Flee! "Wings don't fail me now!"
Chiro will attempt to get as far from the jelly mass as possible, while avoiding the skull-blobs.
"Movemovemove!!!" Roach lobs a grenade towards the skull-blobs to keep them away before taking off towards the tunnel opening.
Eva seems sad to leave all the technology behind, but she follows her companions out of the tunnels
The group beats feat like all the demons of the Abyss were chasing them. Looking back at the room, perhaps that's not such hyperbole. Roach, Chiro and Billy Ray toss grenades as parting gifts at the large fungal horror as they flee.
The flames from the metal hose begin to spray the Skull Jellies and their large mother as they run for the tunnel. The three greandes explode like a string of massive firecrackers as the party streaks down the tunnel in flight.
Everyone except E.V.A.
Waves of rancid smoke start to issue into the narrow passage, choking the group as they emerge from the side tunnel into the main one. The refugees are milling around at the tunnels' junction, unsure where they should go. The party nicely points out the proper direction and they all retreat with alacrity.
They almost make it out of the tunnel when there is a rumbling like an earthquake. Bits of masonry and hunks of fungus begin to fall out of the tunnel wall and ceiling.
Reflex? Hah! I got reflexes!
It brains I have a hard time with :)
Eva runs past the group of refugees to scout the tunnel ahead, as the walls shake and the earth rumbles Eva's sensors detect a crack in the halls integrity, just as the Vector is calculated, Eva provides an "Oh Crap" and looks up just in time to be rained upon by fungus and rock debris, she attempts to dive out of the way, but is caught underneath. In a binary curse Eva exclaims "0010101011"!!
Yikes rolled a 1 on my reflex save, looks like Eva will gain a rubble tatoo to go along with her acid one!
Reflex save 1(+4 ref save)(+2 Boost) =7!
Eva was moving faster due to the boost so maybe the tunnel ahead got her :) ah well I was missing out on all the mind control and fort saves, Kharma had to catch up
A rain of rock, dirt and fungus pepper the group and the refugees they have rescued. Despite E.V.A.'s enhanced dexterity, a large chunk of tunnel ceiling just happens to hit her as she avoids another one.
The others pause when they hear E.V.A. cry out. There is not much time left, and the whole tunnel seems bound to collapse at any moment.
Roach wheels around and grabs EVA, pulling her out of the rubble.
Chiro shall brave the rocks to aid EVA.
"No time to waste on geology Eva! We gotta to go!"
Eva grabs the extended hands and attampts to side step other falling debris.
Go to Ref Save=22.
Chiro and Roach grab E.V.A., dragging her out of the rapidly-collapsing tunnel. The three and the others race back to the fungal forest outside just as the tunnel shudders and implodes. A gout of dust plumes out from the entrance. The ridge quakes and rumbles. Rocks and dirt come flying down from the side.
The night sky is suddenly lit by a pillar of flame that illuminates the top of the ridge. It burns brightly for a minute, then fades.
The night is quiet except for the weeping of a few of the refugees. The party catches their breath and regroups.
Should we go back and see if anything can be salvaged?, there is also the train back where we came from.
"Got a shovel? That tunnel's collapsed for miles and miles." Roach turns towards where they originally came from. "We should check out the train car, though."
"Train eh? Hmmmm, wonder what it pulled? Or what pulled it? Like a train of mules or horses?"
Chiro is mighty curious as well, but is more concerned with the refugees. Are they going to make it back to their camp OK?
Made 3 repair rolls to repair eva she will also cast mending to help with superficial damage.
Eva pulls out some archaic looking tools and starts to work on some damage she sustained, after some time, she looks newer.
E.V.A. works on her dented chassis. The ridge the tunnel once entered has slumped somewhat, and still occasionally grumbles as the rocks find new configurations. The tunnel itself is gone, filled with miles of rubble.
The group notices that the fungi that laces the forest here seems to be withering and dying. The bilious-colored spanish moss fungi is dripping off the dead tree branches, the obscenely-shaped mushroom bushes seem to be deflating like toy balloons. A stench like rotting fish begins to season the air of the valley.
I saw Niel last Saturday, he is looking a lot better but not able to concentrate enough to read a book much less use a computer. We are hoping he will fight this off soon.
That is freakin' awesome Cro. Tell him I am keeping his two characters in play and when he is back to 100% he can jump right back in.
Roach eyes the rapidly decaying fungus with a mixture of disgust and satisfaction. "This'll make it easier to check out the train wagon - the damn thing was covered with the nasty stuff. Also, it should be interesting to see what the locals thought of that pillar of fire."
"Frickin' stinks like gritch-puffers."
<Looks over the kid-folks.>
The refugees look dirty and shaken, but otherwise intact. One man straightens up after choking and wheezing a lungfull of dust out and walks over to the group, hand extended. He shakes everyone's hand in turn.
"Folks, I just want to say thanks. Name's Fren Motorola, this here's my family. I ain't too positive on what jest happened, but I know y'all saved us from somethin' ugly, an' fer that I'm powerful grateful."
Fren rummages in his pocket and extracts a gold coin with Albnee markings.
"We don't have much, but let me give you this here coin as a token of our appreciation."
"Keeps yer money all the same. Wouldn' feel right takin' from folks who doesn't have much.
"You and yours need all you have it looks like, I wouldn't feel right taking your coin for something like this."
Fren nods his thanks, and pockets the gold coin.
"You folks are all right in my book. If there's any justice those prune-faces in Florda ought'n give you a pile of gold, but they'll probly jest cite you for disturbin' the peace."
Fren looks over at his family
"You'll excuse me but I gots to check on my kin."
Fren ambles back to the coughing, weeping group.
"I think your clothes are still lyin' down by the riverside. At least they were when we came in after y'all."
Fren nods at Roach.
"Thankeesai. Lucky its summertime, leastwise with me and the family in our longjohns."
After calming the smaller members of the family, Fren gathers them together to move out. They and the party walk down the faint embankment, avoiding the rapidly swelling piles of noisome goo where the fungus is liquefying.
The party reaches the ruined train area again. The sheets of fungus have sloughed off it's sides, revealing a dented chassis. The metal is rusted, but it seems to be in good shape. The yellowed bones that surround the old machine are more visible now that the fungus has withered away.
Roach picks up a long branch along the way and uses the stick to lift away some of the noisome fungal remains. "Now lessee what's inside the train."
"Afirmative Roach, lets see if we can find anything" If Eva was to get excited, this is as close as it gets, she lovingly looks at the ruined technology.
Chiro will check it out from on high or top of train, and use his mad skills.
The fungus surrounding the train has liquefied to a large extent, and rotted pieces fall away at Roach's touch. The train is marked in Ancient Anglish script: Trancontinetal Maglev and a string of numbers and letters underneath that. There is a door, which seems to be shut and locked. There is a keypad that is next to the door. The keypad also has some kind of card reader built into its side.
Chiro searches about the wreckage looking for clues.
The bones that surround the train are old, possibly decades old, and there seems to have been some large trauma attached to their owner's demise but it is hard to tell because of the advanced age of the yellowed fragments.
Chiro checks out the area, looking for anything he can use or any way into the train.
The group starts rummaging around the outside of the train. Fren and his family had been hanging back, looking fearfully at the old maglev. Fren shouts over to the group.
"Folks, we're gonna try and make our way back to our clothes. Thanks again for all your help, and if'n there's any thing I can ever do for you, jest name it an' it's your'n."
The Motorola family starts back towards the river.
While poking around, Chiro spots several metallic items. There seems to be the pieces of some sort of robot scattered in the undergrowth. The pieces are unfortunately very weathered and rusty. He is about to give up the search when a small box is revealed as he inspects a rusty robot leg. The box looks to be in good shape, some sort of high-impact plastic. Faded writing on the side in Ancient Anglish reads:
Duralloy™ programmable smart metal. Perfect for cold welding, nanoscale repairs and artistic projects. Can be applied manually or controlled in conjunction with a Duralloy Nanosmith™ program for Fenestre XXII.2™ and later operating platforms.
Underneath this is some smaller print:
WARNING: Ingestion of this product is harmful. If ingested please seek an autodoc. Keep out of all sensitive tissues. If product gets in your eyes, please wash for 15 minutes and seek an autodoc. Use of this product with intent to harm others can be construed as assault with a deadly weapon under the NACLC Accords of 2056. Using this product to alter any sentient program's operating is considered assault with a deadly weapon under the Sentient Beings Act of 2065. Using this product to disrupt any public venue's operating can be prosecuted as a terrorist act under the Hague Terrorism Accords of 2055. All rights reserved.
Cocaman looks over the debris with a practiced eye, a gleam attracts his attention. It looks to be an old security passcard on a chain. Coca also scores a gold ring set with what looks to be a half-carat diamond. The rest of the bits and pieces he finds are basically so much rusty junk and plastic bits.
"Huh. Good thing it tells us not to eat it. Otherwise, who knows what might have happened?" Roach snickers. "Seriously. Were people that dumb back then? No wonder bad things happened."
"Back then!, I'd bet all my nortram credits Billy Ray would have tried to eat it if there was no warning, Roach seriously, back then what about right now" Eva chuckles in binary 0010101100
Eva spends some time examining the keypad she attaches some tools to her hands and starts to work...
skill rolls: Disable device 28; Comp Use 30; Craft Electronics 21; Know: Technology 21; Repair 24.
Eva humms away in glee and passion as she works with the lost tech
Chiro quietly removes from his mouth the tasty piece of plastic he had been chewing on for the last 5 days and whistles a cheerful tune so as not to attract attention as he drops it in the dirt.
E.V.A. makes some humming noises as her hand fly over the keypad panel. There was no power to the machine, but E.V.A. manages to give it a small jolt and gets the pad working. She then proceeds to run an algorithm to discern the passcode.
The battered keypad bleeps loudly and the door slides open with a grating whine. The darkened interior of the train is revealed, rows of seating, some with shrouded figures still sitting on them.
E.V.A.
E.V.A.
"Lets take a look see."
E.V.A.'s hands flash momentarily and her whole body twitches galvanically. A spark flies from her fingers into the key pad she has been working on. Suddenly, the interior of the maglev begins to lighten, several panels stuttering to life on its ceiling. An odd hypnotic music begins to emerge from all around the train's interior. Over the soothing instrumentality a rich contrallo female voice says soothingly in Ancient Anglish:
Ancient Anglish:
The interior of the maglev is twisted and shrouded in cobwebs and dust. Several skeletal forms are still strapped into their seats, their leathery faces set in rictuses of fear. The seats are three deep on either side with a center aisle.
There seems to be about 50 feet of cabin space and a sealed door at the front where the engine room presumably is. There is an occasional spark from rotted wires as the maglev's elecrtical system attempts to straighten itself out. A few panels in the side of the train bloom to life with a hissing static and a blurry white pattern.
"Bloody hell." Roach looks over the strapped-in carcasses. "This would almost be funny if it wasn't for the dead guys. Waddya think killed 'em?" He looks over to the front door. "Anyone want to loot the engine room?"
The lights flicker as the woman's voice repeats her soothing words again and again. The hissing static panels begin to flash a bit, one blooming to life with moving pictures of a Pure Strain-looking female cooking food in a bizarre room filled with dozens of ancient machines.