills the room, somehow his eyes remain in shadow, the deep lines around them the signs of a much older barghest than his meager 200 years.

The silence between words builds uncomfortably, as the last in line hesitates in his thoughts...

I - I have read of heroes - And of villains too. I bear no denial of the wrongs I have done, nor those I am still capable of. Yet I am not that same person I once was. I do not presume to have any honor worth saving, nor any name to write down in the history books... but perhaps it is not too late to save some meager part of my soul... "I walk with you."

Though his raspy voice hardly rises above a whisper, his words echo in the minds of the gathered.

On the final words, spoken in the celestial tongue, all too rough from his goblin mouth, he nods and bows. A new determination in his sunken, shaded eyes

[THEChanger]

The great god before you nods once before extenting his hand. Bolts of lightning fly forward, and once more you feel that electrical tingling, this time centered on your left hand, or claw as the case may be. Looking down, you can see two crossed lighting bolts, glowing a bright blue, have appeared. "You each have been blessed with my mark. In this manner, whilst working on the Material World below, my servants shall know that you are not to be touched." The deity snaps his fingers, and two glowing images form in front of you. One is of a beautiful human woman, clearly of noble birth, dressed in finery. The other is a man, perhaps once handsome, but now scarred by countless battles, and wearing armor of the deepest black. "This is the Princess Ascendant of the human kingdom of Thadderus. Her name is Elana. Her father has just passed away, apparently in his sleep, and so she is to be crowned queen. The man is her younger brother, Prince Rodderick. Our agents in Thadderus have noted an increased infernal prescence in the kingdom over the past few months. Rodderick was once a paladin of the church of Pelor, but some disagreement caused him to be released from the order. We believe Rodderick may be planning to overthrow his sister, with aid from infernal forces. Your mission is to find where the devils are entering Thadderus, and eliminate them. If Rodderick should make a move for the throne, you must stop him. Thadderus is one of the few kingdoms which have consistently shown a commitment to the side of Good. Losing it would be a huge blow to our operations on the ground. I wish you all the best of luck."

[Aneurin]

Jessie

As she listens to the god, she nods carefully, and occasionally flinches at points of emphasis. She also very, very carefully stays away from the Malebranche in the room. After a brief period of silence, she licks her lips and says quietly;

"So, ah, how do we get to this place?"

[Zaydos]

Morkali

Morkali cracks her knuckles, and grins at the chance to smash some baatezu.

"Yes, how do we get there?"

[THEChanger]

"You will be teleported just outside the borders of Thadderus. From there, you must find the source of the infernal prescence. We have been unable to locate either the entry point or Rodderick; we believe some Evil magic is clouding our divinations. This is why you have been chosen for this task. If there are no other questions, we will send you down."

[Wyntonian]

Torin pulls the little handaxe from his belt, and with a shake, it grows into a full-sized two-handed bearded battleaxe. He growls assent. "I'm ready."

[Dire Reverend]

Celeste's claws, which appeared to be normal human fingers before, changed to their original form, then her claws extend from their sheathes to about five feet.

She smiles. "I'm ready too."

Her fingers look like this now, except sized for a child, and there are five fingers instead of three:

http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/ex_boneclaw.jpg

[Aneurin]

Jessie

With a covert glance at the others, Jessie nods. She doesn't make any kind of effort to get ready for the mission, though. Instead she just gives the empty bottle a shake as if hoping there might be something in it still.

"I'm ready, too,"

[Jangoose]

Rhask looks up, goblinoid face set determinedly.

Though he does not open his mouth to say it, his message rings clear in the minds of the assembled.

Ready

[Zaydos]

Morkali

"Let's go."

[THEChanger]

The God of Justice says nothing, merely lifts one mighty hand, and a spark flies forward. Each of you feels yourself energized, filled with motion, and you are literally torn from where you stand. An instant later, you find yourselves in a forest. Trees grow taller than the mightiest giant here, and extend in all directions. However, a short distance from you is a dirt path, with a sign post upon it. This must be the Material Plane, with Thadderus a short distance away.

Torin
The haft of your greataxe appears to have picked up a hitchiker in transit. Attatched to the bottom is a small piece of obsidian, which pulses with holy power. Indeed, holding the axe is mildly uncomfortable for you, but you know that it will be able to do more damage against enemies of Good.

[Morcleon]

Blinking, Telarys glanced around, taking in the forest and the trees. He stared at the dirt road, and then turned to his companions, speaking again in his soft monotone. "Well then. Welcome to the Material Plane."

"Before we enter the kingdom of Thadderus, we will need a plan of entry and a plan to gather information. It is highly likely we will need to sneak in, as a number of our group would be somewhat... conspicuous in this primarily human city."

He raises an eyebrow, sweeping a hand toward the group. As he does so, a hint of a glint of metal can be seen in his sleeve. "Ideas, anyone? An ability to cloak themselves, or such? I can handle my own entry, if need be."

Knowledge (local) check on Thadderus: [roll0]

[Dire Reverend]

"Does this work?"

Celeste turns into a regular, though thin human girl.
http://bleachd20.com/roleplay/CelesteHuman400.png
Using the Hat of Disguise/Anonymity to give Celeste the appearance of a mundane human child."I don't know where mommy went, can you help me?"

[Wyntonian]

Torin whirls the axe again, grimacing slightly at the new sensation, and slides the now-shortened haft through his belt. "I don't think I'd look too out of place. A little wild, perhaps...but then, I am rather wild."

[Zaydos]

Morkali

The malebranche looks down on the others. "I can shrink, but I don't exactly have a way to look less, like myself."

[Jangoose]

Rhask

<I can accompany you as well, this form is humanoid enough though perhaps not quite so innocent looking. That said I'd just as soon go unseen altogether.>

As he speaks, he fades to invisibility and back...

<Though If need be, I can warp Morkali into the city as well... Once we scout ahead our destination->

As he fades out again, the sound changes direction, now coming from the other side of the group, where a new Rhask has bloomed into existence

<the intervening walls should be no trouble.>

The hint of a smile plays at his altogether too wolf-like jaw

edits:
DM
Mindsight is continuously active. I know the locations, types, and intelligence score of any intelligent (int > 0) creatures within my telepathy range (100 ft.)

OOC
for future reference,
<Spoken>
Telepathic and Spoken
[Telepathic]

[Aneurin]

Jessie

The seemingly-human girl takes a slow stroll around Morkali - despite staying out of easy reach at all times - eying her up critically.

"...how do you feel about being a giant? Or... Hrmph. A treant? Could that work?" Jessie trails off staring thoughtfully at Morkali. "The wings are a difficulty. Maybe if we stuck enough white feathers to them, we could pass you of as half-celestial or something," she adds, looking doubtful.

A thought suddenly seems to strike her;
"So, who are you all, anyway?"

Bardic Knowledge for Thadderus
[roll0]

Particularly would like to know how uncommon it is for giants and the like to turn up in town.

[Dire Reverend]

"So, who are you all, anyway?"Celeste frowns. "It's not very polite to ask who we are without introducing yourself first!" Her frown almost instantly shifts into a smile. "I'm Celeste, pleased to meet you!"

[Aneurin]

Jessie

She glances around the others with a tremor of unease. If any of them were working for the Radiant Sisters, she'd soon know and soon be in a very great deal of trouble.

"Your resident make-up artist and drama coach," despite her doubts, she's perfectly flippant and seems totally unphased. "Call me Jessie. I've got a few thoughts about how we disguise some of our... differently normal members. Say whatshername, here," she says, gesturing to Morkali. "We've a couple of options. First of all, we dress her up as a giant and walk her in to town; there are a few indentured giants down there, so she shouldn't be out of place if we get her looking right. Our other option is to chop her in to little pieces, shove them in a bag of holding and then stick her back together when we're somewhere we can - although that plan will only work if she doesn't need to breathe, and can survive something like that like some devils can.

Our third option is to shrink her down to human size, bundle her up in as many cloaks and robes as we can find and hope no-one takes a good look and she keeps her wings and tail tucked in. Option four, I suppose, is to just avoid the roads and leave her outside whenever we have to go see people. Or maybe..." she pauses again to look thoughtfully at Morkali. "How small can you shrink down to? Pocket-size?"

[Zaydos]

Morkali

Morkali shakes her head, "Only human size, and even then only for a few minutes."

[Morcleon]

Telarys

Nodding toward the green-clad girl, Telarys speaks. "You may call me Telarys. I am warrior and strategist." A dark aura surrounds his next words as they echo in the air. "I have command vast armies of undeath and conquered empires, I have slaughtered and raised countless people to turn against their friends and family, and a crimson tide of blood followed the footsteps of my troops. The aura dissipates as if it had never existed, and he gives a small smile, the first true emotion you've seen with him. "I also had a kitten. Her name was Cloud."

Ignoring any looks of confusion and/or terror, he focuses his gaze on Morkali, walking around her with a thoughtful expression. "A disguise carries a risk of failure. I do have a fifth option. I have a rare object known as an enveloping pit. It has a 10 ft diameter, and 50 ft depth, and has been outfitted with a basic scaffolding. Morkali, Rhask and Torin could simply sit in the extradimensional space until after our entry into the kingdom. Jessie, Celeste and I can simply pass as cousins or relatives of some sort. What say you people to this idea?", he asks with a raised eyebrow.

[Jangoose]

<It seems a good option, Telarys, though perhaps unnecessary still. Most large cities will have some form of underground, whether it be sewers or catacombs or dungeons. If we can find a runoff gate or such, we can likely walk right in with or without disguises.>

<In any event, we ought discuss the matter of our approach. Where do we plan to go once we have made it in? For my part, and as dangerous as it may seem, I believe our best option lies with the church of Heironeous in the city. They may be the only ones with the knowledge to understand and believe the marks we carry->

He raises his hand, the crossed bolts still glowing in his palm

<Their trust may mean the difference between being aided on our quest, and cast from the walls as the monsters and fiends we ar-- were.>

He grits his teeth a bit at that. casting his eyes downward, his goblinoid ears flicking back and downwards.

<And Rhask, my name is Rhask>

[Aneurin]

Jessie

"But how do we get close to the city without trouble? Little Miss Gigantic here rather sticks out, don't you think?," Jessie says, pointing at Morkali. "And if we all just teleport in, surely they'll just kill us on sight without bothering to check for any markings 'til afterwards. Speaking for myself, here, I would rather not have this body destroyed. A trip back to the Abyss is absolutely not on my to do list today," she says feverently.

"We'll have to go there by foot, because I can't just appear in a place I've never been, or even heard about, before - and even if I could, you're all too heavy to take with me. And to get there by foot, we need to either stay away from civilisation which will be horrible, pointless and full of needless sobriety, or we have to deal with people trying to kill us, which is hardly a selling point for this little trip," she breaks off for a moment to think. "So I'm going with Telarys on this one. Although if he can stop with the creepy, bad-guy vibe while we're around the mortals, it would be appreciated,"

[Morcleon]

Telarys

Coughing slightly, Telarys nods to Jessie. "My apologies, miss. Several centuries of habit is not easy to break out of."

"Although, I agree with Mr. Rhask that the church of Heironeus should be our first waypoint. With the stereotypes we exude, their help would be very useful indeed." He glances down at the two crossed bolts on his hand, his mouth curling up at one edge. "Besides, if we do need to take down the fiends and/or Rodderick by force, we shall need all the legitimate help we can get."

Reaching behind his back to pull out a small square of cloth, Telarys places it on the ground. He closes his eyes and mutters a swift phrase under his breath. The fabric ripples, and expands into a large hole with a simple but effective scaffold built in to allow temporary habitation. "If no one has any objections, I would prefer to get this plan, on the road, as it were."

[Zaydos]

Morkali

Morkali looks at Morcleon and then says, "One question, is there air in your pit?"

[Morcleon]

Telarys

Carefully ignoring the strange name that Morkali had referred to him as, Telarys nods. "The air supply in the pit should last you three approximately 12.5 minutes. However, I can simply leave the pit with a slight opening, place it in my pack, and leave that open as well, ensuring a steady stream of air."

[Jangoose]

<I'll stay outside if that's ok. I can remain invisible while we are in the city, and my senses may prove invaluable for rooting out an extraplanar presence. I can sense the minds of others from quite a ways off.>

<There is a sort of ring to a mind, those of us from beyond the material plane ring differently from humanoids, as do the undead, abberations, even animals. If there are Outsiders within a hundred paces, even ones possessing other creatures, or disguised in different forms... I'll know.>

[Morcleon]

Telarys

"Interesting proposal," Telarys remarks, raising an eyebrow. After a short pause, he nods and concludes. "It's a good idea. Stay out of crowds and you'll be fine. If you detect anything out of the ordinary, tell us immediately. Once we arrive at the church of Heironeous, you can drop the invisibility."

He points to the green-clad succubus and the magically disguised deathless. "Jessie, Celeste. Make sure your disguises are up, and keep them up all the way." Nodding to the malebranche and werewolf, he gestures to the extradimensional tower. "Morkali, Torin. When you are ready, please enter the tower. I'll call you out when we get to the church, or if we get attacked." He then turns to Rhask. "As I said before, stay out of crowds, and keep us informed. Put up the invisibility when we move out."

Telarys stretches his arms out and takes a deep breath, addressing the group. "If any one has questions or comments, speak now. Otherwise, we'll head off when everyone is set."

[Zaydos]

Morkali

Morkali eyes the tower for less than a second before striding in, squeezing through the entrance if necessary. She had to take these other beings on faith, not an easy thing to do after untold time in Baator, but she'd do it if she had to.

[Aneurin]

Jessie

She folds her arms and gives Telarys a look that might, by a very generous person, be called patient.

"I'm so grateful to you for reminding me about using a disguise. After living hidden among the mortals for fifty years I had quite forgotten about them." She lets out a long-suffering sigh. "Don't mind me, I'm just getting twitchy about the fact that we're really, really noticable right here and almost everything in existence would want to kill me if it found out what I am,"

[Wyntonian]

Torin glares at the little extradimensional opening for a moment. "I won't hide like a mouse in a bag. If these people don't like the look of me, they need not watch."


You're aware I look like a particularly masculine person, right? I'm not in hybrid form or anything. Just human.

[Morcleon]

Telarys

A flicker of annoyance crosses his face and he looks at Torin. "It's simply that most human-dominant cultures don't take well to werewo-" He stops and a confused look appears on his face. This quickly turns to realization and slight embarrassment. "...oh. Oh! I'm sorry. I thought you were in your hybrid form for some reason..." Telarys smiles apologetically. "You may stay in sight, then, if you wish."

Turning to Jessie, he gives a slight bow. "My apologies. I was unaware of your feelings on this subject. You see, my experience with leadership has been solely been with undead that have either been magically bound to me, or had no mind. This is the first time I've had to worry about the emotions and preferences of others."

He closes the enveloping pit with another muttered phrase, leaving only a slight crack. Placing it in his open pack, he strides toward the dirt road. Turning his head back, he gives you a slight grin, before silently turning back to the path.

@Wyntonian: ...no, I was not aware of that. You may stay out of the tower. Although, in my defense, your opening description was a touch ambiguous. :smalltongue:

[Aneurin]

Jessie

She shrugs slightly.

"Whatever. I just hope this place as a decent pub. It's this way, right?" Jessie adds, with a glance at the sign.

[THEChanger]

With Morkali safely esconced in the enveloping pit, and Rhask protected by his glammering magic, the group made their way down the road towards Thadderus. The time past slowly, but just as the sun was rising over the horizon, the walls of a city could be seen.

Mekalopolis, the largest border city in Thadderus. Built by the dwarves a long time ago, Mekalopolis is more fortress than city, with walls that extend high into the sky. It was originally built to be a place of refuge from giant attacks, and so the walls of Mekalopolis were strong enough and tall enough to resist any who might try to breach them.

That was long ago. Now Mekalopolis serves as a mighty trade city. If you're sending goods into or out of Thadderus, Mekalopolis is most likely on your schedule. Two gates allow entrance: one on the southern side, which leads onto the road to the city of New Ombra, the current capital of Thadderus, and the one which you now approach, which leads into the wilderness that is maintained between Mekalopolis and Giant's Pass.

The gate is just now opening, and the first shift of guards has begun allowing various merchants within. How do you proceed?

[Jangoose]

Rhask:

Wary of the crowds milling through the now open gate, Rhask concentrates a moment, unbinding for a time, some small part of the deep magic. Mass, substance, attraction, that which holds us to the ground. Gravity, the sages call it.

[I will scout the wall ahead. It would not serve to be unmasked so early in our quest...]

Still unseen, he takes to the air, quickly approaching the wall to the right of the gate, about 15 ft. up, his inner eye wide open to his surroundings, scanning for traps or defenses.

OOC:

Current Form: Medium Goblinoid

Actions:
Overland Flight: SLA (Fly:40'[Average]) for 12 hours. (before reaching the wall) (Spend 3 uses of levitate)
Search for anything unusual, as well as magical defenses, particularly divination or abjuration effects
Pick out any non-humanoid minds from the crowd and attempt to spot them physically

Rolls:
Spot Check: [roll0]
Spellcraft Check on the third round of examination: [roll1]

Notes: Mindsight and Detect Magic Always on.

[Aneurin]

Jessie

With a sunny smile, Jessie strolls towards the city gate looking around with every indication of acute interest. As she joins the line of merchants, she leans forwards and politely taps one on the shoulder. As he turns to look at her, she fixes him with an even more dazzling smile.

"Excuse me, but I'm new here. Do you know the way to the temple of Heironeous? I'd be ever so grateful if you could tell me,"