Maze of the Blue Medusa IC

[D20ragon]

Maze of the Blue Medusa
- Preliminary Expedition -

The air of the cellar is musty and untouched, settling strangely in your lungs as you mill about, waiting at the lip of the shaft for the promised elevator. Down here in the hidden depths of the Embassy, the weight and age of the Mountain make themselves known. Even though this is the cellar of your employers estate, and the cringing candle-jack who now stands by the lever of the lift assured you that he or she is "truly, truly important, the kind of important that doesn't let the likes of you so much as breath adjacent to them", being here still feels vaguely treasonous. Apart from whatever lights you brought, and the greyish wisp of the candle-jacks flame, this is the realm of the dark, and it is eager and waiting. Your faint illuminations only make you feel more exposed here, vulnerable, though to what, you could not say; the stacked crates, bales of rags, long banished, dust engulfed chandeliers hardly seem a threat.
Above you now, you can hear the lift. It rattles down through the interminable layers of the Embassy above, and one fancies one could hear Jotmasus - distant sounds of life, laughter, drink, and cheer - borne with it. But this is only imagination. The only sound is the sound of ancient, un-oiled metal screeching as the lift comes to a rest above the yawning shaft beneath it. The candle-jack moves away from the lever. His brass buttons gleam in the glow of the flame which flickers above his brow.
"Go on, climb in," he says. "I've no desire to remain here, the damp is dreadful. I don't envy you -" he coughs, and wipes his lips roughly "- indeed I don't."

So, it has come to this. You, and your fellow reprobates in some long forgotten cellar of the Mansion-City, boarding an ancient lift in order to plunge further into the Mountain, closer to the Gated Cities of Hell than you had ever hoped to be. And for what? A few missing explorers gone before you, and a painting of only sentimental value. The fancies of the wealthy are strange and slippery, but they are backed with fine pearls of black, white, and blue, and in truth, you've nowhere else to turn. Time for a last few breaths of air - stale though it is, it's freer than anything to be found in the labyrinthine wilds of stone below.

[drack]

Little Frog rolls his eyes at the little man while thinking to himself "drama queen... :smallsigh:"

Still, he faithfully looks around to examine his surroundings. After all, he doesn't want anyone's brother to successfully jump him from a nearby barrel or crate.

[Xenopax]

Pale Jordan follows Little frog down the stairs while clutching his blunderbuss.

[Lazymancer]

Fifty Four suspiciously looks at the screeching lift. It's not like he expects it to fall down due to disrepair, or be a trap... Nevertheless, the old habit makes him give a pause and take a good look, before he steps into it.

[D20ragon]

Little Frog rolls his eyes at the little man while thinking to himself "drama queen... :smallsigh:"

Still, he faithfully looks around to examine his surroundings. After all, he doesn't want anyone's brother to successfully jump him from a nearby barrel or crate.

The room seems devoid of enemies, real or imagined. But still, the darkness curls around the back of Little Frogs neck, and he can feel the hairs on his arms and neck prickle. One could get lost for a long time down here, second guessing shadows, he realizes. It's a kind of darkness that hearkens back to his old life, an untrustworthy darkness to be found in the foreign cities of red wood and silver and dust.


Pale Jordan follows Little frog down the stairs while clutching his blunderbuss.


Fifty Four suspiciously looks at the screeching lift. It's not like he expects it to fall down due to disrepair, or be a trap... Nevertheless, the old habit makes him give a pause and take a good look, before he steps into it.

The lift groans a little beneath the weight of the party, but holds. The candle-jack looks up expectantly, and shuffles back over to the lever.
"Any messages you'd... erm... like delivered in the event of your, erm, death?"

[drack]

The room seems devoid of enemies, real or imagined.
Little Frog swiftly rectifies this problem by imagining more. Shifting his eyes from side to side he ignores the nonsensical question and asks "...and should we require a breath of fresh air, or find something worth reporting or sharing with others...?"

[JbeJ275]

Jack looks up at the mention of messages sent in the event of death.

"Send someone you don't much like to redblade pub, and let the butcher know the rest of his owed pearls can be found firmly wedged between his arsecheeks." He takes a throwing axe and then readies it, staring intently at the darkness.

[D20ragon]

Little Frog swiftly rectifies this problem by imagining more. Shifting his eyes from side to side he ignores the nonsensical question and asks "...and should we require a breath of fresh air, or find something worth reporting or sharing with others...?"


"Just ring the bell and up you'll come." The candle-jack winds a curl of flame around his waxen finger and pulls it from his brow. Rolling it between thumb and forefinger, he whistles a note in the Old Symphony and the spark darts to rest for a moment on a what looks to be a doorbell, grown grey and green with fungus, on the side of the lift. In that small light, four knapsacks are similarly visible, piled in the lift's corner. "Enough food and light to keep heart and mind alive and well for five days," the jack says.


Jack looks up at the mention of messages sent in the event of death.

"Send someone you daon't much like to redblade pub, and let the butcher know the rest of his owed pearls can be found firmly wedged between his arsecheeks." He takes a throwing axe and then readies it, staring intently at the darkness.

The spark on the bell-button goes out with a soft hiss, and the jack rattles the lift lever gently. He winces at Jack's message, but nods all the same. "Well, I'll wish you good hunting, that my men might be spared a talk with the butcher."

[Lazymancer]

"Oh, no. No need to deliver any messages for me. It'll be more fun to deliver them myself. For everyone involved," waved away candle-jack Fifty Four.


In that small light, four knapsacks are similarly visible, piled in the lift's corner. "Enough food and light to keep heart and mind alive and well for five days," the jack says.
"Then I will not wait for death in darkness, when we will be consuming each other in silent, hungry madness of starvation. No, it is the screaming agonizing death of being consumed that awaits us now. That's good news. I guess."

Fifty Four takes one of the sacks and takes a look inside.

[D20ragon]

"Oh, no. No need to deliver any messages for me. It'll be more fun to deliver them myself. For everyone involved," waved away candle-jack Fifty Four.


"Then I will wait for death in darkness, when we will be consuming each other in silent, hungry madness of starvation. No, it is the screaming agonizing death of being consumed that awaits us now. That's good news. I guess."

Fifty Four takes one of the sacks and takes a look inside.

Fifty Four's military inventory reveals: tins of preserved fish (10), packets of dry biscuits (5), canteens of water (3), lantern, fungal (1), coil of rope (1) bag of pitons (1), climbing hammer (1), vials of grey powder marked "drink" (2), per bag. Though the vials do at first present an inscrutable oddity, after a moments examination a memory is jogged: a cleansing solute, able to purify most liquids, rendering them potable, if not pleasant.

[Lazymancer]

After looking through the contents of the sack, Fifty Four nods:

"Good enough, yes. I guess, we are as ready, as we'll ever be. Downwards, then?"

[drack]

Little Frog accepts a bag without comment, slipping it onto his back under his cloak as he waits patiently in the lift.

So, D20, what do we have here? What's our layout, what are our options, what do we see around us? Are you mapping or am I? If I am, can I get some distance/length measurements so that I get everything scaled right? How about the floofs? What do we see, what's filling our scenery?

Also, since I opted for the phantom version, I don't think we got the details hammered out on it yet. How many phantom items can I have at once, and how long do they last? Can I renew a phantom item's time limit off itself or do I need the original (or are they not limited by time making this part of the question somewhat moot)?

What about helpers/mooks, I assume we don't/can't have any?

Oh boy, drack's going full blown dungeon crasher mode. :smalltongue:

Fake edit: wait, didn't we just go down and have him point out our gear and how to return at the base of it, or did you just mean down as onwards in general? I posted last in the OOC so I ought to have this stuff here, feel free to reply OOCly if it's more covenant folks. :smallsmile:

[Xenopax]

Pale Jordan takes a different sack and decides to be the first to go down.
Follow me lads. Lets get ourselves moving he walks onward into the elevator.

[D20ragon]

The catch is released, the lever thrown, and with a lurch the lift starts downwards, rattling downwards though the dark at speeds that are perhaps worrying, but what time does one have to worry when their world is reduced to motion and anticipation, the rush of wind and the clatter of metal on stone, the streak of the fungal lights through the darkness, the only indicators of a world where depth and height and speed have real meaning.

And suddenly it is over, the lift slams to a halt and the impact rushes up through the soles of your boots and into your shins and knees. The silence is bizarre and oppressive. Outside the lift, the room you've landed in seems unfinished. It's circular in shape, some 30 feet in diameter. The floor is smooth for about 10 feet out, and shines slightly in the light, claystone the shade of rough earthenware. The rest of the floor, and indeed the walls and the ceiling, are rough cut, as though someone had sketched out the idea for a room with a chisel, then gave up before anything came of it.

The one notable feature in the room is that, oddly off center about 15 feet away from you, a circular hole some 3 feet wide has been cut in the center of the room. From the lift, there's no telling how deep it is, but in the green steady glow of the fungal lanterns, a few pitons hammered into the sides are clearly visible.

[Xenopax]

Well then! Down we go. Pale Jordan hammers the rope into the side of the hole entrance and throws the rest of it down the hole. He then puts his blunderbuss away and after marking this room on a sheet of paper starts climbing down the rope. Theres probably all sorts of creatures down here so keep your weapons ready men.

[JbeJ275]

"Can someone help me lug this sack o cr*p out the lift?" Jack says pulling on a tyre sized lump of metal which was totally in the lift the whole time.

"I reckon this is as good a place to set a base camp as any"

[Lazymancer]

"Can someone help me lug this sack o cr*p out the lift?" Jack says pulling on a tyre sized lump of metal which was totally in the lift the whole time.
"Sure. Do you want to dump it down the hole?"

Fifty Four helps to roll out the lump of metal, and then proceeds to explore the cavern-room, trying to discern anything suspicious or odd about it.


... after marking this room on a sheet of paper starts climbing down the rope. Theres probably all sorts of creatures down here so keep your weapons ready men.
"No worries, mate. We'll stay safe and sound up here. Scream if something happens. Don't forget to gurgle at the end of your agony-filled terror-inspiring blood-curdling scream to let us know it is dangerous down there."

[Xenopax]

Well arent you a cheerful one? Also dont throw that down here until i get out.
Im going to go down and recon the bottom of this hole. then im going to go up and wait for the others to come with me.

[D20ragon]

"Can someone help me lug this sack o cr*p out the lift?" Jack says pulling on a tyre sized lump of metal which was totally in the lift the whole time.

"I reckon this is as good a place to set a base camp as any"


"Sure. Do you want to dump it down the hole?"

Fifty Four helps to roll out the lump of metal, and then proceeds to explore the cavern-room, trying to discern anything suspicious or odd about it.


"No worries, mate. We'll stay safe and sound up here. Scream if something happens. Don't forget to gurgle at the end of your agony-filled terror-inspiring blood-curdling scream to let us know it is dangerous down there."

Someone seems to have reckoned the same as Jack; as Fifty Four casts his light into the shadowed corners of the room, two knapsacks, of much the same make as the ones provided to you all, come into view. They seem to be mostly empty, sagging sadly, their shadows pooling around them.


Well arent you a cheerful one? Also dont throw that down here until i get out.
Im going to go down and recon the bottom of this hole. then im going to go up and wait for the others to come with me.

You clamber into the hole, hands wrapped firmly around the rope, which stretches a little alarmingly beneath you, but holds. The air in the shaft is musty, the still air of the cavern rendered stagnant. You inch yourself downward, unable to see much below you even with the ghostly light of your fungus lantern. After a time, hands aching, you reach the end of the rope, and to your dismay, realize you have reached the bottom of the shaft, but not the ground. Your legs swing in the air, and you cannot tell if below you is a drop of 5, 10, or 100 feet.

Punctuation/capitalization, please. I hate to be that guy, but I'd like a bit of formality in the IC. Don't worry about such stuff in the OOC though.

[Xenopax]

Pale Jordan climbs back up the rope until he reaches the base camp. He tells the other two That's a deep hole mate. Damn thing smells too. Used up all my rope trying to reach the bottom. If you roll while you sleep I suggest you don't sleep near it.
He then goes over to his bag and rifles through it.

[Lazymancer]

Fifty Four pulls up the rope that goes down the shaft to compare its length with the coil of rope from the knapsack he was given. Additionally, he examines both ropes (to see if there are any defects on either rope and if the end of rope that went down the shaft is cut or torn).

The rope, obviously, stays pulled out. No reason to give anyone from below easy way up to the room.

[D20ragon]

Pale Jordan climbs back up the rope until he reaches the base camp. He tells the other two That's a deep hole mate. Damn thing smells too. Used up all my rope trying to reach the bottom. If you roll while you sleep I suggest you don't sleep near it.
He then goes over to his bag and rifles through it.

The bag that has been provided for you is identical in contents to the one that Fifty Four inspected, with the exception of the small vials of purification solution. In their place is a small unmarked jar of a tar-like substance. Even through the lid, the smell of glue and wet earth is evident.


Fifty Four pulls up the rope that goes down the shaft to compare its length with the coil of rope from the knapsack he was given. Additionally, he examines both ropes (to see if there are any defects on either rope and if the end of rope that went down the shaft is cut or torn).

The rope, obviously, stays pulled out. No reason to give anyone from below easy way up to the room.

The ropes look to be of the same make. However, the one you pulled out of the shaft is a good 10 feet shorter than the one from your napsack. It looks as though its been hastily cut, with rough sawing marks near the bottom. In addition, it's clearly been subject to strain - the fibers are stretched and worn towards the center of the rope.

[Lazymancer]

After finishing his investigation, Fifty Four reports to the rest of the group:

"Huh... I've got good news, fellas. The rope doesn't look like it was bitten or chewed in half and there is also an unrivalled opportunity to experience for a few moments an unexpected - but very stimulating - flight. In the downward direction. We just need to keep using the old rope and it will happen."

After poking a few times abandoned knapsacks with the butt of his rifle, Fifty Four takes a look inside.

"Now, let's see what our first ill-gotten gains are..."

[D20ragon]

After finishing his investigation, Fifty Four reports to the rest of the group:

"Huh... I've got good news, fellas. The rope doesn't look like it was bitten or chewed in half and there is also an unrivalled opportunity to experience for a few moments an unexpected - but very stimulating - flight. In the downward direction. We just need to keep using the old rope and it will happen."

After poking a few times abandoned knapsacks with the butt of his rifle, Fifty Four takes a look inside.

"Now, let's see what our first ill-gotten gains are..."

The first bag yields nothing but a pile of rags, stained by what looks to be machine grease, and a small whistle that has been tied to an inner loop of the knapsack by a frayed cord. The second bag contains an old bottle with a faded label, mostly scratched away, on which the words "Larklady's Raspberry Tincture" can be made out. The bottle has clearly been repurposed, for the liquid inside is not the cheerful red one might expect of a raspberry tincture but rather a dark, sullen grey, largely clear towards the top with a layer of murky sediment laying at the bottom, the two halves as distinct as oil and water.

[Xenopax]

Pale Jordan asks for the other peoples ropes so he could tie them into one big one. He plans to hammer the pitons in along the way so he will not need the rope the next time.

[Lazymancer]

Pale Jordan asks for the other peoples ropes so he could tie them into one big one. He plans to hammer the pitons in along the way so he will not need the rope the next time.
Fifty Four: "I don't mind giving you enough rope for proper hanging, but would you mind lowering a lantern into the shaft first?"

[Xenopax]

Good idea lad. Pale Jordan ties a fungal lantern to a rope and lowers it as far as he can and tries to see what is down there.

[Lazymancer]

While Pale Jordan lowers the rope with lantern, Fifty Four stands with his rifle near the shaft, looking down for signs of movement.

[JbeJ275]

As the others surround the pit Jack throws a loose stone in and tries to geuss the depth of the pit, and the contents, from the sounds coming back up.

[Xenopax]

Pale Jordan hands the rope to 54.Cannae see anything. May as well go down again. Tie the remaining rope to the end and lower it further.
Pale Jordan fixes the new rope to the pitons and climbs down.

[D20ragon]

Good idea lad. Pale Jordan ties a fungal lantern to a rope and lowers it as far as he can and tries to see what is down there.


As the others surround the pit Jack throws a loose stone in and tries to geuss the depth of the pit, and the contents, from the sounds coming back up.

The pale light of the lowered fungus lantern illuminates the rock as it plummets past. The stone rattles against something, and then, after a brief pause, there is a quiet clack. You estimates the hole to be around a hundred feet, give or take.


Pale Jordan hands the rope to 54.Cannae see anything. May as well go down again. Tie the remaining rope to the end and lower it further.
Pale Jordan fixes the new rope to the pitons and climbs down.

You descend a little more quickly this time, somewhat used to the climb by now. At the point where you reached the end of the rope previously, you test the knot, but have little choice other than trust it to bear your weight, and lower yourself out of the shaft. Swaying in the air, the lanterns light reveals that you are suspended above a massive vaulted cave-chamber. The floor far below glimmers a soft bruise purple, and the air smells of damp, concealing something sharp and sweet.
The rest of the new rope extends below you what you estimate to be 10 feet, nowhere near the ground. Casting your gaze about, you notice a ledge set into the wall of the chamber, some 15 feet away from where you dangle, and perhaps 8 or 10 feet from where the roof of the chamber begins to slope into the wall.

[Xenopax]

I relay all this information up to the others and ask for their opinion.

[drack]

Punctuation/capitalization, please. I hate to be that guy, but I'd like a bit of formality in the IC. Don't worry about such stuff in the OOC though.


Feel free to catch me on this, it'll do me good. Also, can we try to update our sheet-posts with the gear we find? I'll take whatever folks don't want, and will make a character table for the first post in a bit. Maybe a map later, though vertical maps are harder... :smallsigh:


The first bag yields nothing but a pile of rags, stained by what looks to be machine grease, and a small whistle that has been tied to an inner loop of the knapsack by a frayed cord. The second bag contains an old bottle with a faded label, mostly scratched away, on which the words "Larklady's Raspberry Tincture" can be made out. The bottle has clearly been repurposed, for the liquid inside is not the cheerful red one might expect of a raspberry tincture but rather a dark, sullen grey, largely clear towards the top with a layer of murky sediment laying at the bottom, the two halves as distinct as oil and water.
Glancing at the abundance of rags little frog thinks to himself how much better freshly re-heated biscuits and canned fist taste then their colder more chilled cousin. :smallwink::smallwink:

Pale Jordan asks for the other peoples ropes so he could tie them into one big one. He plans to hammer the pitons in along the way so he will not need the rope the next time.
Seeing that his peers are still short on rope, little frog ties his into a loop about the existing rope and drops it down so as to avoid helplessly watching it slide past his ally.

After passing the rope down little frog examines the circular room above, mentally tallying everything he sees from nooks and cracks in the walls to the number of skeletons abound and missing bones therein. He'd long since learned not to take such things for granted.

As he silently examines the room, little frog also examines his team mates. The fearless Pale Jordan who dove head first into a mysterious hole to investigate what killed all the people before them, observant, albeit cynical Fifty Four who carefully amassed loot at every corner, and even the vulgar Jack. His gaze lingered on the four additional backpacks and the tire sized lump of metal that it seemed would require two people to move, let alone move slowly downwards through the hole before them. Little Frog was not a well built man, nor was he a brilliant man, but he was cunning enough to stay along this far, and knew how to think up a new angle when he lacked an easy solution. As it stood they'd be quickly burdened down by that hunk of metal, and quickly clawed to death by whatever's down below. Overall Little Frog didn't like it. He didn't like their odds and didn't like how it looked like they were setting themselves up to fail. They had food, water, just enough rope to leave them a way out, assuming nobody came down to take the rope back while they were in the hole, and lastly they had a bag to carry it all in. They didn't even have a map!

After examining the room and their situation, Little Frog immediately rang the bell for the lift before turning to address his peers. Speaking bluntly he says "Look guys, you are all swell fellows and I'd feel confident enough to tackle this with you, but from the looks of this, in a day or two we'll be deader then dead. I'm gonna go top side and see if I can't find us some supplies, and perhaps even a few helping hands to carry that lump of metal and watch our rope for us. Maybe then we'll at least have a chance. You guys are free to keep poking around, but I hope you'll at least avoid dying before I return." Perhaps Little Frog was known to be a bit mad, perhaps he was mad to announce the deaths of everyone present so openly and with a smile on his face, but he at least seemed sane enough for the moment to examine the possible threats to them.


So, we never really decided how well we know each other. If we know each other well enough to know each other's strengths and gear I'll ask to copy the trigger mechanism for the portal beacon with my stone before I head up, but my posting frequency's been low enough I figure I won't be killing your flow or jive to skip out for a beat or two. :smallbiggrin:

[Lazymancer]

"Look guys, you are all swell fellows and I'd feel confident enough to tackle this with you, but from the looks of this, in a day or two we'll be deader then dead. I'm gonna go top side and see if I can't find us some supplies, and perhaps even a few helping hands to carry that lump of metal and watch our rope for us. Maybe then we'll at least have a chance. You guys are free to keep poking around, but I hope you'll at least avoid dying before I return."
"Sure, but I have a request for you: buy me a bottle of ether topside." Fifty Four hands him pearls.

Assuming I have enough pearls, of course.

[Xenopax]

I'll second the ether. Pale Jordan hands him a couple Pearls.
Ether is a drink right?

[drack]

Little Frog accepts the currency without complaint, chuckling as he complains "Guys, guys, you want booze and ether, but you don't even want a warm blanket or some better food then these damn military rations? At the least we should get some rats to carry the tin can and some trusted eyes to watch our backs. Before you know it we'll have a proper intelligence camp here, else we're just lying in this tomb pulling in dirt over our heads as we prepare to go nighty night."

[Xenopax]

Lad have you ever taken a hit of ether? Or a drink of Booze? If we must die, I wish to die drunk.
Jordan turns to 54.
While he is going to get our booze, what do you think we should do?

[Lazymancer]

While he is going to get our booze, what do you think we should do?
"Well, we can tie three ropes together and see if we can reach the bottom. Other than than, someone's gotta get acrobatic and try to swing to the ledge somehow. Not sure which of those is worse."

Fifty Four tries to look into the shaft: "Jordan! Do you actually see the bottom of the cavern? Can you tell me how far down it is? Does it glow by itself or does light of your lantern reach it?"

[Xenopax]

Lad have you ever taken a hit of ether? Or a drink of Booze? If we must die, I wish to die drunk.
Jordan turns to 54.
While he is going to get our booze, what do you think we should do? just realized that I'm yelling this all from the bottom of the pit

[Xenopax]

You descend a little more quickly this time, somewhat used to the climb by now. At the point where you reached the end of the rope previously, you test the knot, but have little choice other than trust it to bear your weight, and lower yourself out of the shaft. Swaying in the air, the lanterns light reveals that you are suspended above a massive vaulted cave-chamber. The floor far below glimmers a soft bruise purple, and the air smells of damp, concealing something sharp and sweet.
The rest of the new rope extends below you what you estimate to be 10 feet, nowhere near the ground. Casting your gaze about, you notice a ledge set into the wall of the chamber, some 15 feet away from where you dangle, and perhaps 8 or 10 feet from where the roof of the chamber begins to slope into the wall.

"The lamp is lighting it. Theres a ledge 5 ft away from the end of the rope. Should I try to swing to it?"

[JbeJ275]

"The lamp is lighting it. Theres a ledge 5 ft away from the end of the rope. Should I try to swing to it?"

"Maybe if ya, come back up we can get you something to reach to the ledge with?" "Hearing ya miss might really put me off my lunch"

[Xenopax]

"I'm going to get old climbing up and down this rope. Oh well."
Jordan scampers up the rope. He ties the last rope onto it and then climbs back down.
this rope is now 150 feet long. Please tell me that I've reached the bottom.

[drack]

Seeing that his peers are still short on rope, little frog ties his into a loop about the existing rope and drops it down so as to avoid helplessly watching it slide past his ally.
:smallcool::smallwink::smallbiggrin:

[D20ragon]

"I'm going to get old climbing up and down this rope. Oh well."
Jordan scampers up the rope. He ties the last rope onto it and then climbs back down.
this rope is now 150 feet long. Please tell me that I've reached the bottom.

In fact, you're about 10 feet short still, but you should be able to make the jump.

You nimbly descend the twice-lengthened rope, and find yourself sinking into that sharp, sweet scent you caught a whiff of before. The smell of licorice, cloying and pungent hangs about the lower airs of the cavern like a still pool. It seems to cling to your skin, and only moments after entering, you know that you shall smell of sweet, damp anise for days to come. The light too, grows stronger, a sick, bruising violet light that you have to squint through to make much out. But as you grow nearer to the end of the rope, shapes do become visible. 10 feet below the end of the rope, a field of spores stretches out of sight. Each is the size of a bowling ball, and round. Even from where you cling to the rope, slight motion is visible. The spores are rooted to the ground by thin, pale stalks, no bigger around than your thumb, and they tug at them, pulling the stalks almost straight, straining upward.

As you watch, one disconnects from its stem with a soft plop and sails slowly upward through the still air towards you. It drifts by your head, and you have the chance to view it more closely: it flexes slightly, startlingly quick tremors shooting through it as some invisible growth occurs inside. It's a bottle green-blue, lit from within by some tiny violet luminescence that shines through the thick, dark lenses that make up its tessellated skin.
It drifts past your head and up above you, making you crane your neck painfully to follow its motion.

[Xenopax]

In fact, you're about 10 feet short still, but you should be able to make the jump.

You nimbly descend the twice-lengthened rope, and find yourself sinking into that sharp, sweet scent you caught a whiff of before. The smell of licorice, cloying and pungent hangs about the lower airs of the cavern like a still pool. It seems to cling to your skin, and only moments after entering, you know that you shall smell of sweet, damp anise for days to come. The light too, grows stronger, a sick, bruising violet light that you have to squint through to make much out. But as you grow nearer to the end of the rope, shapes do become visible. 10 feet below the end of the rope, a field of spores stretches out of sight. Each is the size of a bowling ball, and round. Even from where you cling to the rope, slight motion is visible. The spores are rooted to the ground by thin, pale stalks, no bigger around than your thumb, and they tug at them, pulling the stalks almost straight, straining upward.

As you watch, one disconnects from its stem with a soft plop and sails slowly upward through the still air towards you. It drifts by your head, and you have the chance to view it more closely: it flexes slightly, startlingly quick tremors shooting through it as some invisible growth occurs inside. It's a bottle green-blue, lit from within by some tiny violet luminescence that shines through the thick, dark lenses that make up its tessellated skin.
It drifts past your head and up above you, making you crane your neck painfully to follow its motion.
"The Glow lad! There's flying mushroom lantern things! Come down quick. I could use a backguard. Also there's something off about the lamps.

My instincts and my zombie movie knowledge are both telling me to open fire. Alas the rules of Roleplay forbid it

[Lazymancer]

"Yeah, right. Just climb down, pray that rope doesn't snap and nobody gets munched on before I'll get there - just to get eaten together..." mutters Fifty Four to himself, and then screams down the shaft: "Jordan! Hold tight the rope! Strategical withdrawal!"

Fifty Four starts pulling out the rope with Jordan out of the shaft.

:smalltongue: I hope nobody expected me to rush headlong into the unknown.

[Xenopax]

"Bah you're no fun." Pale Jordan holds tight and gets pulled up.

[Lazymancer]

After Pale Jordan gives explanation on weird flying globes from the cave below:
"Understood. Let me try this time - can't have you alone running up and down. However, I'm leery of the weird stuff you've seen down there, so I'll try to get to that ledge instead."

Fifty Four proceeds to remove the old rope entirely from the shaft. Instead he ties two coils of rope together. One end of the combined rope he ties around himself, the other - attaches to the pitons at the top of the shaft, checking them for any sing of weakness beforehand.

I.e. we have all-new 100 ft. long rope that goes down the shaft. Also, I can't fall to the bottom - unless the rope breaks.

"Okay. That should be enough." Leaving green-feathered abomination in charge of his bag, Fifty Four takes only rifle, lantern, hammer and a few pitons before he climbs down the shaft.

After getting out of the bottom of shaft, Fifty Four starts swinging on the rope, trying to get closer to the ledge and grab it.

[D20ragon]

After Pale Jordan gives explanation on weird flying globes from the cave below:
"Understood. Let me try this time - can't have you alone running up and down. However, I'm leery of the weird stuff you've seen down there, so I'll try to get to that ledge instead."

Fifty Four proceeds to remove the old rope entirely from the shaft. Instead he ties two coils of rope together. One end of the combined rope he ties around himself, the other - attaches to the pitons at the top of the shaft, checking them for any sing of weakness beforehand.

I.e. we have all-new 100 ft. long rope that goes down the shaft. Also, I can't fall to the bottom - unless the rope breaks.

"Okay. That should be enough." Leaving green-feathered abomination in charge of his bag, Fifty Four takes only rifle, lantern, hammer and a few pitons before he climbs down the shaft.

After getting out of the bottom of shaft, Fifty Four starts swinging on the rope, trying to get closer to the ledge and grab it.

You see no sign of the strange globe that Jordan described, and so without wasting time, begin to swing yourself closer to the ledge. After about four attempts, you are able to get a firm hold of a jagged outcropping, and easily pull yourself onto the ledge. From there, your lantern light reveals that the ledge continues, albeit somewhat shakily, to run around the cavern, or at least, what you can see of it.

From your new vantage point, you can hear a faint sound. The curvature of the caverns arching ceiling amplifies a noise from somewhere in the cavern beyond your view: muffled scratching, metal against wood or clay. The sound stops and starts semi-regularly, but if there's a specific pattern, you are unable to determine it.

[Xenopax]

Fifty four what do you see down there lad? Can I send the bird down too? It be giving me the stinkeye.
I want to look in 54's spoiler so bad :(
Also is it safe to assume quickfix Jack isn't joining us?

[Lazymancer]

"I knew it. Never volunteer for anything. When you do - it'll be your last mistake," mutters Fifty Four to himself.

Stoically ignoring shouting from above, and trying not to make any noises, Fifty Four attempts to find some protruding stone he could tie a rope around.

If there is such a place, Fifty Four unties rope from around himself and ties it to the stone (trying to make as little noise as possible and carefully listening to the weird sounds).

If none are in vicinity, then he screams "I'm okay. Prepare to get down yourself, once I give a signal!" - and then proceeds to hammer a piton to tie a rope to (without untying the rope from himself).

[Xenopax]

Jordan goes as far away from the bird as possible. He thinks to himself "Shoulda forced him to take the bird with him. He keeps his Axe ready in case 54 comes running up the rope with something casing him.

[Lazymancer]

After tying rope to the rock, Fifty Four readies his rifle and moves a bit away, taking another look around. Then he screams back in the direction of the shaft:

"All done! You can come down the rope now! But be on alert, it sounds like there might be something moving here!"

[Xenopax]

"Gladly!" Pale Jordan scampers down the rope for the fourth time in recent memory. As soon as he hits the bottom he takes out his axe. "Where was te movement comin from?"

[Lazymancer]

There hadn't been any confirmation, but GM seems to have been online, so I'm assuming Jordan gets there safely and nothings happens.

"If only I knew..." was the only answer Fifty Four could come up with. "Let's slowly go along one side of the ledge, and see where it goes."

[Xenopax]

Pale Jordan says "Sure. You take point and I'll follow"

[Lazymancer]

Fifty Four visibly winces. "Sure. Brilliant suggestion."

Carefully looking, listening, and even sniffing for any signs of danger, Fifty Four goes along the ledge in the rightward (clockwise) direction.

How wide is the ledge?

Also, to facilitate the game, we are not having the whole adorable sequence of "no, you go first". But we can say it happened :smallbiggrin:

[JbeJ275]

Meanwhile Jack is busy fiddling with gear in the corner, hoping that the others go into the inky black embrace so he can go onto a normal, well-lit cavern.

[Xenopax]

Meanwhile Jack is busy fiddling with gear in the corner, hoping that the others go into the inky black embrace so he can go onto a normal, well-lit cavern.
Cause he's a ninja who no one noticed

[D20ragon]

Fifty Four visibly winces. "Sure. Brilliant suggestion."

Carefully looking, listening, and even sniffing for any signs of danger, Fifty Four goes along the ledge in the rightward (clockwise) direction.

How wide is the ledge?

Also, to facilitate the game, we are not having the whole adorable sequence of "no, you go first". But we can say it happened :smallbiggrin:

The ledge is about a foot and a half wide in most locations, sometimes extending out to two feet, sometimes leaving you with only six inches to thread your way along. But it is sturdy, and you are able follow it as it winds along for about 350 feet at a slow decline. The scraping sound you heard grows louder as you proceed, but still you are unable to pinpoint a location.

By the time you've reached the ledge's end, you're much closer to the ground, and the field of spores stretches out only twenty feet below you. At the edge of your field of vision, you can make out a patch of clear stone, a small mound or hill jutting out from the pulsing, violet light of the spores.

[Xenopax]

"There's something inside of me that's telling me to burn this all down. Should we? Personally I'm up for it but it might draw some unsavory types out"

[Lazymancer]

"We don't know if this stuff burns, if burning will attract this unsavoury something, and if we want to attract this unsavoury something. Not to mention possibility of filling the cave noxious fumes, if this stuff burns too well. I'd rather postpone setting anything on fire until we check what's on the other end of the ledge. Shall we?" responds Fifty Four.

[Xenopax]

"May as well" pale Jordan mutters something about frogs and shopping trips.

[D20ragon]

"We don't know if this stuff burns, if burning will attract this unsavoury something, and if we want to attract this unsavoury something. Not to mention possibility of filling the cave noxious fumes, if this stuff burns too well. I'd rather postpone setting anything on fire until we check what's on the other end of the ledge. Shall we?" responds Fifty Four.


"May as well" pale Jordan mutters something about frogs and shopping trips.

The two of you retrace your steps and then some, but quickly find yourselves crouching as the ledge continues along the wall at an increasingly steep incline until, five feet ahead from where you have stopped, back cramped, it tapers into the ceiling.

[Xenopax]

Pale Jordan looks around for a way to go further on.

[Lazymancer]

"Well, Jordan. I'll leave you here to poke around some more for hidden places or easy ways to climb up the ledge, but we have a general idea of out surroundings - so I'll go upstairs and bring some of my stuff down."

Fifty Four salutes Jordan and goes back to the upper cave. This time he takes old rope - which his trusty All-Purpose Semi-Trained Lucky Death Pigeon bites in half - and two pitons, before going back down.

I.e. old rope is now 2 pieces of old rope (25 feet each).

Unless Jordan got himself eaten, Fifty Four meets him below and descends with him to the lower part of the ledge.

[Xenopax]

Don't be too long. This place just screams sneak attack. Jordan picks up a mushroom from the floor and sniffs it.

[D20ragon]

The spore practically springs free of its stalk, bobbing upward into your hands. A thick layer of clear gel surrounds the trembling plates within, and your hands sink into it slightly, the gel oozing up between your fingers. The thing smells overwhelmingly of anise, and as you bring your face close to smell, you catch sight of a little moving shape in the very center, a little shard of something bobbing about slowly in the liquid innards.

[Xenopax]

Pale Jordan tries to get the moving thing out with his hatchet. Hopefully it's edible.

[Lazymancer]

Fifty Four gets down to the lower end of the ledge and starts hammering in pitons. After both pitons are in place, he ties ropes to them and waits for Pale Jordan.

[D20ragon]

Pale Jordan tries to get the moving thing out with his hatchet. Hopefully it's edible.

Your hatchet sinks into the gel, and, after a bit of prying, cleaves through the thicker plates that form the interior of the spore. Instantly, you are dazzled. A bright light, which in the relative darkness of the cavern seems entirely alien, spills forth from the guts of the spore, which have run all down your hands, bioluminescent goo smeared into your clothes, gently fading from an angry yellow-white to a dull green. Once the spots clear from your eyes, the wreckage of the spore in your hand becomes visible, and in it, a tiny human tooth, much too small to have come from a grown man. It sits, clean and pale in the surrounding ooze which is rapidly losing its glow and becoming an ugly grey. Compared to the softness of the spores rubbery flesh, the tooth seems out of place, hard and brittle, almost nauseatingly so.

[drack]

Meanwhile, above ground:
Little Frog had successfully escaped the underground death trap, and was beginning to seriously question the life choices that lead him to suicidally dive into this expedition with the others. Straightening out his back and standing tall, Little Frog breaths in deep, lifting his gaze up to the moon above as he does so. It was a chilly night without mist, but a sickly dampness hung in the air, struggling to slip free of it and into the bones of unsuspecting travelers. A wolfish grin spreads over Little Frog's face as several flickers of excitement and ruthlessness flash through his eyes before settling back into a happy facade of calm confidence.

His fingers first, and then his limbs stretched and contorted in an manner that seemed inhuman as he stretched out his muscles and got his blood flowing once again. Then, blending with the shadows, he went to pick up the help he'd carefully picked out several days prior. After all, it took quite some time to sort through all those files, but Little Frog didn't have a habit of avoiding such unpleasant

Meanwhile Jack is busy fiddling with gear in the corner, hoping that the others go into the inky black embrace so he can go onto a normal, well-lit cavern.
Using his phantom replication of the teleporter keyed to the pad, Little Frog helped move his hired help and supplies back down into the cave without being bogged down with all the standard procedurals. After all, Jack had been carefully maintaining and tuning the device in preparation for their transit, and totally not hiding in the relatively safe entryway alone whilst the others risked their fool necks down below all this time, right? :smalltongue::smallbiggrin:

First out was Marvan who carefully surveyed the area, than the two excited boys excitedly rushed down, then the Maylove three slowly walked out, and last Little Frog and his three trusted men executed evasive maneuvers as they rolled free from the device, just in case it was in a sea of ravenous carnivorous bunny fiends or some such. Just as they exited the device however, they were met with new danger. Bradley had emerged just in time to hear mention of burning a field of strange alien mushrooms, and found himself instantly incised.

"There's something inside of me that's telling me to burn this all down. Should we? Personally I'm up for it but it might draw some unsavory types out"
As the others were still rolling clear of the device, he was already swinging his somewhat overweight body down along the rope as quick as he could in hopes of seeing that pretty flame burn quicker. In fact, he wasn't even half way down the rope when he started throwing fire towards them.


Yup, that's right guys, you're all welcome. I hired help so we could be less suicidal, and the very first thing that did is super suicidal for all of us. :smalltongue:

[Xenopax]

"Stop burning the shrooms ya grog! Those could be valuable! Who da hell are these people Frog"

[drack]

Little Frog's voice joined with Pale Jordan's. "Kid, kid, can't you at least wait a moment and light up the surroundings before you try to burn things? What if their gas puts you to sleep where you can't even enjoy the flicker of the flames?" While the first half of his words were probably in vain, the second half seems to have resonated with the kid as he pauses to conciser. Seizing the opportunity Little Frog waves at the group of new arrivals at large indicating "Brought help." Pointing at the three former juniors he says "My people.", gesturing at the Mayloves he says "Refugees.", and lastly pointing at the two kids he says "Criminals, now our trainees."

Meanwhile Sammy, John, and Charles set down crates of supplies for the base camp, gathering up what supplies Bradley already dropped in his rush. Bah, maybe the hotblooded ignorance of youths isn't so cute at times...

[D20ragon]

"Stop burning the shrooms ya grog! Those could be valuable! Who da hell are these people Frog"

Unfortunately for Bradley, but to the relief of all others, the flames that danced into the air at the young mans bequest only tickle the spores before quickly dying out, the soft jelly proving a ready deterrent to flame. However, in the unexpected light, gentler on the eyes than the glaring ooze of the spores interior, those in the cavern are able to once again catch a glimpse of the wider area: spores for hundreds of feet, and then, hunched uncomfortably some distance away, a mound of naked stone, a few stray shapes heaped atop it.

[drack]

A trace of irritation flashes across little frog's eyes, and on a man who wouldn't bat his eye at killing, that flash of irritation might well have meant the boy's life, but instead little frog instead grabs Bradley's ear, and while twisting it, drags him back from the hole in the floor. Setting the hirelings to work on constructing a base camp, Little Frog sends Charles down to try cutting at one of the 'shrooms, and Marvan to investigate the mound of naked stones. Bradley's designated to playing with fire in the air to keep himself entertained and the cavern illuminated, and the much more reliable candle jane Jannis Tod is put to work seeing what kinds of non-actively-maintained light sources they can improvise now that we have an ignition source. Sammy is set to barricading the way back up and the hole down with lockable trap doors allowing more controlled entry from this choke point while john searches along the walls of the first room for any hidden entrances, traps, or hideaways. Little Frog then offers to toss his phantom replication of the teleporter keyed to the pad at a 'shroom to give an isolated sample if the others think it's a good idea and if Jack agrees (his teleport-pad, his rules). If they agree, he'll toss it down generally at the 'shrooms.

[Xenopax]

Pale Jordan hacks at more mushrooms. He wishes to see what happens when they are eaten. Once he has 2 or 3 caps and stems he takes them over to the fire. He will impale them on sticks and Cook all 3.

[JbeJ275]

Well if it needs doing the least I can do is help you look after this bit o’ kit while the boys take in the darkness.

[drack]

Little Frog tosses down the phantom teleporter in an attempt to pop a 'shroom up, leaving the phantom one down there so Pale Jordan and the others can easily pop back up without climbing. He then allows Bradley to try burning an isolated 'shroom and instructs him to keep a fire going for 'shroom roasting in general. Ahh, how handy it is to have so much help. After Charles is done helping cut the shrooms for cooking, he'll start investigating around the periphery of the area on the ledge just like John's exploring the first room.

[D20ragon]

A trace of irritation flashes across little frog's eyes, and on a man who wouldn't bat his eye at killing, that flash of irritation might well have meant the boy's life, but instead little frog instead grabs Bradley's ear, and while twisting it, drags him back from the hole in the floor. Setting the hirelings to work on constructing a base camp, Little Frog sends Charles down to try cutting at one of the 'shrooms, and Marvan to investigate the mound of naked stones. Bradley's designated to playing with fire in the air to keep himself entertained and the cavern illuminated, and the much more reliable candle jane Jannis Tod is put to work seeing what kinds of non-actively-maintained light sources they can improvise now that we have an ignition source. Sammy is set to barricading the way back up and the hole down with lockable trap doors allowing more controlled entry from this choke point while john searches along the walls of the first room for any hidden entrances, traps, or hideaways. Little Frog then offers to toss his phantom replication of the teleporter keyed to the pad at a 'shroom to give an isolated sample if the others think it's a good idea and if Jack agrees (his teleport-pad, his rules). If they agree, he'll toss it down generally at the 'shrooms.


Little Frog tosses down the phantom teleporter in an attempt to pop a 'shroom up, leaving the phantom one down there so Pale Jordan and the others can easily pop back up without climbing. He then allows Bradley to try burning an isolated 'shroom and instructs him to keep a fire going for 'shroom roasting in general. Ahh, how handy it is to have so much help. After Charles is done helping cut the shrooms for cooking, he'll start investigating around the periphery of the area on the ledge just like John's exploring the first room.

Regarding Jannis: From where she sits hunched against the wall, Jannis's muttered words in the Old Symphony spill out to buzz around the cavern, syllables evoking heat, light: the hearth and the torch, the lantern and the pyre.


Hit me with some ideas for potential light sources, if y'all think of something plausible and clever I'll allow it.

Regarding John: He dutifully sets to work checking the cavern walls for any irregularities, but several minutes slip by and he has nothing to report.

Regarding the phantom teleporter: With a momentary pause and the sudden snap of displaced air, a spore drifts up from the air it materialized it, hanging whoever's head happens to be closest.

Regarding Sammy's trap doors: Though he estimates it will take several hours, he's optimistic about the end results, and with only a little prompting, sets to work, the sounds of Jannis's murmurs drowned out by the clatter of (moderately) honest labor.

Regarding the cooking of spores: Jordan and Bradley's combined efforts make a quick business of the work, and soon they've got a few spores sweating over the flames. Rather than burn, however, they begin to melt, the clear gel turning a dark, translucent grey and collapsing completely and the harder plates that make up the innards slowly oozing into a grainy liquid that dribbles unpleasantly into the fire. The whole mess has a distinctly heady smell to it, and the color combined with the odor brings to mind the strange bottle of "Raspberry Tincture" that Fifty Four found in the discarded knapsacks in the little cavern that now serves as your base.

Regarding Little Frog's investigation of the ledge:

Unless you're doing anything specifically new, you'll only come away with the same info that Fifty Four and Jordan gathered about the ledge.

Regarding Marvan's investigation of the naked stones: From where he stands on the floor of the large cavern, Fifty Four has the best view as Marvan makes his way uneasily through the spore field, his progress marked by the swaying orbs that drift above him. So too is Fifty Four best able to hear as Marvan scrabbles up the pile of stones, his grunts echoing off the walls of the cave. Everyone within earshot is, however, able to hear as Marvan lets out a hearty yell: "Chief? Strange things afoot! Did any of your crew happen to place a child over here?"

[Xenopax]

Regarding Marvan's investigation of the naked stones: From where he stands on the floor of the large cavern, Fifty Four has the best view as Marvan makes his way uneasily through the spore field, his progress marked by the swaying orbs that drift above him. So too is Fifty Four best able to hear as Marvan scrabbles up the pile of stones, his grunts echoing off the walls of the cave. Everyone within earshot is, however, able to hear as Marvan lets out a hearty yell: "Chief? Strange things afoot! Did any of your crew happen to place a child over here?"

"Does it have extremely pale skin and blue veins? Because it might be one of mine. The little rats have a bad habit of appearing everywhere. Can't get rid of them fast enough. If not, Bring it over here. We'll make a stew."

[Lazymancer]

... as Marvan lets out a hearty yell: "Chief? Strange things afoot! Did any of your crew happen to place a child over here?"
"Not that I've noticed," replies Fifty Four. "By the way, is the child alive? Or, at least, moving?"

[drack]

Jannis

Dunno, there's allot of trial and error to such things. For now we've got shrooms, we've got rocks, and we've got a limited cloth supply. Lets have her experiment with the materials from the shrooms that can't be made into "raspberry tincture", and the rocks, and see if various combinations of mixing splicing, and burning them work. Who knows, maybe we'll find that as they float upwards in a confined tube, that shroom spores can dry combusting as they reach a point making "mushroom flair lanterns" or something. :smallbiggrin: Maybe there's an ore in the rocks that, when heated or struck, will react funnily.

Seeing the results, Little frog makes a new phantom replicator, passing it to John with an empty water bottle from the supplies with which to collect the newly made raspberry tincture. He'll then instruct him to go topside and see if it can be identified and/or sold. Either way he'll stick bradley with the two kids to work on refining the rest of the shrooms. He'll have Marvan bring up the kid for the others to check out with him before sending Marvan off to investigate the other ledge.

[D20ragon]

"Not that I've noticed," replies Fifty Four. "By the way, is the child alive? Or, at least, moving?"

The sound of Marvan groaning is audible regardless of where one stands in the cavern. A few moments later, he staggers across the mushroom field, bearing a frail form over his shoulder that kicks and struggles weakly and in complete silence.
"Oh he's alive, but poke around for yourself, would you?" the hired hand calls. "I don't want anything to do with this kid."


Jannis

Dunno, there's allot of trial and error to such things. For now we've got shrooms, we've got rocks, and we've got a limited cloth supply. Lets have her experiment with the materials from the shrooms that can't be made into "raspberry tincture", and the rocks, and see if various combinations of mixing splicing, and burning them work. Who knows, maybe we'll find that as they float upwards in a confined tube, that shroom spores can dry combusting as they reach a point making "mushroom flair lanterns" or something. :smallbiggrin: Maybe there's an ore in the rocks that, when heated or struck, will react funnily.

Seeing the results, Little frog makes a new phantom replicator, passing it to John with an empty water bottle from the supplies with which to collect the newly made raspberry tincture. He'll then instruct him to go topside and see if it can be identified and/or sold. Either way he'll stick bradley with the two kids to work on refining the rest of the shrooms. He'll have Marvan bring up the kid for the others to check out with him before sending Marvan off to investigate the other ledge.

Jannis

We'll assume she's messing about all the while, I'll let you know if any breakthroughs occur.

The Little Frog's orders are followed with minimal grumbling, though everyone stops in their duties as Marvan, face grimy with sweat and the stone dust of Sammy's construction efforts, heaves the child over the lip of the hole in the small cavern floor with a panted grunt. A low murmur goes around those gathered in the cavern: the child, too skeletal and horrific to make discerning sex possible, struggles limply on the floor, emaciated limbs so weak it cannot lift the bulbous, pulsating spore that lolls on the shoulders like an overripe fruit.
The skull of the child is visible within, still fastened to the spinal column. The jaw and teeth have detached, and orbit the rest of the skull slowly, drifting through the spores soupy interior.
On the ground by the spore-child's hand lies a piece of flat stone. Beautiful cursive handwriting has been etched into it, presumably by the stylus that the struggling being holds in its other hand.

[drack]

Little frog leaves the child for Pale Jordan to eat... or feed, or experiment on with raspberry tonic, or whatever it is you normally do with children. He himself loosely observes their actions whilst keeping an eye on Marvan's exploration and any new threats that may appear from below at any time. Noticing the idle Maylove children behind him. Seeing the first ledge has been cleared of potential threats and is being cleared of potentially dangerous shrooms, he has the kids gather and bring up the various rocks found beside the boy. After all, it's not good to have a cluttered workplace, and such stones could save a life if thrown down at threats approaching from below later. Remembering his manners, he reminds them that it's for their mother's sake.

[Xenopax]

Jordan grabs the boy by the fire. He attempts to feed him some rations although hes not really sure where to put them. He tells the female to make some stew.

While he waits for the stew Jordan pours some of the Rasberry Tincture on the boy. Atleast this way they could discover whether it was acidic.

[D20ragon]

Jordan grabs the boy by the fire. He attempts to feed him some rations although hes not really sure where to put them. He tells the female to make some stew.

While he waits for the stew Jordan pours some of the Rasberry Tincture on the boy. Atleast this way they could discover whether it was acidic.


The tincture spills over the spore-child's head, slowly seeping through the gelatinous layers to stain the liquid that surrounds the thing's skull a cloudy grey. The child jolts suddenly, then goes limp. After a moment however, it sits bolt upright, picks up the the flat stone, and begins to scrape away at it furiously with the stylus.

[Xenopax]

Jordan attempts to converse with the boy. He questions about the boys name and what happened. If that doesn't work then he attempted to read the stone.

[D20ragon]

Jordan attempts to converse with the boy. He questions about the boys name and what happened. If that doesn't work then he attempted to read the stone.
The spore child tilts its head intelligently, clearly aware of the questioning, but does not respond apart from increasing the pace of its scraping at the flat stone. A few moments later, it hands the stone to Jordan. Beautiful looping script has been etched into it, reading thus:
My name is, or was, Abraham. I cannot tell you how I came to be in my current state, for in truth I do not know myself, and I have had nothing but time to speculate. Clearly I am in some way related to the spores below, yet I can think, act, and speak as well as any of the few beings I have witnessed. May I ask where you come from, and what your business in these caverns is?

[Xenopax]

"Hello Abraham. My Name is Pale Jordan. You have beautiful Handwriting. Would you like some stew?"
A kindly smile appears on Jordans face

[D20ragon]

Little frog leaves the child for Pale Jordan to eat... or feed, or experiment on with raspberry tonic, or whatever it is you normally do with children. He himself loosely observes their actions whilst keeping an eye on Marvan's exploration and any new threats that may appear from below at any time. Noticing the idle Maylove children behind him. Seeing the first ledge has been cleared of potential threats and is being cleared of potentially dangerous shrooms, he has the kids gather and bring up the various rocks found beside the boy. After all, it's not good to have a cluttered workplace, and such stones could save a life if thrown down at threats approaching from below later. Remembering his manners, he reminds them that it's for their mother's sake.

Now that he's brought the boy up, he's just idly standing about, hoping nobody will order him to do anything difficult.
The children nod somberly, though a small squeak escapes from one of them, and soon, a small pile of rocks is growing in the corner of the camp.


"Hello Abraham. My Name is Pale Jordan. You have beautiful Handwriting. Would you like some stew?"
A kindly smile appears on Jordans face

The boy cautiously plucks the stone back from Jordan's grasp and begins to write on the blank side: Thank you for the compliment. I do not know who taught me to write this way, nor indeed write at all. It is my only talent, and I do so treasure it. Thank you also for your kind offer, but I am afraid I do not eat. All my world exists within the strange head of mine, and my body is merely a worn down vehicle I cannot seem to repair.

[drack]

He'll have Marvan bring up the kid for the others to check out with him before sending Marvan off to investigate the other ledge.
Little Frog gives the poor man a look, and reminds him to get back on task. :smalltongue:

[D20ragon]

Little Frog gives the poor man a look, and reminds him to get back on task. :smalltongue:

With a start, Marvan sets off, his fear/respect of Little Frog much stronger than his reluctance to venture once more into the violet shadows of the cavern.

[drack]

Little Frog finds himself content to wait for the various works to be done for the time being. He'll have Sammy start on another trap door at the ceiling of the mushroom chamber and perhaps even a ladder between the two after he's done, and certainly he'll keep an eye on the clearing of the chamber and pale Jordan's conversation for the time being.

[Xenopax]

Pale Jordan Inquires more about the Fungi and Abrahams memories

[D20ragon]

The spores listen for thoughts... they are drawn to them, blindly, without knowing why... unthinking, they devour the minds that create the very thoughts that are so dear to them... tragic, really. I do not know why I can still think, can still write. It has been a long time in the cavern, and one grows bored... one seeks ways to give the time meaning... I have begun to catalog the types of darkness down here... there are many kinds, like weather up above: Houndark, Obsidum, Scardark, many more ... my archives are still on the mound of rock, etched into the stones... they could be of some help to you.

Abraham replies to your questions in beautiful script, his stylus scraping diligently.

[drack]

Little Frog has the new hires who are presently bringing rocks up, bring the archives to the subgroup of pale jorden, the kid, and himself to see what further insights may be gleaned. In any case they'd found at least one beneficial use for the raspberry tonic they were presently mass producing, and hearing they destroyed minds, he was glad he was having them all disposed of. Not that he could guarantee they wouldn't regrow shortly thereafter.

[D20ragon]

The archives prove surprisingly legible, each one etched neatly onto a good sized flat stone. Soon, you have a neat stack of twelve near you.
This is all I have so far... Abraham's expressionless spore-head seems almost apologetic. It is difficult to perceive darkness even for those with proper sight...



This darkness is the dungeon’s friend, and horror’s too. It hides almost nothing and constantly threatens to go away. It flickers, obviously. Things move around it. Even walls. It highlights you and shows you nothing. It is a contemptible dark, the most common sort of dark. It flees after adventurers, hates to be alone yet brings alone-ness with it. It tries to get round corners and doors yet fails.


A precise darkness, signalling its exactness by drawn degrees. Its fingers leave a kind of embroidered arabesque over the surfaces it strokes. Rational, slightly headachy darkness, not given to dreams or visions. Unimpressed by magic, fading only as it must, and when, before the spell. Favored by small things, as it knows them. It picks out the image and the detail like a blade.


This is a very civilized dark, rarely seen this deep. Aware of people and social space. It knows expressions on your face and takes an interest in them. It hangs on walls, it knows cracks and appreciates glass that lets it into people’s homes. It gets into your living room. It knows things and objects, hats and coats, shields and swords, and keeps itself aware of them; it lives on a human scale, concerned with their concerns. It is in the middle of things.


This dark is known for its love of beauty and its many deepnesses. It loves a fair degree, comes in at an angle, cradles shadows and bleeds them everywhere. It highlights great volumes and gives depth and shape to what was merely absent space. It makes a geography of the unseen. It is always leaving. Never staying. If you stare directly into this dark, you will not be comforted.


This dark is cunning, not where it is supposed to be. It creeps. Laughing at you. Diffusing from its outer source and seeping into the borders of light, poisoning it. Barring a lantern with unexpected lines like the walls of a gaol. It hangs to things a little and makes them less than they were. Cradling its own boundaries, setting and ignoring at the same time. A smuggler, only useful while there are laws and only useful breaking them.


It has beauty but it brings the end of things. It makes everything an elegy to itself. A mortal dark, or a darkness not in different to mortality. It marks breaks in the slow cycles of time and is still. Though it makes everything beautiful and brings any aesthetic quality to a fine pitch, exposing the rightness in things, it does not show you more than any other kind. It will fill the path. It is a passing dark.


Another romantic. This darkness hangs gently. It abrades the spaces between things, introducing them to one another. It eases boundaries. It fills in from the shadows and expands, growing secretly while you are not looking. It softens the oncoming black, gently, but also hides it. A delicate shield for the ravening night. It fills the air, dulling the edges of your vision, hiding identities and blurring distant shapes.

It is a clear, pale dark that holds a gleam, dense like rotted iron or lead that’s been scorched. It fills space, holding objects and carefully enforcing their distance apart. Like a calm, cold, murderous doctor or nurse. It brings order, consequence and mundanity, yet it is not mundane. Like a strange herald to a boring lord. Silent and empty on its own, but a harbinger of overwhelming dark. It claws at the surface of things, preventing contact, each separate and alone. Often a sign that the worst is yet to come, that you have lost.


This dark is long and low. Lazy and thick, slow to arrive when the light goes out, last to leave when lit. It pauses before the lamp. It loves life, heat and breath and flows thickly around all living things. Lazy as it is, it is a killer’s shroud which favors those who hunt and track. It gives away the weak and does not know the dead. Those without a beating heart will find it hard to hide inside. It throbs slowly from the deep sky and the afterbirth of stars, trickles into the earth


Explosive dark, rippling out and hurrying away. Arriving unexpectedly but rhythmically, and to some plan, hidden from you. It wheels in circles and shoots rapidly from place to place, running madly in self set vectors. It wants attention and attracts it, happy when you are looking at it and into it. Its movements are seductive and seem lively and lifelike. It wants to burn you and see you burn


Few darks are as brutal as this one. It sits alone, ever isolated, ferocious. Watching lesser darkness pass beneath it. It holds itself effortlessly in the pool of the earth and judges everything it encompasses with a ruthless reduction of volume and mass. All pretension is brought low within it. All flaws are exposed. It lays upon the mighty and the weak alike, anyone who travels within it. They hate it and they need it. It sustains nothing and loves nothing. It holds the vulnerable impassively in the midst of danger, protecting them but caring not.


It is everywhere, it underwrites the blackness. Distant, indifferent, cold and opaque. It loves texture but not shape. It is easily warded off but never leaves, easily occluded by the light yet burns longer and deeper than the sun. It makes you feel small. It is unaware of you and will continue without you. It is awesome and comes from the furthest places, outside time. Drifting past you and interacting minimally with your world. It is direct evidence of a larger existence that makes yours nothing by comparison.

Abraham hands Little Frog a fresh tablet.
As you can see, my work is... woefully unfinished... I beg of you... should you find other, more elusive darkness, make note of it, return to me... I have little to offer in return, but I will give you what I can...

[drack]

Little Frog considers this request, and quickly offers a counter proposal. "How about instead we try to get you back onto your feet and let you head up the exploration of any and every darkness we pass allowing you to gather first hand data and report back to us periodically on everything you discover in these rooms. Perhaps we'll even allow you to document and map the labyrinth for us as we venture forth through it."

Meanwhile, being a former assassin spy, Little Frog's always quite enjoyed the darkness and gotten along well with it, ever exploiting its existence for his own gains. As such, he imprints these darknesses into his memory, taking the time to think of how this can better improve his specialized talents.

[D20ragon]

Abraham inclines his head and begins to write again.
I wandered quite a lot at first... until my body began to give out. There's only one exit from the spore chamber... on the ground level at least. I can point it out...


John returns with a resounding clatter from the lift. He's visibly shaken, and while he still bears the bottle of "raspberry tincture", he carries it far from his body as reasonably possible. Walking at a too-hasty-to-be-casual saunter towards the fire, he reaches it, and sits down, immediately placing the bottle at a distance from himself.
"Quite a few types interested in where I got that bottle" he says, not waiting for direction to speak. "Told them it was something pulled up by a Magpie in a Crab Suit." He shakes his head. "Didn't stop a goblin or two from... offering... to take it off my hands with a little more force than I thought necessary." John shrugs, trying hard to look nonchalant. "Mentioned your name a few times," he nods to Little Frog "and talked to some off-duty Amber Bureau Inspector. Couldn't tell me much beyond that it was some sort of arak, and that it was cursed. He mentioned that last part pretty specifically. Some sort of naturally occurring curse, something of Heretical design." John points to the bottle. "So, don't think we'd best be selling too much up above. Unless you've got a lot more sway with the Cabinet than I thought."

[Xenopax]

Pale Jordan looks for more human teeth in the Mushrooms.

[drack]

Little Frog waits and chills out a bit while waiting for his followers to keep up with his instructions. (Developing lighting, building doors, exploring further into the cavern, processing all the mushrooms so we can somewhat more safely advance through the cavern.)

[D20ragon]

Pale Jordan looks for more human teeth in the Mushrooms.

A search of the quivering spores as they pass from hand to hand to be processed reveals little of interest, but with a few notable exceptions: a whale tooth, long as Jordan's index finger and etched with script in some tongue unfamiliar to him. A handful of minuscule teeth, shining as pearls and only slightly larger than grains of sand. A set of dentures that begins to melt in the heat of your palm, forming a pool of foul smelling, dark blue liquid. A set of hollow, corkscrewing fangs, impossibly thin.


Little Frog waits and chills out a bit while waiting for his followers to keep up with his instructions. (Developing lighting, building doors, exploring further into the cavern, processing all the mushrooms so we can somewhat more safely advance through the cavern.)

Time passes swiftly, with a few cries and calls of excited or subdued discovery: the discovery of the exit of which Jordan spoke, an upsetting number of infantile corpses heaped in the far corner of the cavern (Jordan writes, somewhat hesitantly, that the sound of infants crying is not unfamiliar to him), the realization that the liquid distilled from the mushrooms, when heated to boiling, produces a luminous vapor, heavier than air, that pools around the ankles of those in the camp, and smells overwhelmingly, eyewateringly, of anise.