[Nexus] The Road Goes Ever On and On

[Rebonack]

Adventures, some say, are terrible things. They make one late for supper and ruin fine clothing. There's also the ever looming threat of being eaten by some unpleasant creature that really has no business existing anywhere. Or being robbed. Or tripping into a creek. Or being accosted by a roving band of orcs. There are just so many thoroughly dreadful things that might happen to someone on an adventure.

It's no small wonder that most sane people avoid them.

Thankfully our story isn't about most sane people; it wouldn't be very interesting, otherwise.

The story begins with letters. Some delivered in the more traditional sense. Some delivered electronically. And some where even delivered via magical owl. Which seems like a rather silly way to deliver a letter, all things considered. But magic is as magic does and if there's anything magic values it's tradition.

These letters speak of a fine opportunity for adventure, though it is rather sparse on precise details. Any sane person would dismiss it as a trick, a joke, or a trap.

Again, our story isn't about any sane person; it wouldn't be very interesting, otherwise.

A meeting place is mentioned in the letter, an old well a short walking distance from the north gate of Inside. Near the old well are a few picnic tables faded with time, incrusted with lichen, and speckled with the occasional bird dropping. A stone's throw from the tables stand rusted free standing barbeques as a corroded reminder that sane people come here every now and again to do normal, sane person things.

The well itself is a curiously old raised circle of stones with an iron grate welded over its mouth. Climbing in is quite impossible, as is drawing water from it. But it's just the right size to toss a coin in on the off chance that one feels compelled to make a wish.

Above this picturesque little scene is an ancient oak tree with sprawling limbs and sprawling roots all twisted and gnarled as though someone thought it wise to stick tentacles at both ends of an octopus. It's the sort of tree which is invitingly easy to climb and a large hole in the trunk has no doubt served as a hiding place for more than a few children.

In all a pleasant place to meet and set off on an adventure. And to that end? Our first victim adventurer arrives.

He's a fairly young fellow, truth be told. Looks to be about seventeen years of age if one were to use human reckoning. A half drow wearing fairly modern attire. Denim jeans, sturdy boots, a loose under shirt and a denim jacket lines with a pleasant wooly interior. His skin tone is a very dark brown, though with an odd hint of blue to it, his straight hair stark white, and his eyes a very human blue. A fedora is perched atop his head, though not the dressy sort but rather a rugged brown, beaten hat to keep of sun and rain. And old backpack is slung across his shoulders with a patch of an Egyptian pyramid sown onto it. Perched on his nose is an odd looking pair of glasses with only one lens that seems altogether too small.

"NexSpecs, display the adventure invitation again," the young man speaks aloud firmly to apparently no one. He makes a sucking sound with his teeth and glances about. "Well... I guess I'm just the first one here then?"

With a shrug he begins collecting a few acorns off the ground.

Divaonar, son of Raril and Zee, has joined the party.

[Deathkeeper]

Number two to arrive is Jim, currently in the shape of a Faun, his human self seeming about the same age as Divaonar, maybe a bit older. He's a stocky boy with brown hair and green eyes. He's wearing a simple T-shirt suitable for a hike and a sort of kilt-loincloth sort of thing with a belt, which has pockets and covers his unmentionables but not too much. Goat legs aren't too comfortable with clothing. He has a sturdy backpack with him, although judging from the lack of sound from it it's either padded, empty, or not full of many tools.
"You here for the invitation thing?" he asks the other boy.

[Rebonack]

"Hmm?" Divaonar grunts in reply, glancing up from his acorn collecting. "Oh! Yes. I am. I was a bit surprised by it, kind of out of the blue. But it's the sort of thing my parents always used to do so I thought it might be fun to give it a try."

The half drow picks up another acorn and scrutinizes it between his fingers. Apparently it isn't up to his standards and he discards it. Soon there after he remembers his manners and stands up, brushes his hands off on his pants, and offers one hand to shake.

"Xar'cha, Divaonar. That's family name first, personal name second. So that would make me Divaonar in casual conversation."

A beat.

"You know, like right now. Ah, and who are you?"

Jim the shape shifter has joined the party.

However, Divaonar can't read the narration and has to ask.

[Beans]

Along comes another one, a strange lady with a strange butt.
Where your average humanoid has hips and those gluteus things and two legs with feet on 'em, she has a sort of vaguely rectangular hub from which four arthropod legs extend; the rear pair is a bit longer than the forelegs, and at the very back are a pair of spinneret-pedipalp things.
Up top, she looks a lot less weird by human standards. Her upper body is humanoid, with a nice conventional scrawny torso and a nice conventional pair of arms and a nice conventional head with conventional features. Now, her hands have six digits each, and her eyes are rather large and entirely glossy glowing highlighter yellow... but it's really nothing out of the human ordinary in shape.
Her skin is a dark grey, and the chitinous armor of her lower half is black. Striking yellow bands are tattooed between the joints of her legs and on her lower hub. Her high-collared, long-sleeved ocher jacket hides so much of her upper half, but her fingers' yellow banding can be seen despite the overlong jacket sleeves and there are a few yellow marks on her calm face, framed by her black hair.
She smiles behind her jacket's high collar, but says nothing.
Enter Nefila (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=15992747&postcount=876).

[The Bushranger]

Meanwhile, on the other side of the well, there's suddenly a sudden, strange noise, like the sound of the universe's cloth ripping asunder as Something That Should Not Be Done, is in fact done. Anyone looking fast enough would see what seemed like torn shadows swirling and resolving into the form of a cloaked, brown-haired, rather plain woman, who flips her hood back to reveal said brown hair and piercing blue eyes.

"So, it seems others have been invited here as well," says Lydia, for that is who it is!

[Deathkeeper]

The stocky faun shakes Divaonar's hand.
"James Grant. Everyone calls me Jim, though."
His friendly smile seems to be ignoring the half-drow's awkwardness.

[BladeofObliviom]

[Prologue]

One quaint day, a spontaneous Owl swooped by, dropping off a letter directly onto the shoulder of an undead monstrosity.

Said monstrosity merely looked at the letter, and then looked up, blinking twice in sheer confusion before finally resolving to open and read the aforementioned letter.

He set off the next day.


[Mysterious PicnicWellOaktopus Place]

A new challenger arrives!

Well, no. Not really. At least in the sense of a challenger (he's definitely arriving, after all).

Despair could perhaps be best described with the word "Terrifying." He's got two glowing yellow orbs in place of real eyes, stands at almost eight feet in height (or about two-and-one-third meters for the more metrically inclined), and has a skeletal frame. And by that I mean he's literally just a skeleton. Okay, he's still got some tendons and ligaments attached, but the point is that there doesn't seem to be much flesh or muscle to speak of.

In spite of that detail, there's something about him that just looks amazingly strong. This impression is probably helped by the ornate suit of full platemail encasing his body, though it seems to have seen its fair share of wear and tear over countless years. The armor's definitely still usable, but covered in dents, scratches, and even a few actual breaches where something sharp broke through.

Plus, he's hefting some really heavy-looking items around. First is an enormous two-handed sword, somewhere between a historical longsword and a Zweihander. It's just as ornate as the armor, and shares some of the patterns, suggesting that they might once have been part of a set. The sword is in much better condition than the armor, though that's not saying much. The second item is a heavy round shield, nearly the size of the Knight's entire torso, unornamented but exactly as beaten as the other two pieces of equipment. The final item is a flail, blunt but still deadly-looking. This one is much shinier than the other stuff, but not ornamented. The weapon pings as somehow magical, which might help to explain why it's still in one piece instead of having had its chain fall apart.

At any rate, as the Revenant marches into the scene, he simply looks around quietly, merely observing his surroundings and the individuals already present with a passive gaze.

[Arkhosia]

A young drow with bright orange hair appears, riding her Friend Demon Piggy-back style. She wears black armor, with a katana on her back.

Woo! Invidia Val'Sarghess reporting for adventure!

[Rebonack]

"A pleasure to meet you, mister Grant. Or Jim, I suppose?" Divaonar replies. Since everyone calls the faun Jim it makes a degree of sense to call him Jim as well. After all, Divaonar is included in 'everyone'.

It would be somewhat awkward if he weren't.

And then some sort of spider person walks up! And someone who may or may not be an assassin of some kind suddenly teleports in from nowhere. Or more likely somewhere. Teleporting in from Nowhere is notoriously difficult.

"Well, the letter did mention that there would be others. It was just somewhat dodgy about who those others would be," Divaonar muses. "Hrm. Introductions are going to be a bit tedious if everyone keeps popping in one at a time..."

Very true. Especially if people keep arriving without introducing themselves!

"Maybe we should get some name tags?"

The latest newcomers are watched somewhat warily if only because folks riding demons and giant undead are often a cause for concern. When Divaonar is sure that neither are planning on skinning him alive he offers a polite wave.

Lydia, the Disciple of the Other has joined the party.

Nefila, the spider lady person thing has joined the party.

Despair, the hulking revenent has joined the party.

Invidia, the friend demon summoner has joined the party.

[Arkhosia]

The drow dismounts her demon and walks to Divaonar
Glad to meet you as well! What's your name? Nice to see another Drow here.

[Deathkeeper]

"Jim is fine."
He shrinks back a bit. Lydia seems to be the only other human here. Or, only, sometimes Jim forgets what he is.
Jim smiles and pokes at his belt, and a tag of Hello, My Name is Jim abruptly appears on his shirt.

[Beans]

Nefila's mouth is hidden behind her collar, but the way the visible parts of her face move indicates a polite smile.
"My name is Nefila, though I do not know where we could acquire name tags... I could make lanyards for them if we get any, though." She reaches back, pulling a string of silk from her spinnerets.
She looks around at the group, somewhat keeping her distance from Big McDeathHuge.

[Artemis97]

An older drow was now approaching the group. Some would recognize Raril Xar'Cha, the owner of the Black Dragon's Den. He was dressed in what had become his standard for adventuring gear, grey clothes under leather and blackened chainmail. A black piwafwi cloak, delicately embroidered, covered it all. On his head he wore a wide-brimmed hat, festooned with a large blue feather. He was clearly armed, as well, a pair of ornate shortswords on his belt, alongside a filigree'd rapier with a large purple crystal set into its handle. A heavy crossbow was slung across his back.

As he got closer, it would be noted there was a strong resemblance between Raril and Divaonar, especially when the older drow came to stand just behind and to the side of the younger. Raril's skin was a dark, inky blue, and his eyes were a ruby red. He looks at the young drow girl with some suspicion. He still didn't trust females of his race, no matter how young. His scrutiny passes as he looks over the rest of the group. The drow was visibly disturbed when Nefila starts producing string.

"Uh... Hi kids." He mumbles, giving a little wave.

[Deathkeeper]

Jim nods hello to the new drow, noting the resemblance. There's an awful lot of these elves all of a sudden. He's chosen not to address the undead horror or the drow girl (isn't she busy being enslaved in Riverside right now? :smalltongue:).

[Arkhosia]

Invidia does the standard drow greeting of a closed fist over her heart.
Hello! I'm Invidia Val'Sarghess! Honor to meet you! What house do you hail from?
Invidia leans close to him.
Hmm... Not Vel'Vloz'ress, you don't look crazy, Not Val'Khorl, or you wouldn't have red eyes and would try to purge me, not Val'Illhardo or you would be buying and selling... Val'Sharen or Val'Sarghess, maybe?

[Rebonack]

"Uh, hold on a moment," Divaonar mutters as he pulls one of his collected acorns out of a pocket and focuses on it. An odd, almost organic looking turquoise energy begins seeping out of his hand and into the plant, causing it to grow and shift.

Into what, what you ask?

Why, into a name tag of varying colors of wood with a little vine loop to put over his head! "Ha! There. That should work. Now I can just make one of these for everyone-"

He pauses to glance at the hulking undead giant. "Eerr... assuming everyone needs one, of course. I wouldn't want to be presumptuous."

Being presumptuous at hulking undead giants can be hazardous to one's health and well-being.

Anywho! He doffs his hat and slips the name tag on. Now people wouldn't have to ask his name. "Half-drow, strictly speaking. I was born here in the Nexus, so I doubt we have all that much in common."

That is a tremendous understatement.

And then?

"Oh, father! You must have gotten an invitation as well?" that certainly answers that question. Aaaand then the female drow starts getting into Raril's person space. Divaonar raises a finger to mention that might not be wise, but...

Instead he coughs and glances away. "So, ah, did anyone's letter say where we were supposed to go from here?"

The answer to that question would be a 'no'.

[Artemis97]

"I am Raril Xar'Cha, eldest son of House Xabaresh Chaeron." He introduces himself in a somewhat automatic way, giving a shallow bow. He looks briefly embarrassed as he stands straight again for being so formal. "I'm Divaonar's father."

[Beans]

Nefila scuttles forward, giving a little bow of thanks as she takes her nametag and puts it on, still smiling. She watches the drow girl bother the drow dad and blinks, giving everyone another lookover and still steering clear of Hulky O'Corpseguy.

My letter gave me no instruction other than the time and the location.

[Deathkeeper]

"Nope, not a thing was said to me. Just the where and when, with a hint of what." says the faun, tapping a hoof on the ground nervously.

[Arkhosia]

"I am Raril Xar'Cha, eldest son of House Xabaresh Chaeron." He introduces himself in a somewhat automatic way, giving a shallow bow. He looks briefly embarrassed as he stands straight again for being so formal. "I'm Divaonar's father."

Hmm... Don't think I've heard of that house... Not a noble house, as it lacks the Val prefix... Definitely not from Chel...
Invidia muses, still in Raril's personal space.
Sharess, I've been so stupid! You must not be from the Moonless Age! A male fearing a female probably half as old as him? Definitely a sign of that! I've heard some places are Matriarchies, maybe he comes from one of those cities?

[Rebonack]

"Huh," Divaonar replies to the chorus of 'we have no idea what's going on's. He had suspected that maybe someone had been given further instructions. Or maybe the mysterious letter-sender would show up and tell them why they've all been gathered.

Neither of those things seem to be happening.

At least thus far.

"Weird. Well, this place is a good spot for lunch if nothing else," he comments with a shrug as he plops down on one of the tables and begins fishing about inside of his pack for a meal. Of course he had brought food with him. This is an adventure! Only a dreadfully silly person would fail to bring standard adventuring provisions.

Like trail mix! And tiny sandwiches! And water!

"I wonder if the well or the tree have something to do with it?"

There's a pretty big hole in that tree someone could climb into. Who knows what might be on the other side?

[Deathkeeper]

"I might as well take a look. I can get out pretty easily if the hole is deep." Jim moves over to the tree, although he takes a moment to toss a penny into the well for luck. He peers into the hole in the trunk.

[Arkhosia]

"Huh," Divaonar replies to the chorus of 'we have no idea what's going on's. He had suspected that maybe someone had been given further instructions. Or maybe the mysterious letter-sender would show up and tell them why they've all been gathered.

Neither of those things seem to be happening.

At least thus far.

"Weird. Well, this place is a good spot for lunch if nothing else," he comments with a shrug as he plops down on one of the tables and begins fishing about inside of his pack for a meal. Of course he had brought food with him. This is an adventure! Only a dreadfully silly person would fail to bring standard adventuring provisions.

Like trail mix! And tiny sandwiches! And water!

"I wonder if the well or the tree have something to do with it?"

There's a pretty big hole in that tree someone could climb into. Who knows what might be on the other side?
The drow darts over to the bench where Divaonar sits at.
Hello again!
Invidia sits down, eating a ham, cheese, mustard and bacon, smiling. Buddy is chasing a butterfly nearby.

[BladeofObliviom]

The hulking undead giant in question doesn't seem too bothered by any real or imagined slight. Then again, skulls really aren't capable of nuanced facial expressions.

He gives a pleasant little wave, though. That's usually a good sign.

When he does start talking, his voice sounds a little different from your usual stereotypical monster voice, though. In fact, it sounds a little bit like this guy (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aTSmg310eYc).

"I've forgotten my name, but I've been referred to as Despair. I greatly prefer that to 'Abomination.'

Further, I received a similar message."

I'd imagine that he's a little bit too big to fit into the tree, though.

[Beans]

Nefila starts eating some weird sort of mixed jerky in a kinda pita-looking thingy, also containing something that looks sort of like tofu but with the consistency of cheddar. She's sort of near to Raril, but not really very close to anyone.

[Lost_Deep]

Someone new approaches!

A human, this time. She's wearing a T-shirt that might have had some print on it at some time, but it's been stripped off. She also has yoga pants and is wearing somewhat ragged tennis shoes.

She's in her late teens, and has a mop of short, dark red hair on her head. Probably dyed, but it's hard to tell. She has a backpack and a fanny pack, but what the group will probably notice is the large amount of bee-stings on her. They look fresh.

She looks at the group, somewhat confused. "Uhh... is this the place for the message?"

[Arkhosia]

Invidia waves.
Hello!
Meanwhile, Buddy crashes into her as he chases the butterfly
No! Come back butterfly! Can we be friends please!
Oh, sorry lady!
Sorry about him.

[Rebonack]

Divaonar offers a polite wave to the latest newcomer. "Assuming you revived a mysterious letter about adventures, adventuring, and adventurous deeds? Then I suspect so! I, eerr, I don't suppose you need any salve for those stings? It looks like you had quite the unfortunate run-in."

And then crashing? Maybe?

Divaonar fixes the drow woman and her... whatever... with a disapproving look. "Miss, please try to control your whatever that is."

As for the tree...

When Jim leans into the hollow of the tree something small and white might catch his attention inside. Why, it looks like it might be a note! Or at least a piece of paper folded up and stuck inside a tree. Who knows what kind of mysterious message it might contain?

[Deathkeeper]

Jim reaches out and tries to remove the paper. Assuming he does, he pulls back out of the tree so he can read it in the light.
"Well, I found something."

[Arkhosia]

Divaonar offers a polite wave to the latest newcomer. "Assuming you revived a mysterious letter about adventures, adventuring, and adventurous deeds? Then I suspect so! I, eerr, I don't suppose you need any salve for those stings? It looks like you had quite the unfortunate run-in."

And then crashing? Maybe?

Divaonar fixes the drow woman and her... whatever... with a disapproving look. "Miss, please try to control your whatever that is."

As for the tree...

When Jim leans into the hollow of the tree something small and white might catch his attention inside. Why, it looks like it might be a note! Or at least a piece of paper folded up and stuck inside a tree. Who knows what kind of mysterious message it might contain?

Invidia glares.
Buddy is a Friend Demon, and is extremely kind. Do not call him a thing or anything similar. And It's not my fault he was created with the mentality of a toddler!

[BladeofObliviom]

"A friend demon?"

The revenant's tone is questioning, and not altogether pleasant. Really, the moment she used the words "Friend" and "Demon" in a sentence together, she made herself a subject of suspicion.

It might not be noticed by everyone, but the Knight's right hand instinctively goes for the sword as Xenna starts defending a demon, of all things. He doesn't draw it, but he's definitely not happy about what he's hearing.

[Lost_Deep]

Even if the demon is big enough to ride (However big it is) the girl is agile and aware enough to see it coming and avoid it. "Friend... I'm not going to ask. First, yes, yes, I would like some salve. I'm so happy I'm not allergic. Name is Napira, by the way."

[Arkhosia]

"A friend demon?"

The revenant's tone is questioning, and not altogether pleasant. Really, the moment she used the words "Friend" and "Demon" in a sentence together, she made herself a subject of suspicion.

It might not be noticed by everyone, but the Knight's right hand instinctively goes for the sword as Xenna starts defending a demon, of all things. He doesn't draw it, but he's definitely not happy about what he's hearing.

A type of demon that bonds with a being when they are first summoned. Completely loyal. The world isn't black and white, you should know that, zombie.

[Arkhosia]

Even if the demon is big enough to ride (However big it is) the girl is agile and aware enough to see it coming and avoid it. "Friend... I'm not going to ask. First, yes, yes, I would like some salve. I'm so happy I'm not allergic. Name is Napira, by the way."

((Buddy is about 7 feet tall with a long snake tail instead of legs))

[Rebonack]

Divaonar sighs. "Miss, regardless of its taxonomical classification or its relative level of mental acuity it is still your summon and your responsibility."

Absurd inter-party hostility really isn't anything they are in desperate need of right now.

"Welcome to our-" Divaonar glances about at the motley assortment of beings. "Crew? I suppose? Here."

Another acorn is fished out of Divaonar's pocket and the same strange organic looking magic applied to it. By the time the acorn is done growing it has increased in size several fold. He offers it to Napira along with another silly name badge.

"There you go. Just twist the top off. The salve inside should help with the pain and the swelling."

And heal the wounds. Though that'll take some time.

A for the note?


Welcome one and all to the adventure of a lifetime! No doubt you're all wondering why you've been called here, but never fear! All will be revealed in due time. But for now? Kick back and relax until the rest of your fellow thrill seekers arrive. And then? Then the game will be afoot!

May fortune ever favor you!
~Prancibald, The Wizard Who Did It

[Arkhosia]

Invidia dismisses Buddy, returning him to the Netherworld.

I am aware of that. Sorry.

[Devixer]

There's a late arrival approaching the party at the oak tree. She doesn't appear to be much compared to everyone else, just a human-looking woman wearing reinforced leather armor with a steel helmet, and carrying a simple-looking sword and shield. The only hint of anything odd is a small piece of burlap tied to her belt. However, anyone able to sense supernatural elements of people can tell that she's Undead, despite looking perfectly healthy.

Imesah examines the goings-on right now. It looks like she wasn't the only one who'd received a letter.

[Deathkeeper]

Note in the tree says that things will start up when everyone's here. And that some wizard named Prancibald did it." Jim announces.

[Beans]

Nefila smiles at the newcomer, but glances nervously from impulsive drow girl to big ol' death knight.

Let's not go throwing around epithets like that before we've even set out. She keeps smiling behind her collar, weaving a strand of web in her six-fingered hands.

[Lost_Deep]

"Thanks," Napira said and immediately started applying the ointment. She also puts on the name tag, because if she's going to have one... why not? She looks up at the other human woman and gives a nod. She then looks over at the...Saytr? This was easier back when things were 'human' and/or 'evil evil kill it.' Just roll with it, girl. Sometime things will resume making sense. "Anything on what this is about?" she asks.

[Arkhosia]

"Thanks," Napira said and immediately started applying the ointment. She also puts on the name tag, because if she's going to have one... why not? She looks up at the other human woman and gives a nod. She then looks over at the...Saytr? This was easier back when things were 'human' and/or 'evil evil kill it.' Just roll with it, girl. Sometime things will resume making sense. "Anything on what this is about?" she asks.

Invidia summons a turtle on her lap. She loves turtles.
Judging from the message, it's probably a wizard who made a mistake and wants us to clean up. What is a wizard anyways?

[Deathkeeper]

Jim shrugs. He doesn't really have a clue. He does take a moment to give a small bow to Imesah upon her entrance.
"Hello. Make yourself comfortable, I suppose. Unless you're the last we're going to be here a while." says the faun.

[BladeofObliviom]

A type of demon that bonds with a being when they are first summoned. Completely loyal. The world isn't black and white, you should know that, zombie.

Despair doesn't frown. That's sort of impossible without lips. But the way he stares definitely implies it.

"The last Mage to give me that excuse was possessed by the thing she'd been consorting with mere seconds later. Her flesh ballooned outward and became twisted, corrupted with every pulse of her infected blood. The world may not always be black and white, but that does not change the fact that there is a Black, and it can be easy to fall to that level."

His tone is even, low, and vaguely accusing. However, Nefila's comment gets his attention, causing him to stand up to his full height and nod at her.

"She is right, let us not be any more hostile than necessary. But know that you will be watched closely. Those who consort with demons are always a danger, whether they know it or not."

And with that, he stalks away to a hopefully more pleasant conversation, this time with the newcomer.

"Greetings, Ser: I am called Despair. Who might you be?"

[Aric Kale]

Voip

Here's a wizard! Clara Tovell enters through a blue portal, three small dragons flying around her head. She's dressed in a tan shirt and matching pants, with a dull cloak that seems to have a chameleon-like effect. The twenty-something year old wizard looks at the oddly assorted crew and expands the six inch stick in her hands to a six foot wizard's staff, complete with an amethyst on top.
Just to clarify, this wizard is humanoid, not human; the only real difference being a distinct smell of citrus.

As for her dragons, we have:

Gymn, a green dragon with the ability to heal
Candor, a blue and orange dragon with the skill of creating portals for instant transportation
And lastly Krakl, a purple dragon with an affinity for weather and lightning

[Devixer]

Imesah looks a little puzzled when Despair mentions her name, but she moves past that. "I am Imesah, a Warrior of Sunlight," she says.

[Arkhosia]

Invidia looks up in surprise as the wizard teleports in.
Hello!
The turtle disappears as Invidia gets up.

[Aric Kale]

Clara waves at Invidia. Hello, my friend, may the light of Wulder be with you! I believe there is a quest to be had, no?

[Arkhosia]

((That was a good book series))

Hello fellow sorcerer! Invidia Val'Sarghess, glad to meet you! You are correct.

[Aric Kale]

)(One of the best)(

Clara Tovell, an honor to meet you, to be sure.

[Arkhosia]

)(One of the best)(

Clara Tovell, an honor to meet you, to be sure.

Invidia bows.
Nice companions. Mind if I share mine?
The drow summons Buddy again.
Ooh, lizard thingies!
Buddy slithers over to try and jump and catch the dragons, but before he can do that, Invidia turns to him.
Buddy, no. No chasing after the dragons.

[Aric Kale]

Clara returns the gesture as Gymn decides to play the role of scarf around her neck. Meanwhile, Krakl perches on her head and Candor flies lazy circles. How nice, these are Gymn, Krakl and Candor. They're minor dragons from our home world. She doesn't seem to be too concerned with Buddy. She's not sure what's "unusual" yet.

[Deathkeeper]

At this point Jim goes over to the revenant.
"Hey, uh, Despair? If we're going to be adventuring together might I ask you a favor?"

[BladeofObliviom]

Imesah looks a little puzzled when Despair mentions her name, but she moves past that. "I am Imesah, a Warrior of Sunlight," she says.

The knight nods back in understanding.

"Pleased to meet you. I don't suppose you know any more about this than-"

And then he's interrupted by a shapeshifter.

"Yes?"

[Arkhosia]

they seem nice. All I got is Buddy here. Sorry about him, he has the mentality of a toddler.

[Aric Kale]

Clara chortles, Don't even worry about it. These little tykes can be a handful when they want to be.
Again, she gazes over the assembly, trying to figure out exactly what they'd be doing...

[Deathkeeper]

Jim's goat-like ears drop.
"Oh, sorry, I don't mean to interrupt, I'll ask later..." he says, blushing a bit and taking a step back.

[Devixer]

Imesah is about to respond when Jim talks to Despair. She remains silent for now.

[Arkhosia]

Clara chortles, Don't even worry about it. These little tykes can be a handful when they want to be.
Again, she gazes over the assembly, trying to figure out exactly what they'd be doing...

at least they aren't larger than you, and they don't hug you with their enormous serpentine tails.

[Aric Kale]

A fair point, though Krakl scratches my skull when he's irked.
Umm, I hope you don't mind me asking, but what is Buddy?

[Arkhosia]

A fair point, though Krakl scratches my skull when he's irked.
Umm, I hope you don't mind me asking, but what is Buddy?

He's a Friend Demon. Not evil! A friend Demon bonds with whoever first summoned it, and becomes a loyal companion. I also have some summoned turtles that act as temporary companions, but they don't count.

[BladeofObliviom]

Jim's goat-like ears drop.
"Oh, sorry, I don't mean to interrupt, I'll ask later..." he says, blushing a bit and taking a step back.


Imesah is about to respond when Jim talks to Despair. She remains silent for now.

Woo awkward situations!

The knight shrugs.

"Suit yourself."

He's totally the judging sort, but Jim seems decent enough. So does Imesah, really. Maybe not Invidia, but he's agreed to let that one go for now. Even if she has the gall to call him a zombie.

"So, do either of you have any idea what's going on here?"

[Beans]

Nefila watches the conversations, not speaking. That's not her style.

[Deathkeeper]

Nope, just that a wizard's involved.
Jim says simply.

[Devixer]

"I know no more than you do," Imesah says. "I only came here because of a letter."

[Arkhosia]

Nefila watches the conversations, not speaking. That's not her style.

Invidia waves at Nefila.
Hello there!

[BladeofObliviom]

Nope, just that a wizard's involved.
Jim says simply.


"I know no more than you do," Imesah says. "I only came here because of a letter."

"I see. So what we seem to have here is ten different people from all different walks of life called together in one place by an unknown individual for an unknown purpose. That's not at all suspicious."

It does kind of sound like the plot of And Then There Were None when you put it that way, doesn't it?

[Deathkeeper]

"Yeah, I guess you're right when you say it like that."Jim says, scratching at his head behind a horn.

[Beans]

Invidia waves at Nefila.
Hello there!
Blinking at the drow, the Vaess woman waves back. This one... hazardous. Always summoning those unpredictable things.

[Arkhosia]

Blinking at the drow, the Vaess woman waves back. This one... hazardous. Always summoning those unpredictable things.

Shy, eh? I don't bite!

[Terumitsu]

Trees could sometimes be the worst. When they aren't eating kites, they make these weird shadows that are really tricky to navigate when using them for transportation. So it was with an unceremonious pop that Nephea found herself in mid air and quite upside down. It was luck that she fell only a few inches but she would still be draped around a low hanging branch. Thankfully she didn't break anything. "Owwww.. Oh.. People. Why is everyone upside down?" the impish cat thing asked, clearly a bit dazed.

It may take her a moment to figure it out on her own although that would be likely long enough for someone to get a good look at her especially if they hadn't seen her before. She was of no impressive stature, being maybe only just on this side of four feet tall, and her face had an almost permanently mischievous bent to it even while she was currently looking none to aware of what was going on. While humanoid, she was decidedly not human and instead looked to be some odd cross between a salamander and a black cat with short but sharp little horns behind her ears tossed in for good measure. Really, though, the only misfortune around her was if wallets suddenly felt lighter. She wore something that looked more like a field study outfit although deeply stained in places with odd chemicals. At least she had managed to work the odor out of them by this point as alchemy was not an art for the faint of olfactory sense. Well... At least practicing new things wasn't. With a bandolier of phials strapped across a shoulder, she at least looked prepared for adventure.

[Beans]

Nefila considers saying that it's not Invidia's bite that concerns her, but is interrupted by the new arrival... lady... thingy!

She turns to face the newcomer, giving her a quiet wave, scuttling forward a few yards.

[Arkhosia]

Buddy turns to see the new arrival
Kitty!
He slithers over and tries to pet Nephea
Buddy, what have I told you about petting the Animal Hybrid People! I am never having a kid.

[Devixer]

"I suppose there is reason for suspicion," Imesah says, glancing at the newcomer. "But we should wait for more information."

[Rebonack]

It's kind of understandable when someone gets all flustered and embarrassed and nervous when they think they might have interrupted or offended an undead giant.

This is certainly quite the span of people! Summoners and shape shifters and rogues and warriors and... people with bee stings? And some kind of spider lady. Yep! Such a crowd that Divaonar is starting to wonder if anyone else is going to show up.

Of course...

If everyone was there already then something should be happening.

...right?

That's what the note implied at least.

And speaking of!

Nephea, the mischievous alchemist, has joined the party.

As soon as she makes her introduction the note that had been found earlier makes a fizzling noise and bursts into a tiny cloud of plaid smoke. Red, yellow, black, and white if it matters. The cloud zips up into the air and begins to gradually expand into a big floating head!

"Greetings adventurers and thrill seekers! Greetings heroes, ruffians, scallywags, explorers, and jay walkers! Welcome to the greatest escapade of your lives! Are you ready for glory? For danger? For excitement? Are you ready for a quest spanning across the unfathomable planes that meet the Nexus? Are you ready for riches beyond reckoning and challenges most profound? Then you have come to the right place! The time has come to take the plunge through the Well of Janus and let Fate decree where you are needed!

"Good luck, and may fortune ever favor you!"

There comes a grinding sound, followed by the screech of corroded iron hinges as the metal grate over the mouth of the well flops open. A strange reverberating sound echoes up from the depths of the well. Should anyone peer inside they'll see nothing but inky blackness.

"Eerr... Excuse me?" Divaonar pipes up to the floating head of impossibly colored smoke. "Do you think you might give us a little more of an explanation?"

"My responses are limited," says the cloud. "You must ask the right questions."

[Deathkeeper]

Here's a big one. says Jim Once we've gone where fate decrees, how do we get back?

[Lost_Deep]

Sometime, things will resume making sense.

Not today, it seems, but sometime.

"Oh, cripes, nonsense about fate. I have yet to come across a situation with fate involved that ends well... might just be the people I hang out with, true, but really..."

Griping, but Napira doesn't seem to have a question at the moment. She's finishing up with the ointment by now.

[Rebonack]

Well.

This is certainly...

Interesting?

Is that the right word? Interesting? Divaonar is going to go with that one, though he really isn't sure how strictly accurate it is.

"The journey always ends where it begins," replies the floating head to the fate-related question it was asked.

Divaonar wrinkles his nose. "I suspect whoever designed this construct was aiming for the greatest degree of cryptic yammering possible. This feels like listening to a political debate. Lots of words without really saying anything."

With a sigh he walks over to the well and peers down it. "Looks like a stable portal at least. I'm pretty sure no one is going to get disintegrated if they jump in."

[Arkhosia]

As Divaonar utters those last words, Invidia rushes past him and dives in, Buddy dismissed.
To Adventure!

[Lost_Deep]

Napira watches Invidia jump in, and facepalms. She did not just... "Run in after her, or get more information? It might be useless to stay, might be really important? Half and half?"

[Artemis97]

"Best to exercise caution when dealing with Prancibald. " Raril advises. "While most of the stuff he comes up with, while interesting and entertaining, is usually harmless, there's still plenty of times where I've known them to be devastating." Like that crazy starfish that nearly killed his sister. Or that sandwich with the dimensional portal in the olive.

[Beans]

Nefila double-takes, staring.
Did she just... she...
That was... gracious of her to go first. Yes.
Gracious.

[The Bushranger]

Lydia, as it happens, seems to have suffered a near-fatal attack by a deadtime ooze!
Terrible things, deadtime oozes are. You can never get all the slime out of your hair afterwards. Unless you use Pantene.

As it is, though, the assassin comes to from the horrid beast's embrace just in time to see somebody running for the well!

She sighs and debates Bend Time shenanigans, before shrugging, and looking around at the others. "My name's Lydia. I assume there's some sort of...adventure going on."

Aventure.
She hatessssss it, she does.

[Arkhosia]

((I think it's safe to say Raril can cross Invidia off of the "potential threat" list :smalltongue:))

[Rebonack]

((Please do not post purely OOC comments in this thread. This shall be the only warning!))

"I don't think I know anything about Prancibald," Divaonar comments, running through what memories he had inherited from Mother.

Nope.

Nothing about Wizards Who Did it or crazy adventures concerning him. Ah well.

"I'm pretty sure there isn't void on the other side either. We would hear it if there was."

Since the well would have turned into a horrible vacuum of death.

Divaonar pulls out another acorn and begins focusing on it, causing it to slowly warp and shift until it transforms into a tiny plant-like hummingbird! Or maybe a hummingbird-like plant. One of those things. He tosses releases the bird and it zips off down the portal.

"Well, my little friend should be able to tell us what's on the other side. Assuming it isn't a reality where the air is made of fire."

That's one of the worst kinds.

[Lost_Deep]

"I'll take your word for it, we don't have wizards where I come from," Napira says with a shrug.

[Deathkeeper]

Jim nods to Divaonar.
"I don't know if that will work, but let's see what it can find out."

[Devixer]

Imesah remains silent as Invidia jumps right through the portal, besides a slight side. "Sending a scout will be prudent for now."

[BladeofObliviom]

As the maddeningly unhelpful wizard hologram and maddeningly impulsive Drow appear and disappear, respectively, Despair just stares, slack-jawed.

"What."

Words failed to explain whatever had just happened, so the knight quickly reverted to simply facepalming. How typical of a maleficar, he reasoned, to simply lunge into danger without regard for potential consequences! This Invidia woman is clearly a danger to herself and others!

Sighing, the knight just relents and agrees about sending in a scout. Because Caution is a sane thing to have.

[Deathkeeper]

So, while they're waiting...
"So, um, yeah. Despair. That thing I wanted to ask about before was that I'm a shapeshifter, but only my clothes change with me, since they're magic. My pack won't so if I make myself smaller it'll fall off. I was wondering if you could maybe you could keep an eye out for it and pick it up if no one else does. I wouldn't want it to get lost while I'm doing the only thing that makes me useful."

[Rebonack]

Time passes...

And soon the hummingbird returns!

Divaonar holds out a finger and the tiny living machine lands on it. He begins poking and prodding at the thing. "No poisons, plenty of air, no heat damage to speak of."

He gives a prim nod.

"I think it should be safe on the other side. In fact, I'm quite certain of it."

To prove his certainty to vaults over the edge of the well!

Should any choose to follow him, and for the one who went before...

There's a strange sensation of falling inward rather than falling down. Those accustomed to teleportation might be familiar with the rather jarring sensation. They will briefly be surrounded by a sound akin to rushing water and then all at once!

The ride ends with face-planting into some soft sod. Divaonar will quickly roll out of the way. Should anyone choose to stay in one spot they're likely to be landed on.

So say that the new surroundings are... unusual... would be an understatement. All about are huge boulders of almost shockingly chocolate brown stone simply adrift upon nothing. Lush grasses and strange flowering vines cover much of the surface even bind some of the floating monoliths together. Thick beds of swirling white mist drift past, coiling around the ground and occasionally obscuring sight. And perhaps oddest of all are the ruins. Great marble pillars and foundations, stark and white and choked with vines speak of what was once a great city in ages past.

...alright.

No.

That isn't the oddest sight.

The oddest sight would be found should one look over the edge of the half mile wide island in the sky.

Because it's an island in the sky.

Other islands drift past both above and below, though should one turn their eyes toward the horizon there is naught but an endless archipelago of flying stones and drifting clouds.

The party themselves were dumped from a portal in the top of an ornate gazebo-like structure strangled with flowers and vines and the suffocating grip of time.

In the far distance a brilliant azure beam of light is splitting the clouds and piecing the heavens.

[Arkhosia]

Mphmhpphmmh!
It appears Divaonar landed on a faceplanted Invidia.
She gasps for breath.
That was fun! Can we do it again?
She still hasn't gotten up though.

[BladeofObliviom]

As the shapeshifter asks his question, the Knight nods warmly. How anything a skeletal face does can express any kind of emotion is a question for the ages, but there it is.

"A reasonable request, and I can afford to carry an extra weight. Very well, I shall do what you ask of me."

From this point on, if said shapeshifter leaves his pack lying around or something and Despair's actually in a position to pick it up, he'll do so until such time as Joe can reasonably carry his own bag again. Despair will keep his word, but his player might forget. :smalltongue:

And then, hearing that it's relatively safe through the portal, the Knight shrugs and starts to carefully lower himself in. Plate Armor will give you a lot of kinetic energy when falling, you know.

...The people on the other side should probably consider moving out of the way. Now.

[Arkhosia]

OW!
Despair lands on Invidia.
Can you please get off of me? I think you might've making me thinner.

[Deathkeeper]

"Thanks, Despair." Jim really wishes the revenant had a less morbid name. He seemed pretty nice to have a name like an NES villain.
Anyway, Jim enters the portal, although he has pretty fast reflexes and should be able to position himself to land on one hoof in a spot not occupied by any elves' faces or his new friend's armor.

[Rebonack]

One would think that a person would have enough sense not to lay around under the portal for a few minutes and let people drop on them, but so far the drow woman has shown a pretty astounding lack of sense.

That's just how some people are.

With luck it might not even get her killed.

Divaonar is up and poking around at some of the marble ruins, specifically flipping over a slab to see if anything is written on the underside. Alas, the ancient stone without much in the way of ornamentation.

The wide plateau our heroes now stand atop is dominated by other vine-choked gazebos similar to the one they had dropped out of surrounding an absolutely massive domed temple of some kind. Another similar building can be seen on another island far below. From this distance it's obvious that its base is in the shape of a huge eight pointed sunburst.

[Deathkeeper]

"See anything interesting, Div? Personally the giant building seems to be the most likely target right now." says Jim, moving over to the half-drow.

[Devixer]

Imesah falls through the portal, plenty used to the odd feelings of teleportation. She tries her best to not land on anyone, but that can be difficult when you're not sure where you'll land. She looks around the top of the gazebo, seeing if there's any text to read that might give a more concrete explanation of exactly where they are.

[Beans]

Nefila carefully follows the others in (though giving people enough time to get their butts out of the way), trying to get out of the way as quickly as possible. Taking in the amazing view, she looks around in curious awe.

[Arkhosia]

Invidia gets up.
I agree.
She runs her forehead.
I think I may have bruised my face.

[Aric Kale]

Nothing the drow girl does can surprise Clara at this point...
As such, after Invidia jumps down the well, the wizard waits for an official "let's go" before she joins. After watching Jim Div and Despair leap into the well, Clara follows, cloak billowing in the wind.
She's also floating down, as opposed to falling. Because magic.

[Arkhosia]

The drow waves at Clara.
How exactly can you float like that? Also, have I injured my head?
A small bruise is present on her forehead

[Lost_Deep]

Napira takes a deep breath, and then follows. The portal itself is a new experience for her, but despite that she lands on her feet.

Trust me on that. It'd be really cool to watch in slow-mo, no doubt.

She seems to be stunned by her surroundings. It's all very magical!

[Artemis97]

Waiting a moment after the last person goes through, Raril vaults himself over the edge of the well and drops down into the portal. On the other side, he lands in a crouch before walking away from the portal and over to the edge of the island, apparently with no fear of falling. "Well, there's something you don't see every day." The drow says grinning. After a moment's thought, he digs in a pocket and pulls out... a small digital camera. The small device was at odds with his usual adventuring kit. He must have bought it especially for this trip, knowing his son was going to be along. After a moment of working out how to turn on the camera and accidentally taking a shot of his fingers, and then his shoes, the drow manages to figure it out and takes a picture of the vista spread out below.

[BladeofObliviom]

There's actually quite a story behind that name, Joe, though it's not precisely a pleasant one. Let's just say that where he's from, he practically IS a NES villain from the locals' perspective.

As Despair falls through the portal, he has just enough time to mutter out "Uh oh." before colliding with the ground, almost certainly leaving behind an armor-shaped indentation. Someday, an enterprising group of gnomes will find this imprint, freeze it solid, and use it as the basis of a mold for mass-producing plate armor.

But that's a story for another time.

The Knight quickly lifts himself to his feet and moves out of the way, figuring that it wouldn't do him any good to have people falling on top of him. That's when he notices the view. It's a really nice view, of course. He's a little nervous at the thought of falling off the edge, since he's never actually been this high up in the air before, but surely that isn't more dangerous than the stuff he faces every day as an adventurer?

The revenant makes a mental note to watch his step anyway.

"Some kind of... ...floating island, covered in ruins? What is this, the Kingdom of Zeal?"

He's not sure where to progress from here, though, so mostly he's just following everyone else's lead for now.

[Aric Kale]

Clara lands gently, her dragons following suit.
Oh my...This is really happening.
Oh, I simply heat the air under my feet and allow my cloak to act as a hot-air balloon. Time to explore! She casually walks around the edge, looking for signs of magic.

[Rebonack]

The view from the top of the gazebo is pretty nice, however there doesn't appear to be any writing. Just simple repeating geometric patters. It doesn't have the look of a language, just an interesting design. On closer inspection some kind of reddish, brass-like metal has been worked into the portal mechanism in such a way that would suggest it's machinery of some kind. A panel is loose, having been pried off partly by a creeping vine.

And the place is pretty eye-catching, isn't it? Beautiful, haunting, and strangely lonely. The flowering vines that dominate the surroundings are delicate little lavender things with a pleasant, soft aroma. Aside from the hum of the portal and the distant pulsing of the light-spire our heroes have only the sound of the wind in the empty ruins to greet them.

There isn't an animal in sight. No birds. No insects. Nothing.

Whilst wondering around in awe Napira might stumble upon an odd brassy contrivance buried under a tangle of vines. It looks like a machine of some kind, but with all the growth details are hard to make out. Maybe if she uncovered it?

Raril gets a nice picture of the limitless skybox. It looks like there's nothing aside from lots of down down there.

As for magic...

Magic? Well... that depends on what one means by 'magic'. There are an awful lot of very different things out there that the word 'magic' gets slapped onto. If 'magic' is the effects of re-visioning an illusory reality then there's no magic going on. If 'magic' is drawing on the power or calling in favors from supernatural beings then there isn't any magic of that kind, either. If 'magic' is pulling energy from a plane of existence that underlies the physical world then there doesn't seem to be any magic going on. If 'magic' is the use of internal sources of spiritual energy then there isn't much magic. If 'magic' is the interaction of thaumic fields intermediated by psyton transfer then there's a ton of magic going on.

The portal behind them is giving off a powerful thaumic field and so is that GIANT spear of light shooting off into the heavens in the distance. A lower level field is being generated by the inert portal/gazebos. Finally there are fields being generated in those odd temple-like buildings, stronger than the gazebos but weaker than the beam of blue light.

"I'm not sure," Divaonar replies to the revenant as he steps up to another ruined marble monument. "I don't see any statues of people of any kind. Everything appears to be purely geometric in design. No statues, no engravings. I suppose it's possible that they keep all their writing in books? We could try one of those large buildings and hope to find some records."

[The Bushranger]

Lydia comes through the portal!

And lands on her feet perfectly, looking around...

"...The Void. Typical," she mutters with a sigh, as she looks around, then start towards the nearest large building...

[Deathkeeper]

Jim nods to Div and starts to trot over to the large temple, presumably with Lydia.

[Beans]

Nefila follows Diavonar, scuttling to take a better look at each thingy as they pass it. All this is really a bit overwhelming, but she tries to stay calm.
And, of course, says nothing. Just skitters and peers and skitters.

[Lost_Deep]

Napira notices some of the group heading off, but knows she can catch up if she needs to. They aren't terribly stealthy. She instead grabs some handfuls of vines and tries to forcibly yank them off of the thing. Not necessarily to clean it, but enough that she can tell what it is.

She really doesn't have much to say on this situation yet.

[Arkhosia]

The view from the top of the gazebo is pretty nice, however there doesn't appear to be any writing. Just simple repeating geometric patters. It doesn't have the look of a language, just an interesting design. On closer inspection some kind of reddish, brass-like metal has been worked into the portal mechanism in such a way that would suggest it's machinery of some kind. A panel is loose, having been pried off partly by a creeping vine.

And the place is pretty eye-catching, isn't it? Beautiful, haunting, and strangely lonely. The flowering vines that dominate the surroundings are delicate little lavender things with a pleasant, soft aroma. Aside from the hum of the portal and the distant pulsing of the light-spire our heroes have only the sound of the wind in the empty ruins to greet them.

There isn't an animal in sight. No birds. No insects. Nothing.

Whilst wondering around in awe Napira might stumble upon an odd brassy contrivance buried under a tangle of vines. It looks like a machine of some kind, but with all the growth details are hard to make out. Maybe if she uncovered it?

Raril gets a nice picture of the limitless skybox. It looks like there's nothing aside from lots of down down there.

As for magic...

Magic? Well... that depends on what one means by 'magic'. There are an awful lot of very different things out there that the word 'magic' gets slapped onto. If 'magic' is the effects of re-visioning an illusory reality then there's no magic going on. If 'magic' is drawing on the power or calling in favors from supernatural beings then there isn't any magic of that kind, either. If 'magic' is pulling energy from a plane of existence that underlies the physical world then there doesn't seem to be any magic going on. If 'magic' is the use of internal sources of spiritual energy then there isn't much magic. If 'magic' is the interaction of thaumic fields intermediated by psyton transfer then there's a ton of magic going on.

The portal behind them is giving off a powerful thaumic field and so is that GIANT spear of light shooting off into the heavens in the distance. A lower level field is being generated by the inert portal/gazebos. Finally there are fields being generated in those odd temple-like buildings, stronger than the gazebos but weaker than the beam of blue light.

"I'm not sure," Divaonar replies to the revenant as he steps up to another ruined marble monument. "I don't see any statues of people of any kind. Everything appears to be purely geometric in design. No statues, no engravings. I suppose it's possible that they keep all their writing in books? We could try one of those large buildings and hope to find some records."

Something otherworldly is likely present here. This place can obviously support life, yet no animals at all live here.

[BladeofObliviom]

Looking around a bit more, the Revenant takes a few steps forward to match the half-whatever-Zee-is.

"You're right. And now that I think about it, there don't seem to be any bugs, birds, or beasts either. There's no life here but us and the plants.

...There's something very wrong here. I'm not a gardener, but there's nothing to pollinate all of these grasses and flowers. This is an engineered environment of some kind, but no signs of any engineers aside from the ruins. And they couldn't have become overgrown like this without the engineers to make it so.

We should be wary. Something smells wrong here."

At this point, Despair has his shield out. He hasn't drawn his sword yet, but he'll at least be ready to defend the others if something happens.

[Terumitsu]

Seems like it took more than a few moments to disentangle herself from being stuck up in a tree...

In any case, Nephea was likely among the last to get through the portal.

And boy howdy, what a place beyond it was. The sheer mathmatic particularity of the place was both oddly offsetting and kind of pleasing if only because of having to be precise in her learned art. Speaking of that, though.. Geometry meant patterns so maybe that would be a clue to the place? As such, Nephea would try to climb up atop the gazebo in order to get a higher vantage point to look at the rest of the area, trying to figure out if there were any specific patterns to the place. Part of her was guessing some kind of fractal design but it was only a guess.

She would probably see Napira messing with the greenery, though, and would take a moment to ask; "Hey, find anything out about those?" Alchemy and herbalism did have some very close roots, after all... No puns intended in this case.

[Rebonack]

The closest building would be the temple-like structure set in the center of all the gazebos. It's a decent distance away, but walking there shouldn't prove terribly difficult. None of the other gazebos sport portals like the one our heroes were dumped through. Mayne of the smaller structures look like they're in a nasty state of disrepair, much more marked than the one they arrived in.

Columns and arches have been pulled down by the vines and bits of brassy redish metal are scattered about. They look like they're components to some kind of machine. A bit of plating here, some kind of connector there, a few cogs scattered about.

Divaonar nods slightly at the revenant's comment. "Not necessarily. About the plants, I mean. Most grasses are wind pollinated. And its possible these flowers are selfing or growing clonally. I would have to examine them closer to be sure," he says with a frown. "That doesn't make any of this less eerie, though. Anywhere that has flowers should have insects. There aren't even any ants crawling around these ruins. Or ant analogs at least."

He kneels down and digs his fingers into the soil. "No symbiotic fungus. No soil amoeba. Not even any bacteria. This place is practically sterile. Aside from this grass and those vines there's literally nothing alive here."

Napira rips the vines away and discovers something rather interesting under them. It's a machine, a robot of some kind. Or at least it was. It looks like someone made a potato out of lots of little interlocking plates of that weird orange metal and attached cables where all the eyes would be. Each cable ends in various types of tools. Saws, claws, fine manipulators, some kind of port interface, drills, and something made of several struts surrounding a series of lenses and an azure crystal.

The machine's blades have been popped off in numerous places where vines have either grown into it or out of it. It's difficult to tell which.

The catamander's view from atop the gazebo affords her a good look at the nearest temple. It's set atop a marble base that looks like a simple curving wall from the ground, though now she can see that the dome is actually set atop a huge crescent. The gazebos surrounding it don't appear to have any rhyme or reason to their placement-

-no rhyme or reason unless Nephia happens to be familiar with astrology.

[The Bushranger]

"Of course something seems wrong here. It's the Void," Lydia observes!

And when the machine potato gets unearthed, she frowns as she examines it. Then pokes it with the tip of her crossbow!

[Arkhosia]

Invidia looks at the red brass-like metal curiously.
Might be a blend of brass, but I doubt it seeing the otherworldly influence that obviously is here.

[Aric Kale]

So, nothing that Clara can use, though she was familiar Amaran Astronomy, if that at all helps. Not that she's paying attention. What really has her focus is the robot, hidden by vines, for she's never seen something so technologically advanced before, other than a few Nexians. However, she's also listening to Despair and Div...My friend, we are alive, I feel it necessary to make that distinction. Yes, even you, my skeletal friend, for you are sentient...self-aware. How very kind of her, she clearly doesn't understand the concept of Undead.
Umm, what exactly is the Void?

[Terumitsu]

Alchemy, at least the way she learned it, was quite akin to wizardy in some ways. Some things had to be picked under a certain sign or when the moon was the right phase or, for the really complex things, they had to be brewed over time when one constillation was in power to the next. Nephea really hated making those concoctions even though they did have their uses. They were just soooo boring and required more time than she normally wanted to put up with.

Besides, love potions were the sort of things she tried to stay far, far away from.

So stellar formations would probably within her rather eclectic knowledge base.

Or at least enough to know if things were or werent looking as they should. All that crap her mentor had gone on about 'sacred geometry' had at least left some impression on her even though she was mostly interested at the time on how to make people stronger or faster or breath fire.

[Lost_Deep]

Napira shakes her head. "So... there are no kinds of life in this place other than these vines and the grass. Not even insects or flies or..." She blinks and looks over at Divaonar. "What are 'bacteria'? I've never heard of them before."

It would seem that her education is significantly less modern than her clothes.

[Rebonack]

In which case the catamander will very possibly notice that the gazebos are arranged in the shape of the stars in the constellation Gemini. That might be significant? Or maybe the long lost architects just liked astronomical motifs.

And on the subject of bacteria, "Any reality where living things are made of cells will have bacteria. They're basically tiny living machines, small enough that you can't see them without aid. And they're absolutely everywhere. Normally, at least. These plants are cellular, so barring some kind of incomprehensible catastrophe there's no reason why there shouldn't be microbes all over everything."

A beat at Lydia's comment.

"The... Void?" Divaonar glances about. "This place has a pretty telling lack of nothing. It doesn't seem particularly void-y to me."

When poked the ruined robot fails to leap up and rip Lydia's face off. That's always a positive outcome.

[Arkhosia]

In which case the catamander will very possibly notice that the gazebos are arranged in the shape of the stars in the constellation Gemini. That might be significant? Or maybe the long lost architects just liked astronomical motifs.

And on the subject of bacteria, "Any reality where living things are made of cells will have bacteria. They're basically tiny living machines, small enough that you can't see them without aid. And they're absolutely everywhere. Normally, at least. These plants are cellular, so barring some kind of incomprehensible catastrophe there's no reason why there shouldn't be microbes all over everything."

A beat at Lydia's comment.

"The... Void?" Divaonar glances about. "This place has a pretty telling lack of nothing. It doesn't seem particularly void-y to me."

When poked the ruined robot fails to leap up and rip Lydia's face off. That's always a positive outcome.
Invidia taps the red metal, attempting to identify it's texture and other properties.

[The Bushranger]

"The Void is not at all empty. It's just...I believe the term is 'non-Euclidian' here?" Lydia tries to explain. Floating islands, frozen scenes from reality that may or may not be happening at present, whales soaring past..."

She shrugs. Pulls back from the ex-robot.

"This seems very much like it, although I don't sense the Outsider being here."

[Beans]

Nefila pokepokes the robot that didn't do any argleblargle faceripping, finds it boring, and decides to skitter up onto the gazebo next to the catmander alchemist ladyperson.

Of course, not being familiar with the Western Zodiac, she doesn't see that Gemini is a thing being did here.

[Rebonack]

The orange metal feels like... metal. Reasonably hard. Denser than steel. Unless the drow can learn the properties of a material via touch it would be difficult to tell much more than that.

Divaonar shrugs at the Void comment. "The whole cosmos is non-Euclidean. People usually just don't notice."

Probably best that they don't notice, really.

"Though if you mean some sort of wonky pocket universe I can assure you that this place is quite normal," Divaonar says. "Or at least I'm pretty sure it is. Hold on a moment, and I'll try taking a look from another angle."

And then he does.

It's weird, really.

It isn't as though Divaonar suddenly turned into some kind of half vulture (http://academic.reed.edu/biology/courses/BIO342/2012_syllabus/2012_WEBSITES/IvyH.BeardedVultures.2012/images/BeardedVUltureAdult.jpg) half antelope (http://mdilleymillbrook.wikispaces.com/file/view/addax.jpg/77487029/addax.jpg) half jackal (http://www.scilogs.com/import-data/images/30/egyptian%20jackal.jpg) half crocodile (http://cdn1.arkive.org/media/4E/4E0863E8-6460-474B-9556-5C1568817BB4/Presentation.Large/Nile-crocodile-gaping-on-bank-of-river.jpg) blasphemy against all that is sane and possible. He was such a thing the whole time, one would likely realize. It's more like one just failed to register this fact up until now.

The far chimera sticks his head in a direction perpendicular to reality and begins looking around.

[The Bushranger]

"Well, it's particularly so, then - "

And then Divanoar is a half vulture half antelope half jackal half crocodile blasphemy against all that is sane and possible!

Lydia doesn't go insane.
She does, however, instantly attempt to sleep-dart Divanoar as he looks perpendicular to reality.

[Arkhosia]

Invidia is unfazed.

She summons otherworldly horrors (and Buddy) on a regular basis! What did you expect?

She attempts to pick up a piece of the odd metal and show it to Nephea. She is an alchemist, maybe she knows something about it.
Know anything about this?

[Artemis97]

The moment Lydia draws her weapon, she may find herself suddenly tackled by Raril, who's looking a tad fuzzier than he did a moment ago. How'd he even get there so quickly? Wasn't he standing near the edge a moment ago?

"That is my son!" The drow growls through elongated teeth, his eyes glowing red with anger.

[Deathkeeper]

"Dude, your son is a badass." is all Jim says. He feels a bit worthless if someone else can turn into flying things, but he's sure he'll do something.

[Arkhosia]

"Dude, your son is a badass." is all Jim says. He feels a bit worthless if someone else can turn into flying things, but he's sure he'll do something.


Badass to the 2nd power! I would back him of he tried to take over as ruler of any clan, even the Val'Sarghess themselves.

[The Bushranger]

Lydia is tackled, going splat on her back!
Boy, from the rattling, her coat sure is full of stuff...

"He's been taken over by a beast from beyond the veil, and I was going to tranquilize him!" she protests, eyes flashing with anger.

[Arkhosia]

Lydia is tackled, going splat on her back!
Boy, from the rattling, her coat sure is full of stuff...

"He's been taken over by a beast from beyond the veil, and I was going to tranquilize him!" she protests, eyes flashing with anger.

Invidia's eyes glow a bit brighter.
I applaud the concern, but you should probably listen to what he said next time.

[Rebonack]

"No, everything looks more or less normal from that angle, too," Divaonar comments casually as he glances back at the group.

And finds his father and Lydia rolling around in the grass.

Goodness. He had heard stories before about how quickly Raril swept the ladies off their feet, but this was rather silly.

"Eerr, did I miss something?" the totally normal half drow asks curiously.

Yep.

Half drow.

Clearly there was never any impossible eldritch terrorhorror lurking about. How could there be? That would be crazy.

[Arkhosia]

"No, everything looks more or less normal from that angle, too," Divaonar comments casually as he glances back at the group.

And finds his father and Lydia rolling around in the grass.

Goodness. He had heard stories before about how quickly Raril swept the ladies off their feet, but this was rather silly.

"Eerr, did I miss something?" the totally normal half drow asks curiously.

Yep.

Half drow.

Clearly there was never any impossible eldritch terrorhorror lurking about. How could there be? That would be crazy.

Lydia tried to shoot you when you turned into that Eldritch thingy with a tranquilizer. Raril tackled her to stop her.

Also, I decided that you and your dad are badass.

[Artemis97]

"He is not possessed. That is how he is. He is not entirely of this world, but he is good. I, however, am NOT." The drow's teeth snap shut mere inches from Lydia's face "Try attacking him again, and you will see a real beast." Raril promises before pushing himself upright and stepping back. He takes a few deep breaths to calm himself, as both fur and fangs recede.

[Deathkeeper]

So, how about that temple? says Jim awkwardly. Not-good guys with fuzzy fangs makes goat-boy uncomfortable.

[Arkhosia]

"He is not possessed. That is how he is. He is not entirely of this world, but he is good. I, however, am NOT." The drow's teeth snap shut mere inches from Lydia's face "Try attacking him again, and you will see a real beast." Raril promises before pushing himself upright and stepping back. He takes a few deep breaths to calm himself, as both fur and fangs recede.

Correction: badass squared.
You have a supporter if you decide to stage a coup.

[Artemis97]

"I am threw with drow politics." Raril snaps at Invidia, still not entirely under control of himself. "It is nothing but a cycle of pointless death."

[Arkhosia]

"I am threw with drow politics." Raril snaps at Invidia, still not entirely under control of himself. "It is nothing but a cycle of pointless death."

Invidia looks a bit confused.
Not where I come from.

[Beans]

Fighting. No. Bad. Clicking softly, Nefila scuttles over to Jim and clears her throat.
Yes. The temple is very... much... a thing that we are now talking about.
The entirety of our group, in fact. She anxiously starts... knitting. With two of her throwing-needles.

[Artemis97]

"Then you aren't paying close enough attention, child." Raril says sadly, shaking his head. He steps away from the group a bit further, watching Nefila out of the corner of his eyes. Spider lady carrying sharp objects. Definitely something to be worried about.

[Arkhosia]

"Then you aren't paying close enough attention, child." Raril says sadly, shaking his head. He steps away from the group a bit further, watching Nefila out of the corner of his eyes. Spider lady carrying sharp objects. Definitely something to be worried about.

Invidia walks over to Raril
What was your homeland like?

[Lost_Deep]

Napira just stands back and stares.

Yipes.

"...Does anyone here want to hear some meditation tricks? I know a few."

People who can read body language can tell that she's tense, ready to spring into action, but honestly doesn't want to.

[The Bushranger]

Lydia simply glares at Raril, as she stands, dusts herself off, and turns away pointedly. "Neither am I."

Her patron is an eldritch Leviathan; a little fur and fangs in her face just makes her angry!

[Artemis97]

"I'd really rather not talk about that right now." Raril replies to Invidia, his fists clenched as he still fought for control of himself.

[Arkhosia]

"I'd really rather not talk about that right now." Raril replies to Invidia, his fists clenched as he still fought for control of himself.

Bad memories? You're not the only one. I understand. Sharess knows I've felt a lot of pain ever since my eyes turned red.

[Artemis97]

"What do you mean your eyes turned red?" Most drow were born with red eyes as far as Raril knew.

[Arkhosia]

"What do you mean your eyes turned red?" Most drow were born with red eyes as far as Raril knew.

Invidia looks surprised at this. Ah, different worlds.
Back where I come from, a... certain experience which I can tell you about in private,
Invidia glances at Despair as she says this
causes one's pupils to turn red.

[Artemis97]

Raril gives her a very odd look. "What? No. I don't think I need to hear about that. No. No no. Gods no!" He throws up his hands and walks away shaking his head. He didn't need to hear about the private experiences of young girls.

[Rebonack]

Well!

Divaonar feels really awkward and awful now.

Not an hour has gone by and the party is already getting all... grumpy. And all because he didn't have enough sense to realize that not everyone is quite use to Nexus weirdness yet.

He heaves a sigh and pinches the bridge of his nose. "Right, the temple. Well, we can examine some of the machinery here closely. Or that robot... potato... thing. Or we can just head straight for the temple. There doesn't seem to be anything out here that's immediately dangerous and near as I can tell we aren't on a time table, so there's no reason not to be cautious."

Nothing dangerous aside from each other, of course.

And a fall several thousand feet straight down. But does that really count?

[Deathkeeper]

Jim goes over and gives Div a pat on the back.
"Cheer up, Div. We'll be fine. I don't know if anyone's a machinist though, so the temple might be our best bet for now."

[Arkhosia]

Raril gives her a very odd look. "What? No. I don't think I need to hear about that. No. No no. Gods no!" He throws up his hands and walks away shaking his head. He didn't need to hear about the private experiences of young girls.

No, it's not that type of experience! It has nothing at all to do with bodily functions of any sort! It's just... I'd rather not share in the presence of certain party members.
Invidia darts up to Raril.
Once again, she glances at Despair, and Lydia as well.

[Aric Kale]

Clara follows silently, making no remarks as she thinks about everything they've seen. She's been taking notes on a little sketchpad, drawing and writing-one after the other.
If only she had a basic understanding of mechanics.
And, to be honest, the eldritch abomination kinda shocked her, which is apparent based off of her lack of reaction.

[BladeofObliviom]

Well, that was an interesting deadtime. Somehow this player managed to forget that Div is able to see in some extra dimensions, which probably means he can see a little more of Despair than everyone else can.

Namely, the fact that there's a soul resembling a more standard Knight in Shining Armor manipulating the corpse through some kind of possession from beyond the veil.

Spooky.

Anyway, let's pretend that he was so surprised by Div's sudden true-form-revealing and having too much trouble trying to understand what he'd just seen to defend anyone from the party suddenly attacking each other. Yup. Let's go with that.

Trying to pretend that everything he just saw didn't happen, the Revenant just shakes his head to dispel the terrible horrible thoughts of madness.

"...Right. In any case, I will not be especially helpful when it comes to technology. This place seems to be quite advanced in comparison with my own homeland.

I can do heavy lifting if that becomes necessary, however."

[Arkhosia]

Well, that was an interesting deadtime. Somehow this player managed to forget that Div is able to see in some extra dimensions, which probably means he can see a little more of Despair than everyone else can.

Namely, the fact that there's a soul resembling a more standard Knight in Shining Armor manipulating the corpse through some kind of possession from beyond the veil.

Spooky.

Anyway, let's pretend that he was so surprised by Div's sudden true-form-revealing and having too much trouble trying to understand what he'd just seen to defend anyone from the party suddenly attacking each other. Yup. Let's go with that.

Trying to pretend that everything he just saw didn't happen, the Revenant just shakes his head to dispel the terrible horrible thoughts of madness.

"...Right. In any case, I will not be especially helpful when it comes to technology. This place seems to be quite advanced in comparison with my own homeland.

I can do heavy lifting if that becomes necessary, however."

Me as well! Divaonar might notice that a red shadowy figure with claws is presently twisted around Invidia.

Same here to a degree. We have considerable advancement in magical tech, but few in actual technology.

[Terumitsu]

Invidia is unfazed.

She summons otherworldly horrors (and Buddy) on a regular basis! What did you expect?

She attempts to pick up a piece of the odd metal and show it to Nephea. She is an alchemist, maybe she knows something about it.
Know anything about this?

Gemini is totally a difficult constellation to work out and the delay to her response was totally not because her mind was wandering and thinking what robotic root vegetables would taste like. Side note: Not tasty at all unless they could be properly mashed and de-circuited.

In any case, the catamander would accept the odd thing if it was offered so she could examine it. After backing away somewhat so she wouldn't accidentally poke anyone, she would pull out a pocket knife from a pocket and see how soft the metal was or how well it scratched before whipping out a few phials from other pockets and pouring just a drop or two of the contents inside on the metal. If this wasn't some strange metal from beyond the stars and time unknowable, she should at least be able to glean some information based on the colors it turned. It was yet another one of those things her mentor had hammered in to her seeing how these identifying solutions were handy in determining the usable properties of a substance. It was kinda like how all wizards knew by heart some form of magical identification, after all.

[Beans]

Nefila watches as the catmander works on identiying the metal; she knows little about this area of expertise, but it's always good to watch a pro at work, at least!

She continues knitting as well, because... well... it's sort of a habit of hers.

[Rebonack]

Chemically the metal reacts more or less as would be expected from a copper alloy, which is certainly what the material looks like. However, it also resists scratching by steel, so it must be quite a bit harder than a normal copper alloy.

It also appears to be highly magically conductive. How interesting.

As for things noticed by Divaonar, neither particularly concerns him. He was born in the Nexus. He's seen a great deal of really weird stuff. It shouldn't come as much of a surprise that he's the sort who judges by character and deeds rather than species or appearance.

"It would be an interesting point of study," Divaonar muses. "The technology, I mean. I'm no mechanical engineer, but I know some people who are. We'll have to make a point of grabbing something that looks at least somewhat functional before we leave."

He glances off toward the distant building. "Well, I guess we're headed to the temple then? Maybe there will be some clues about what we're doing here."

That said, he begins walking that-o-way! Weren't a few already moving in that direction?

[BladeofObliviom]

I figured as much, but it's still an interesting detail.

In any case, Despair will move along with Div forward. It's not like he's much use standing back here anyway, and there is always a chance of danger up ahead...

"Perhaps. In any case, we should still watch our surroundings carefully. One never knows what kind of perils a place like this could hold."

[Aric Kale]

Wizard Tovell continues to make her notes, even going so far as to wrap some of the copper-like metal around the head of her staff and using the basic concepts of science to make a cloud.

To clarify, in her world, they have knowledge of chemistry almost equal to Earth's...for some reason. As in, an understanding of elements, molecules, and specific atoms. It just takes magic to manipulate them.

[Rebonack]

The copper alloy proves to be very magically conductive, however directly manipulating it with magic is quite a bit harder. It's surprisingly hard, sturdy material and bending it isn't a simple task in the least.

Divaonar, meanwhile, nods in agreement with the revenant. "Oh certainly. If anything I've read about the ruins of technologically advanced civilizations is true then we should expect haywire robots to start giving us problems at any moment. You never know what kind of security features might be running still after uncounted aeons."

Like psyton cannons!

Gotta watch out for those psyton cannons.

They're nasty. Thankfully the party isn't be shot at by any. Nor do there appear to be any around.

As they get closer to the temple the number of vine-chocked robotatoes steadily increases. Oddly enough every single one of them is smothered in a thick mat of flowering vines.

[Lost_Deep]

Napira nods and heads that way. It seems like the only person not unsettled by what's going on is Divaonar.

Napira hopes that she doesn't have to fight her companions. She doubt she can take Divaonar or the spider person, and she knows that she can't take the walking corpse. Heavy armor and no pressure points? Maybe one or the other, but both is a deal-breaker.

Just hope that no one commits any... more... cultural taboos.

[Arkhosia]

The copper alloy proves to be very magically conductive, however directly manipulating it with magic is quite a bit harder. It's surprisingly hard, sturdy material and bending it isn't a simple task in the least.

Divaonar, meanwhile, nods in agreement with the revenant. "Oh certainly. If anything I've read about the ruins of technologically advanced civilizations is true then we should expect haywire robots to start giving us problems at any moment. You never know what kind of security features might be running still after uncounted aeons."

Like psyton cannons!

Gotta watch out for those psyton cannons.

They're nasty. Thankfully the party isn't be shot at by any. Nor do there appear to be any around.

As they get closer to the temple the number of vine-chocked robotatoes steadily increases. Oddly enough every single one of them is smothered in a thick mat of flowering vines.

Invidia notes the PotaDOSes. They're probably constructs. Energy leaking from them might be the cause of the odd amount of growth. Or the plants eat potatoes. Either way.

[Aric Kale]

Hmm, Clara just stuffs the wire in a pocket where it seems to disappear.
She'll then follow close behind the Revenant and the Drow.

[Rebonack]

"Everyone is a construct, after a fashion," Divaonar muses as he pauses to prod at one of the robotatoes with his foot. "We just uses different types of parts."

On a whim he pulls the vines away and sure enough the machine has been turned into a veritable planter box. Though as before it isn't obvious whether the vines grew from the outside in or the inside out.

"Mm..."

He pokes at the vines themselves.

"No, I don't think the plants here are thaumavores. And the robots don't show any real sign of chemical weathering. That by itself is really weird. Usually copper alloys will oxidize. These things should be green, not bright and shiny as if they were brand new."

[Lost_Deep]

"...Unless the event that caused this was recent, implying that the vines have been growing at an unusually high pace. If that's the case, we may have to deal with malicious plant life instead, or whatever caused it might still be around."

Aha! Napira is just out of her depth. She is smarter than she looks!

[Aric Kale]

That's...ominous. Clara is definitely out of her depth.

[The Bushranger]

Lydia, meanwhile, is already heading in the direction of the temple, walking in silence. And, as she approaches, lifting her left hand and waving it slightly, the tattoo on its back flashing with light.

As she activates Darkvision.
Time to furn the world blue-toned and see who or what might be moving around inside!

[Arkhosia]

No, it's not that type of experience! It has nothing at all to do with bodily functions of any sort! It's just... I'd rather not share in the presence of certain party members.
Invidia darts up to Raril.
Once again, she glances at Despair, and Lydia as well.

Invidia whispers,
It sort of involves Buddy, and I think you would understand.

[Artemis97]

Raril looks at Invidia with concern and a bit of confusion. He nods, however. "We can talk about it later, if you like. For now, let's do some adventuring. That's what we're here for, right?" He asks, grinning.

[Deathkeeper]

His words gone mostly unaddressed, Jim moves on. While he doesn't have any magic to look around, his nose is much sharper than most of the more human folks.

[Beans]

Lydia, meanwhile, is already heading in the direction of the temple, walking in silence. And, as she approaches, lifting her left hand and waving it slightly, the tattoo on its back flashing with light.

As she activates Darkvision.
Time to furn the world blue-toned and see who or what might be moving around inside!
Darkness, yay! The knitting Vaess woman practically zip-zop-zoops to join Lydia---she's an Oohness, seeing in the dark is what she's made for!

And knitting.

[Arkhosia]

Raril looks at Invidia with concern and a bit of confusion. He nods, however. "We can talk about it later, if you like. For now, let's do some adventuring. That's what we're here for, right?" He asks, grinning.

The drow nods, grateful.
Right. Thanks.

[Rebonack]

Darkvision reveals a whole lot of nothing.

Nothing is moving around inside the building now looming before our heroes. It's as still as a tomb in there. And one of those proper tombs, too. Not the sort with restless dead all over the place.

Stupid restless dead.

As for scent, the sweet smell of those lavender flowers is most prominent. The stone has an odd earthy musk to it and the grasses smell green and lively. The building... It has an odd metallic odor. No smell of decay or mildew, though. Just faintly stagnant air.

The temple itself rises high above, the coppery dome set atop the crescent-shaped base. A single arched doorway serves as an entrance. Or at least that's the only door that can be seen from this side.

One of the robotatoes is hanging from a window ledge about twenty feet off the ground, high enough to escape the grasp of the creeping vines. Judging by the shattered window on the bits of glass on the ground it must have busted through.

[Arkhosia]

Invidia surveys the building, and draws a hand crossbow, preparing to summon a fire elemental to aid if needed.
Who wants to take point?

[BladeofObliviom]

Hey, not all Restless Dead are stupid! :smalltongue:

Agreed. The lack of corrosion is suspicious. Mayhap there is some magical effect maintaining this place?

He certainly sounds suspicious. Then again, he's a little suspicious of all magic. And most everything else, for that matter.

Despair's still holding his shield forward as the group progresses toward the ruins, right hand on the haft of his flail in case something happens. He's making every effort to stand toward the front: Any trap or threat that wants to harm them is going to have to go through him first.

"That would be me." is uttered in response to Invidia's question.

[Arkhosia]

Hey, not all Restless Dead are stupid! :smalltongue:

Agreed. The lack of corrosion is suspicious. Mayhap there is some magical effect maintaining this place?

He certainly sounds suspicious. Then again, he's a little suspicious of all magic. And most everything else, for that matter.

Despair's still holding his shield forward as the group progresses toward the ruins, right hand on the haft of his flail in case something happens. He's making every effort to stand toward the front: Any trap or threat that wants to harm them is going to have to go through him first.

"That would be me." is uttered in response to Invidia's question.

Okay.
(Are we entering now?)

[Lost_Deep]

Napira follows close behind Despair. As she enters the darker area, her eyes shift slightly, so that they're like a cat's. She can't see in total darkness, but she can see in a lot less light than humans can.

She also begins to focus on her ears, listening intently for suspicious noises.

[Arkhosia]

Napira follows close behind Despair. As she enters the darker area, her eyes shift slightly, so that they're like a cat's. She can't see in total darkness, but she can see in a lot less light than humans can.

She also begins to focus on her ears, listening intently for suspicious noises.

As Invidia enters, one might notice that her crimson eyes emit a dim red glow.

[Aric Kale]

Clara remains silent, having been unable to detect magic thus far. Still, she puts some energy into the gem at the end of her staff. causing it to glow brightly for those without darkvision. Especially since she doesn't know what that is

[Beans]

Nefila opens up her weak range of telepathy, looking for any living mind other than those of the group.
Psychically sensitive members will notice the soft brush of it against their minds, but she's not doing any looking into anyone's head---mostly just seeing they're there.

[The Bushranger]

"I'll scout," Lydia says simply, looking up at that window ledge and clenching her fist, her Outsider-granted tatoo glowing as she accesses her powers.

And then there's a shwumf of displaced air, and she dissolves into the Void in a motion the eye is barely able to process as appearing like ribbons fading into nothing, aiming to reappear on said ledge!

[Arkhosia]

"I'll scout," Lydia says simply, looking up at that window ledge and clenching her fist, her Outsider-granted tatoo glowing as she accesses her powers.

And then there's a shwumf of displaced air, and she dissolves into the Void in a motion the eye is barely able to process as appearing like ribbons fading into nothing, aiming to reappear on said ledge!

Invidia's eyes brighten in amusement. Literally.
Neat trick.

[Aric Kale]

Clara definitely feels Nefila's mental presence, but doesn't seem to feel any concern.

Voip!

Candor disappears, only to find himself next to Lydia. He'll be projecting anything he sees to Clara, who will in turn forward the sights to any who do not block her out of their minds.

[Rebonack]

[The Ground Floor]

Divaonar considers making a comment about not splitting the party, but...

Well, it looks like things are a little too late for that.

It's dark inside the temple. Extremely dark. A little bit of light is filtering through sparse windows and some panels emit an anemic blue glow, but otherwise the heart of the building is pitch black.

Div takes out a flashlight and turns it on with a click. Yay for modern technology?

The place is a real mess. Vines are growing all over everything, especially anything that looks like it would have had any mechanical importance. Control panels line the walls with creepers slithering out of lever slots and having popped switches loose. A large blue panel nearby is flickering, suggestive of a screen of some kind.

Two doors are obvious, one leading deeper into the compound and one to the second floor.

[Second Floor]

The room is full of robotatoes. Many, many robotatoes. Most are collapsed in a heap and covered in vines. Others are attached to brass alcoves in the walls and completely free of vegetation.

A stair way leads down to the first floor while doors on either side lead to who knows where. They're the mechanical sliding sort and they're both shut. Possibly jammed. Or at least without power.

[Deathkeeper]

Ground Floor

Jim seems a bit unnerved by the plants, and he's a faun. He goes over to the flickering panel to examine it.

[Aric Kale]

Ground Floor

Clara looks around, wrapping her cloak tightly around her and standing still. In the half-light behind Div, she should be nearly invisible. She mentally suggests that Krakl join his brother and the tiny purple dragon zips away.

Second Floor

Candor sends images of the robotatoes to Clara, so all mind-speakers in the party should be getting an idea of what's up here. Meanwhile, Krakl examines the robots, checking for any active, electrical build-up.

[BladeofObliviom]

[The Ground Floor]

Despair...

...continues to be useless! Technology isn't really his thing. Even so, he's on the lookout for possible traps. And possible monsters. Et cetera.

[Arkhosia]

Ground Floor

Invidia snaps her fingers, and a cloud of blackness with large shining grins and eyes comes into view. The darkness takes the shape of 3 silhouettes of humans with goat legs wearing a long tattered cape.
Hey, I need you to look around. Tell me if you see anything interesting.

Yes miss.
How interesting? Rate on a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being a penny and 10 being a priceless magical artifact.
Shut up, you know what she means.
(Feel free to write your own dialogue for them)

[Beans]

[Ground Floor]
Nefila is not especially useful herself; she contents herself with following the faun in examining the flickery plantythingy!

[The Bushranger]

[Second Floor]

Lydia gives Candor a curious look, then turns her attention to the robotatoes.
And goes to slip into the room!
Pistol in one hand, crossbow ready strapped to the other.

[BladeofObliviom]

[Ground Floor]

In the interest of the adventure not dying horribly, Despair risks moving forward a bit, walking calmly up to the sealed second-floor door and attempting to open it. Since there isn't much power here and that probably doesn't work, he pulls back a bit, pulls a crowbar out of his pack, and attempts to wedge it open instead.

What? Come on, he's not just some meathead barbarian. :smalltongue:

[Rebonack]

[Ground Floor]

The glowing panel is displaying writing and some diagrams of... Something. Heaven knows what. Unless someone happens to know all about ancient, dead languages this might be a bit difficult to figure out. There is, however, a picture of some strange device shaped like a dumb bell turned on its end. Judging from the writing pointing to different sections of it and the little warnings flashing red it must be something important.

The robotatoes seem to be utterly inert. This whole place has an air of loneliness and abandonment. Like walking through a city and finding that you're the only soul in sight. Downright eerie is what it is.

Then comes the door prying! The metal makes a straining noise, then groans as it is forced open. If the revenent can smell anything he'll be met by a rather unpleasant musty aroma wafting out of the cracked-open door. A scent not unlike mummified flesh.

How foreboding.

[The Bushranger]

[Schrodinger's Flooring]

Lydia steps over to the pried-open door. And frowns.
"Smells like weepers," the assassin says with a deep scowl. "Don't let them spit on you."

[Deathkeeper]

Jim sighs in frustration on walks away from the panel, then snorts in disgust.
"Ugh, Despair, what did you find?"

[Arkhosia]

Second Floored

Weepers?
Don't blink guys!
Does anyone here know how to tidy up?

Another friend demon comes up and whispers into Invidia's ear
Hmm... Well, that could be problematic.
Guys, I'm afraid I might have to leave the party. I'll leave these guys here to help.
(The portal's still open, right?)

[BladeofObliviom]

[Ground Floor]

Despair can, in fact, smell! Makes about as much sense as his abilities to see, hear, and feel, really. Granted, he's somewhat desensitized to the smell of mummified corpse, if only because he always smells mummified corpse to some degree. :smalltongue:

"I know not what produces this stench, though it resembles that of embalmed death rather than that of rot. It could be undead, which may not be as pleasant as I. Remain wary."

The knight puts his crowbar away, and pulls out his shield. No weapon yet; large two-handed swords and flails alike are poor choices for indoor close-quarters combat. At least his gauntlets can grab and crush without risk of wasting force on a wall.

He ignores Invidia. He's quite okay with the Demon Summoner being gone, because the profession in general unnerves him. Precisely why this is so he cannot remember, but there's something about it that makes him want to vomit in disgust.

[Lost_Deep]

Ground Floor

Napira moves up close behind the undead, using her night vision to try and see into the darkness...

And ignore her nose. Her sense of smell is better than most humans', so this isn't pleasant for her.

[Arkhosia]

Ground Floor

One of the Friend Demons drifts next to Napira.
Hello.