Traveler ignored the black elf, the one who was trying to be threatening, but added his language with an insurgence of his psionic power within himself.
"Everyone." Traveler called out to the others. "He says for us to follow him. Maybe he knows the way out of this place. It beats staying here."
The halfling with the dagger, Jerrie Yrrum, has not made any other moves. Direction reported. Runner changed his orders. Tell me if anyone falls behind. he mentally told the psicrystal, thinking to himself. What a diverse group of people. Maybe I should watch my back.
Traveler started walking behind the old man. (Perception check: ) Traveler started to notice the names on the walls. Thinking it prudent, he began memorizing sections of the walls as he walked past them, starting with his location.
Autohypnosis: Memorize (800 words at a time)
Autohypnosis: Memorize
Autohypnosis: Memorize
Deciding the red haired man was right, Jerrie slowly follows Traveler. He wasn't as quick as he used to be, and he would have to remember that in case things turned ugly.
With not much else to do, and with possible answers that way, Hegar followed the old man.
Byarsh looks down to the drow and begins floating back to the ground. "אני יודע את השם הזהב מהקירות של המקום הזה. זה בולטת צבעו."
"I know the golden name from the walls of this place. It stands out for its color."
As his feet alight on the ground, he shakes out a sleeve and dislodges a small, multi-hued serpent that begins floating slow orbits around the tiefling's body. The master imparts a few nonsensical words to the creature, and the latter begins ascending in lazy circles to inspect more of the walls.
"I am ready to see more of this place," he announces.
You are right about the DC on Autohypnosis. Elsewhere in the Psionics Unleashed book DC 15 is given as a Concentration "base". I think the lack of a DC means you just have to not roll a 1 on the skill check in order to make it.
I have no problem with you hand-waving Traveler's memorization and just saying he remembers seeing a name, grey, silver, or gold, before in this chamber. So you don't have to generate names until it is necessary.
Not that at some point Traveler is going to buy a blank book and write all these names down for the others to read. And secretly add Wazoo's name at the bottom. :)
"If you are ready to see more then follow us, my levitating friend! The more the merrier. It beats staying here and starving." Traveler called out to the Tiefling.
Distracted by the fiendish language, Wazoo tries to pronunciate some of the sounds he heard.
באבל עדיין שום דבר מועיל
Aw! Tongue hurts! Wazoo be needin' extra tongue to speak devilspeak, too hard!
When he looks up, the crowd seems to start moving. Wazoo comes along.
Wazoo remember name! Wazoo learned song in Canvar. Song be talking of one who stole black powder that goes boom-boom from Canvar. One from song is Caius von Tywyn, he be fighting with it. Like hobgoblin does, weapon looks like Canvar weapons, yes! But song was old song, older as normal human life. So Caius old as well, older as normal human.
Akasha heeds the Traveler's words walking forward warily while slowly sheathing her sword, Hrrsskk following along beside her.
Xor'zel's eyes would turn first to the insolent fool that seemed to think he was no threat before coming to rest upon the slowly descending tiefling.
"איפה?" he would demand.
While walking, Wazoo asks the old man:
Old man be writer of names on wall?
Following the old man you walk along the hall for several minutes. The hallway has no variation except for the occasional small, nondescript door apparently leading off of it. The old man leads you straight past these doors. At Wazoo's questions he scoffs. Write all these names...does it look like I speak goblin? He points to a gold name about two feet above your heads. The name is indeed written in the chickenscratch squiggles of goblin.
"שם נכתב גבוה על הקיר. תסתכל ותראה בעצמך. אני מתכווןלראות איפה האדון של המקום הזה מוביל אותנו"
"The name was written higher on the wall. Look and see for yourself. I intend to see where the master of this place is leading us."
Confused, Wazoo stops walking and looks up.
Writing? In Goblin? Must be crazy Goblin to steal words out of own head! Almost as bad as stealing words out of other head!
He looks at the name and tries to read it.
No! No! Noooooooooo! Curse! Cursed! Place be cursed! Stolen! Name of Wazoo stolen again!
Akasha looks at the frantic, crazed goblin thing babbling manaically. She glanced down at Hrrsskk looking at the strange creatures actions, her thoughts somewhat amused at what her familiar was feeling.
Not food.
"Our goblin friend appears to be upset that someone wrote down his name on the wall." Traveler told the others, for their benefit. He looked around at the names as they walked. "If our names are on these walls," he mused, "then they are there deliberately. I wonder if all our names are on these walls then, and what the difference in color means." Traveler continued to memorize the names as they went past, just in case.
Autohypnosis: Memorize (to make sure to get the section with Wazoo's name)
Autohypnosis: Memorize
Autohypnosis: Memorize
Wazoo gives an angry glare at Traveler.
Writing be evil. Writing be stealing words out of head, every Goblin knows. Wazoo is not in land of dead and name Wazoo be written on wall. Someone stole name of Wazoo out of head to put it there. So Wazoo be cursed. And human and others probably too if their names be here too.
Furious as he is, gives an intimidating glare at the old man.
Old man knows who wrote names?
Xor'zel would turn his head towards where the tiefling spoke of.
Why is my name upon this wall? he would think to himsnelf.
Unfortunately, time was not currently on his side as the rest of the group started off. Deciding that the tiefling had no real motive to lie to him, he would quietly take up behind the group while picking up what he could of the conversation here and there.
The old man looks slightly apprehensive at the sight of the irate goblin before him. Who wrote the names...no one wrote the names. Names have always been here, always will be here.
"So these have always been here... Names of the dead come back to life?"
Wazoo shakes his head in confusion.
Wazoo not understand... Always been cursed? Is name of old man on wall too? And all creatures here?
Byarsh glances at Jerrie. "That, or names of those who behaved heroically in life. Several planes are said to be the final resting places of the dead, and perhaps this just serves as a way of guiding them to the proper destination."
Jerrie visibly slumps.
"That can't be true then. I was betrayed, and was killed by a horrific creature."
"Writing is how intelligent people convey ideas farther than word of mouth, and keep records for posterity. Goblins may not like writing, but the rest of the civilized world could not function without it. If someone wrote down your name, Wazoo, then they wanted to tell others about you." Traveler said defiantly, looking down at the green goblin.
After Jerrie commented on how he had died, Traveler added "If the names have always been written on the walls in this chamber, then were we predestined to die and be retrieved here? I think there may be gods at work here."
The old man merely scoffs when he hears Traveler mention the gods.
He leads you through one of the unassuming doors out of the hall of the names where you awoke and into a warren of passageways, porticoes and courtyards. It seems almost as if you are in the midst of an entire abandoned city. The walls and floor are all made of the same unimaginably old looking stone as the hallway, and there is no adornment to be found. When indoors, the light is the same dim, dusty light of the hallway, and when in courtyards and the like, you can see that the sky is the color of a beautiful and perpetual sunset.
Akasha studies her surroundings a puzzled look on her face.
"Birisi nasıl mümkün olabilir bu yaparak bir bekar yaratmış olur mu geniş?" she mutters to herself in wonder
How could anyone possibly have created a single building this large?
Traveler stopped when they actually went through one of the doors, quickly acquiring psionic focus and then expending a power through the point in his mind. He also memorized the information given to him about their direction and location at the doorway.
"It looks like we are leaving the chamber of resurrection platforms." Traveler cheerfully called out to the people following the old man. "Don't fall behind! Our guide is not stopping!" he warned. "I'm not sure who could have made this city-building." Traveler answered the woman with the little lizard. He admired the sunset-like coloring of the light outside.
"Wow, inoiz eraikin bat, edo materia hori, handi honetan ezer ikusi dut."
"Pretty dreary, this building. Fitting.
The goblin stands speechless for a few seconds. Then he lets go his threatening mood and follows the group. While walking, he replies Traveler.
If people want to tell about Wazoo, they should speak, not write. But Wazoo appreciates that redhead believes Wazoo not cursed. Human lousy at comforting, but Wazoo not cares, he understands intention. Human smart, so maybe he be right and no curse. But writing still no good, Wazoo explain him why.
People write and words are gone from memory. Best way to remember is songs. Loose time if need to teach children how to write. Better teach them a song, they be learning faster and never forget. Wazoo remembers Caius von Tywyn because of song. Too bad not figured out Xor'zel Zer'lam. Perhaps human has idea?
You continue on through the strange building/city for a time before the old man decides to stop and drop his basket, which you can now see seems to contain a collection of seemingly random objects as drab and unadorned as the walls of this place. The old man flips through an ancient-looking tome before tossing it back into the basket.
If you move to take something from the basket, the man swats your hand away. Mine...go find your own.
The room that you are in is circular and extends upwards about four stories. It seems to be a library, but the shelves are nearly empty and only a few tattered and worn books rattle around in the extensive shelving which reaches from floor to ceiling.
Bah! Books!
Wazoo checks if there is anything with his name on.
"I have not heard of those names before, Wazoo." Traveler admitted.
--------------------------
After memorizing his new location, Traveler made a reach for the books, only to be rebuffed by the old man. The goblin, Wazoo, went for the books on the nearby shelves with aplomb; Traveler hoped destruction was not his goal.
Mentally counting down the time of his active power, Traveler turned to the others. "It looks like our guide is not as competent as he first appeared. While I don't recommend we separate, my power to translate languages is only going to last another half-glass, or half-hour. We need to find out what this city-building is, if we can find food, and what our immediate goals should be, after waking here after our apparent deaths. I am Traveler; the goblin calls himself Wazoo; our dark-skinned one is named Xor'zel? The halfling calls himself Jerrie Yrrum; our large hobgoblin is Hegar; and the woman with the lizard is Akasha, and Hrrsskk, respectively. Our horned friend with the floating snake has not named himself yet, but I believe he understands Planar Common and the language of demons. After my power fades we should find out if we can communicate with each other, and perhaps set a watch on this room?"
"None of you are psions, correct? I have seen magic" Traveler said, with a nod to the Tiefling, "but not powers of the mind, other than myself. So we should talk, to see if anyone other than me knows a language you speak. This situation is bad enough without being able to understand one another."
"I feel... something inside of myself that was not there before. It is coursing throughout my body, so maybe it is magic."
"I can speak to the horned one, the black elf, and also to the pest. I don't know if can speak to any others."
"I speak the languages of air and earth, devils and demons," says Byarsh as he idly flips through a few of the books within reach. "Languages of the highest heavens and deepest caverns, tongues of madness and the wilds...words of the wyrms and their desert foes on my home plane. These things I speak."
When the horned man speaks,Akasha's head turns towards the feindish creature, eyes narrowing.
"You speak of wyrms and their desert enemies. The world on which I died was plagued by dragon armies, followers of a dark Wyrm God. My people fought them, in fact I perished in battle, calling upon the Djet to destroy their leader."
As she recalls the battle that ended her life dust an papers stir, loose scraps on the shelves being tosses in the air as if by the tantrum of an unruly child, while the chill of a presence not quite alive raises the hair on the other's necks.
"I speak the langaues of my homelands, and of the dragonkind. And also the sacred tongue of the ancient spirits, the Djet."
"All right." Traveler said after everyone had finished talking. "I think our dark elf has wandered off." "If you find that I or anyone else cannot understand you, just motion to me and I'll use my power again, until I run out of power. In the meantime, we should watch the entrances and perhaps read some of these books for clues as to why we are here." Traveler tilted his head at the goblin. "Without endangering those books." he said warningly.
"We don't need food or water yet, and I can help a few people with that, if we don't have any divine conjurers among us." Traveler reassured everyone. "But in the long term, we need the basics of life."
Wazoo takes a good look at the books. Even tough he hates reading, he's got a feeling this might prove vital to survival at this point.
When he hears other words, he looks up from his reading briefly.
If redhead is out of power, Wazoo can speak in other tongues as well. Only have to allow Wazoo to sing.
The goblin grins and looks at the man who lead them here.
Wazoo thinks old man knows more, but forgets easily. Read too much books. Why books so important to old man? Why books all Canvar history? Is old man Canvarian? Is name of the old man Caius von Tywyn?
At Wazoo's question the old man's head whips around. Not my books, you can have those. My books are here. He holds up two objects from the basket, neither of which is a book, which seems about par for the course where this old man is concerned.
Wazoo looks at his companions.
Books be about Canvarr history, land Wazoo knows well. Wazoo knows language of the stars, languages of Greenskins and of Canvarr. But book be written in future. So either we be dead for long time, either book is about future!
Seeing blank stares from the others in the room, save the goblin and the old man, Traveler tried again. Taking his lapis lazuli gemstone out of the necklace around his neck, he tossed it at the nearest exit in the multiple-arched room. The blue-and-white gemstone grew spidery legs in mid-flight and landed gingerly on the stone floor. "Don't mind Direction - he can watch one entrance for us. He's a construct, so he never sleeps." The gemstone scuttled to an archway. Don't tell them everything - you are not a Telepath. the psicrystal reminded him.
Traveler turned back to his new companions. "All right, if no one else is going to tell each other who they are, I'll start. I come from the Outer Planes, and have traveled the Astral Plane often for the Elans, my masters. I have never seen a place" he said, looking around, "like this before. I can levitate myself, you hear my translation power, I can defend myself and heal myself and others. My job was to transport people to other worlds as needed. My death was doing that assignment when we were...overcome by daemons from the Astral Plane itself." Traveler kept Chaos Bringer at his side. He could not release the crystalline longsword without the mental chorus starting again when he picked it up afterwards - better to keep it in his hand.
"So no, I had no reason, divine or otherwise, to expect waking up here." Traveler told them, looking at the dark grey stone around them. He activated his Scorn Earth and Personal Gravity, rising off the floor. Traveler walked on air, keeping close to the wall of the room. "I'm going to look for books higher up." he told the others.
Akasha looks on as the the red haired man spoke,the reason he seemed to understand her more clear. It seemed that the man had the ability to allow wwords to be understood. His strange living talismans seemed powerful as well and as she mused, he rose into the air, not quite flying, but walking as if the air itself were solid to him.
This one strong sister.
She nodded unconsciously, agreeing with Hrrsskk's assessment, then speaks, trusting the strange man's power to make her words understandable.
"I am a Witchblade, trained to call upon the power of the Djet and the spirit world to aid me in battle, With Hrrsskk's aid I can work powerful magics against my enemies.While I have no way of knowing, something inside me feels as if it took centuries for my soul to pull itself back together."
In response to the Traveler, Hegar says "I grew up on the great grasslands of my home world with my tribe. When I came of age I decided to head to the big city, though my tribe was sad to see me go. They even gave me my gun as a parting gift. I am very skilled with my gun, it's to bad I was ambushed by those thieves that killed me or I would have showed them the errors of their ways."
"I was part of a caravan halfling clan. My friend and I were hunting deer for dinner when we fell down a pit... Horrible creatures lived in that pit, like nothing I had ever seen. I died from my injuries after killing one. I do not know if my friend survived."
"I had no reason to think I would wake anywhere but the Greenhills, the afterlife our clan members were told stories about. It seems I must endure waking death before I see the Greenhills for myself." The pale halfling seems to be both saddened and relieved by this, as if there is something he wants to do before moving on. Strange that he's still breathing though.
There are a few more books on the shelves, retrieved by Traveler, most of which are unremarkable.
The other books include:
Traveler tossed the books, one-handed, to the waiting Akasha, who was willing to catch them, at least. He noted Hegar's tale in passing. A gun. I knew that object looked familiar. the Elan passed on to his psicrystal. A deadly weapon, it fires projectiles. Those are slow compared to energy blasts, but accurate enough to kill. The best tactic when faced with one is to hide and then attack from the flank.
"How's your literacy down there? Anything look promising? Traveler called out. "The one with the sword appears to be a mystery. And I have yet to run across anyone using glass for parchment." Although he had spent time with those using crystal for building material. He would have to memorize the pages of those later, just in case.
Wazoo been travelling Planes, like human did. Had big ship with Orc captain. But Wazoo be cursed by human of Canvar, she put his life in a book. So Wazoo went to Canvar, to destroy the books. Wazoo destroyed many books, but wizard did not like and sent fire to Wazoo. Then Wazoo woke up here. Perhaps Wazoo here to destroy books?
Wazoo grins at Traveler.
No, Wazoo not be attacking all books. Waste of time. But books with name of Wazoo in will burn. Books of Wazoo brought nothing but shame!
Upon recognition of the language of her mortal enemies, Akasha puts the other books down leaving them for others to peruse as she opens the tome carefully.
Fall of the Dragon God. I like the sound of it.
Hrrsskk made a clicking sound in his throat, one that Akasha knew to be chuckling.
"I can read this one."