"All right!" Janosz is all chipper and energetic after a good night's sleep, grinning maliciously at the bleary-eyed Runzyl. "Roll it up, pack it down and let's get moving! If we're effective we'll get to the Cannith facility today, which again means that we can be out of this accursed place by tomorrow afternoon. Once all of y'all have had your breakfast we're moving out."
perception:
Rod shoots the crap with LB a while, then goes off to sleep.
At one point during the night, Lightbringer suddenly looks upwards, drawing his sword and trying to make out the shape of the huge shadow that blots out the stars ... then it is gone.
In the morning he makes ready to move out.
Rolund eats his breakfast, dons his armor, and slings his pack and shield on his back before stepping out of the tent.
“Anything interesting happened last night?” he asks to no one in particular while waiting for the Shadow Marcher to get his bearings.
According to the map, the wooded hills on the edge of the lake drop down to flatter terrain and the valley in which Eston sits. The party head towards Eston on a path that would allow them to skirt the city and head towards the facility. The going is relatively easy for the first few hours, and they make good progress.
Soon the ruins of Eston can be seen in the distance. It looks like some kind of earthquake has hit the city, with ruins tumbled and whole section disappeared into gaping rifts in the ground. A titanic crevasse runs through the city and beyond. Extending south, it blocks the party's intended route around the city.
"Stupid motherf~~&ing geography... This wasn't on that worthless map. Have I mentioned how much I hate this place yet?" Muttering and grumbling, Janosz is not best pleased with the unexpected natural obstacle in front of the party. Then he has an idea...
"Stupid motherf@#%ing geography... This wasn't on that worthless map. Have I mentioned how much I hate this place yet?" Muttering and grumbling, Janosz is not best pleased with the unexpected natural obstacle in front of the party. Then he has an idea...
"Stupid motherf#!*ing geography... This wasn't on that worthless map. Have I mentioned how much I hate this place yet?" Muttering and grumbling, Janosz is not best pleased with the unexpected natural obstacle in front of the party. Then he has an idea...
“Didn’t you mention that you tried this same plan and your blood brother, cousin, or whatever was beaten within an inch of his life and only through the grace of the kalashtar were you saved?” Rolund asks drily.
“Yes.” Lightbringer nods in response to Rolund. “It may be an efficient way to cross this chasm, but I am wary of all of us being in the tent, unable to get out, leaving only one or a small few of us to face any possible danger.”
He looks about, seeking the extents, width and depth of the canyon, and whether there appear to be any easy ways across or around it. “Let us first consider our options. Especially given that the large thing I saw flying above our camp last night may still be about somewhere.”
Ezreal stays up for a while during the first watch working out the rents in Lightbringer's armor. "Going to have to invest in a new wand soon. Nice work though. Whoever put you and Basher together deserves a posthumous commendation." He pauses for a second and asks, "Do you remember where you were built? From the moment of activation?"
After Lightbringer is restored to full functionality, the Karrn sits down cross legged just outside the tent and pulls a deep red crystal about as long as his hand and as wide as three fingers from an interior jacket pocket. "I'm going to meditate a while, before going in. If anything happens you may have to get my attention. I'll be fully immersed."
“I came into this world with full awareness. It was strange, suddenly knowing the names for things I could see about me, but having no previous memories. Although aware, I do not know where I was made, other than it was a creation forge, presumably at a House Cannith facility. From there we were taken to another place to have our mental and physical abilities tested, then to another place to be trained in the arts of war. There was a lot of moving about in those early days, and although I remember it all, I did not know enough of the context at that time to know where I was.”
Looking at the extent of the chasm, "How much extra time do you think it will take to go around?"
Looking at the extent of the chasm, "How much extra time do you think it will take to go around?"
"Days, at least. And the comparison with Trose is, frankly, wrong - I am ten times the fighter and sneak he is, and I will have room to maneuver here in a way he didn't in the Cannith factory. However, Rolund does have an important point - we probably shouldn't trust me to fly over dangerous territory without scouting a bit first. If Gil can make me fly now, I'll scoot over the chasm and look at the other side. If I just fall out of the sky along the way, it will probably be a bad idea to try this route."
we probably shouldn't trust me to fly over dangerous territory without scouting a bit first. If Gil can make me fly now, I'll scoot over the chasm and look at the other side. If I just fall out of the sky along the way, it will probably be a bad idea to try this route."
He looks about, seeking the extents, width and depth of the canyon, and whether there appear to be any easy ways across or around it.
The bottom of the canyon if filled with a thick white fog which stirs uneasily, and strange coloured lights flicker within. The canyon is probably a quarter of a mile across. To the north it bisects the city and then peters out. To the south it cuts through the hills as far as the eye can see.
"Kadesh," Ezreal snarls, "We need you to scout ahead." He points toward the other side of the cliff. The bird looks up at him from the ground tilts it's head to side and croaks, "Why me?" It points a feathered wing at Janosz and caws, "He volunteered first!"
"I'm not asking you, I'm telling you! Scout!" The bird hops from side to side then croaks, "Whatever you say boss. But I don't like it."
Ezreal sighs as the bird takes off. "The more aware the stupid thing becomes, the more cowardly it gets."
Ezreal tries to acry upon the warforged demonist but the spell cannot find him, even in Darkheart's homeland. However, after a few minutes he picks up a very strong impulse of fear from Kadesh and a few seconds later the raven streaks back to its master, landing in a rush of black feather on Ezreal's shoulder and trying to cower inside his master's coat though his collar.
"Eye! A big eye in the mist!" he jabbers. "As big as a house! It saw me!"
The mage's eyes fly wide open at the report, "Everyone, get away from the canyon..." He jogs a safe distance back, and waits for everyone to regroup.
"Good work Kadesh. You may have saved us there. Don't worry it's not coming after you."
“Unless the Valenar wants to poke it in the eye,” Rolund eyes the elf sternly. “I propose we bypass this threat and follow Master Frogshank’s suggestion and walk around the chasm to the north.”
Sighs. "Much as I prefer the direct approach - when traveling, anyway - I have to agree. We know far too little about the threats here -- that mist could hide anything - including a creature large enough to support such an eye. More frightening, it might just be the eye itself - which implies a great deal of power - unnatural power - for it to survive. Let's go that way." She gestures toward the visible end of the chasm.
"But we have to remember the old man's warning. Things - big things - change suddenly in that city. We will have to be vigilant lest out path forward and back are both suddenly not available. On top of the hostile inhabitants..."
“We had hoped to avoid the city,” comments Lightbringer in agreement with Matilda. “But at least we have some intelligence of what we may find there. I would rather face looters and undead and a changing path on solid ground than some unknown entity on the edge of a deep crevice. Towards the city then.”
"It's less a question of want and more a question of need. The chasm cuts through the city, too, and I very much doubt that there will be any bridges. We'll need to walk around it."
“Unless the Valenar wants to poke it in the eye,” Rolund eyes the elf sternly. “I propose we bypass this threat and follow Master Frogshank’s suggestion and walk around the chasm to the north.”
"Of course he wants to. He is Valenar. Duuuuh.....
Let's follow Janosz though. I'm in agreement."
The party trudge across brown, dead fields for about an hour until they reach a road heading towards the ruins of Eston. It seems the quickest route towards and, hopefully, through the city. The way to the Cannith forgehold effectively passes towards the city and across the river, and then further up the valley on the far side. The sky remains grim and colourless, and a cold breeze with an odd, metalic tang nags at cloaks and coats.
The city itself sits in a valley, nestled amongst hills. The river doesn't seem to be flowing any more, perhaps diverted by the whatever convulsion created the rift to the east. Instead, the brown smear of the empty riverbed snakes through the city and beyond towards the lake to the west. In this direction the hills crowd down into a gorge, making the city a choke-point both north-south and east-west.
"Hmm, common or easy travel routes are more likely to be watched if the locals are inclined to do so. But how much traffic do you think they would get around here?"
"Warforged, undead... I'm surprised we don't see even the occasional vulture. I very much doubt there's much traffic. However, our competition must have come this way too, and done so quite recently."
Yeah; let's follow the road a bit.
The road is well-made, probably by the military. In the distance it can be seen that it crosses the riverbed by a stone bridge and then goes into Eston. There seem to be two other bridges, all heading into the city from this side. It would be a walk of about three quarters of an hour on the road to reach the bridge and the outskirts of the city.
Sounds good to me; waiting for groupthink validation.
“Let’s take a moment to check for any possible ambushes and check to see if the bridge is sound,” Rolund warns.
Perception aid
Perception
"I'm no engineer, but I have a knack for traps. If I haven't lost with the way we usually just bull into things..."