| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Three days have passed since you returned to the Doctor with your findings from the Monolith. As you all sit in the main room of the Sage and Mug awaiting your meals you notice a messenger enter. It is common knowledge that your group is staying here so it is not unreasonable that a messenger should be sent here. Spotting you across the room the gawky teen makes a B-line for you, only to run headlong into Mindl as she bustles about.
The messenger turns quickly to Mindl, helping her to gather the plates and mugs that he caused her to drop. S..Sorry. I didn’t see you. I have to deliver this letter from Dr. Quolorum.
Mindl replies You just give me that, and get out of here before you get anymore under my feet
Mindl takes the envelope from the messenger and brings it to the table along with your meals and mugs.
Trusted associates,
I have discerned something of the nature of these strange phenomena we’ve seen, and I think I have just the tool that may help. In my office at the Sincomakti School of Sciences in Rozenport you’ll find a small vial of a most potent substance that I - and by “I,” I mean “you” - will find useful later. It is an experimental magical herbicide. I planned to use it on the ivy growing over my office windows, but our current predicament may call for it instead. You’ll find the vial in a cupboard on the wall behind my desk. It glows purple, so you can’t miss it. Bring it back quickly so that we can move forward in these investigations.
Dr. Quolorum
If you wish to gather information about the area in and area the University.
If you wish to gather information about the University itself
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
"MROOW!"
Mr. Sunshine pads imperiously over to one of the locals and yowls.
You. Minion. Tell Fran what she wants to know about this town, for I am a cat and demand it.
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Elena wakes up as the sun rises so she can go to the courtyard to practice her swordsmanship. After an hour of practice, Elena heads inside the tavern for a hearty breakfast of protein and fruit. She greets her companions as they enter, offering a seat at the table she sits at.
Elena booms cordially, "Today we travel to Dr. Quolorum's office at the Sincomakti School of Sciences in Rozenport." Elena pushes her breakfast plate away from herself and continues: "The school's landscape is quite interesting - It rises and falls upon steep sea cliffs! And Rozenport’s archaic architecture possesses an almost organic pattern, with sharp steeples, flat-roofed manors, and a bubble-domed town hall." Elena leans forward, placing a hand on her thigh, "Even more mysterious, the campus of the Sincomakti School of Sciences is hidden amid the town’s labyrinthine avenues. Although.... The grounds of the campus, which are normally immaculate, have become unkempt and particularly weedy in the last few days." Elena looks around the table as her companions
"I have no doubt: there is probably something malicious and evil residing there! We must remain We must go and eradicate it! While retrieving the doctor's purple vial of course." Perhaps that's why Dr. Quolorum is sending us instead of going there himself.
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Herald rises to speak. He takes on a professorial tone that belies a former career as a scholar of note.
That much is true. What is also true is that the Sincomakti School of Sciences was founded over 200 years ago. The professors who founded the school extolled the dual virtues of broad education and guarded ignorance. I have even heard of rumors regarding the occult, forbidden knowledge often studied here.
He draws his hand across his chest in a scholarly manner.
We must be careful. Many of the buildings on campus have powerful magical protections enspelled upon the grounds long ago at the time of the school’s founding.
Seeing a rapt audience for a change, he continues on.
And the danger of She-It-He cannot be understated! They-He-It are coming! We only have 10,000 years to prepar...
His harangue is cut short by a familiar chorus of "Shut up, old man!" and "Take your false prophecies elsewhere!" from the locals.
Estra throws off her hood and pushes back her cloak, bending down to pet Mr. Sunshine. "Silly kitty, of course you can have some of my milk." she pours off some of her milk from glass to a bowl and sets it down on the ground for the cat, whose demands she didn't understand at all.
The old lady slips out of her booth and walks over to the party just in time to hear Elena and Herald speak about the School..."Unkempt and weedy? Perhaps we need to bring something that kills plants? Maybe acid or fire? A trip to see an alchemist on the way might be in order."
(wisdom)
(LG)
After drawing a card from the deck, she lofts a brow and shrugs. "Ah, the winged serpent... balancing between knowledge and judgment. Interesting."
Mindl sidles up to your table.
So, what was that all about? I overheard Estra say something about shopping. Are you going to the market? Don't you go buying any of their ridiculously priced street food. You come back here and eat, alrighty?
|
In the morning, Erasmus invites his companions to a seance in the tavern's common room. Again, he channels the spirit of his sister.
"Please, Estra. A gardener falling ill doesn't mean the plants are attacking. I shouldn't worry too much about the state of the grounds. I have a flask of acid should it come to it."
"I have a little acid too, just thought others might want some as well... Just let me gather my things and I'll be ready to go."
|
"I sure hope the plants aren't attacking," Fran muses as she double-checks her gear and absently kneels down to pat Mr. Sunshine. "Though if they are, there'd surely be a reason for it right? Maybe the gardeners aren't giving them enough water or mean students are plucking blooms off the plants - that would hurt, wouldn't it? Like someone plucking hair from our heads."
As has become customary, she reaches over and randomly draws a card from the strange Harrow deck they'd found days ago.
"Oh..." she frowns. "Whatever this is, it looks scary and maybe a little mad, too. Um, anyway, I think I'm ready to go!"
You venture to Rozenport and into the labyrinthine streets of the city. With very little trouble you locate the University. As you move through the school grounds you do notice that the vegetation does look a little wild an unkempt. You are able to locate the Doctor’s office with relative ease. As you round a bend in the path the office comes into view.
The office is a 20 foot by 20 foot square single story building made from fitted limestone. Ivy grows thickly up the walls and onto the roof, including over the windows. The door is clear of vines however. Despite the fact that the door has a lock, you can see that the door is slightly ajar.
Gulch is inside. I am not sure where Wormling is. I will wait to hear what others are doing before I describe the internals etc.
"Oh dear... the open door doesn't bode well at all does it?" Estra calls for Honaire in case there is trouble... and her ghostly companion appears. They cast each other longing looks before he turns his attention to the situation at hand, ready to enter the office if it sounds like Gulch is in trouble.... if not, Estra moves to the doorway and peers in.
Ever curious, the cat steps in the door, sniffing. What's going on here?
___
|
|
"Maybe Dr. Quolorum or the...cleaning person...just forgot to properly shut the door behind them?" Fran asks. "And it's not like we've broken in; we've at least got a note that gives us permission to be here. We should just try to find the bottle he mentioned and then be sure to lock up properly behind us," she adds as she moves to follow Gulch into the office.
As Gulch pushes the door open you see that things within the office are floating about. There are several books hovering at head height around the room, an inkwell is upside down up near the ceiling with a small blob of ink floating near by. Dr Quolorum's desk is several inches above the floor and his chair spins lazily to the right of it. Various papers also defy gravity and just sit frozen in midair. Directly across the room, behind the doctor's desk you see a closed cupboard attached to the wall.
As Gulch and Fran enter the room you see their feet lift off the floor and they too begin to float in the air.
Deprived of gravity, Mr. Sunshine flails in the air.
The normally graceful cat is out of his element and starts yowling and clawing everything in sight in an attempt to get his footing back... curtains, the ceiling, Gulch...
|
|
"Oh!" Fran gasps as she suddenly finds herself weightless and floating. "Does Dr. Quolorum always work like this?" she marvels. Unlike Gulch and Mr. Sunshine she actually looks rather delighted at the strange turn of events and attempts to pull off a mid-air pirouette.
"Wheeee! Come on everyone, you should try this! And it's okay kitty, I won't let you float away!" she laughs. "Gulch, be nice! We won't let you float away either~!"
Herald, can i have an acrobatics roll please? To see how your feat for daring goes.
Estra motion HOnaire to go in, to see if he, too, floats... perhaps it won't affect him as he's a spirit.. if it does or doesn't, Honaire will do as bid and try to make it to the cabinet, pushing off a wall if he must.
The cat tries to get stable in the air...
...but only tumbles upside down, clawing ineffectively at Herald's long beard as it floats in front of him.
"Ooooooooooooow!"
This is undignified! Make it stop!
The Herald, Honaire, Gulch and Mr Sunshine all float around in the room bouncing off the walls and having, what appears to those of you observing through the doorway a great time. The Herald's "light rock" is also bouncing around inside, lazily drifting past books and quills that are suspended in midair.
None of those inside has managed to make it to the cabinet however to retrieve the herbicide.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Fran and Honaire reach the cupboard at the same time, having both pushed off of a wall and aimed true.
Reaching toward the door they both lift the catch and swing the door open only to find that the cupboard is bare.
Just as they see this a large red leather bound tome flutters up between Fran and Honaire. The pages rustle and a voice emanates from the book. The voice sounds like that of an old sea dog, almost piratical. What have we here? Intruders? Thieves perhaps? In all my days I have never seen such a ragged lot as ye.
|
|
Elena stands in the hallway, outside of the professor's office. With her extreme clumsiness, Elena is weary of the zero-gravity room. ”You all are doing great!” She calls into the room, unwilling to enter herself. I don't see any dangers, everything must be fine - right?
Elena hears an unknown voice and her hand travels to rest on the hilt of her longsword. Elena tries to figure out where the voice came from from her vantage point.
Uncertainly, Elena calls back: ”Err, hello!” Elena isn't sure if someone in the party is a ventriloquist or if there actually is another being nearby.
The red leather tome continues to flutter near the center of the room. You hear the pirate voice again coming from the book
So, you admit you are intruders. Hahaha I can res..
Abruptly the pirate voice cuts off and you hear the voice of a prim woman. She sounds like you would imagine a strict librarian would sound.
Oh, do be quite, please. Never mind my brother. He thinks talking like a pirate makes him interesting. I am Lady Tabetha Luralia and you have already met my brother Tobin. Who are you all?
|
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Erasmus leans into the room, holding tight to the doorframe, "Are you all possessing that one book? Fascinating..." he seems lost in thought for a moment before continuing, "Dr. Quolorum sent us. We're to retrieve a vial of herbicide he was working on. Have you seen it?"
|
|
"Oh! I've never met a talking book before," Fran gasps as the book comes floating up and addresses the group. "I'm Fran and that's my kitty, Mr. Sunshine," she points. "It's very nice to meet you both! And these other people are our friends. What they're saying about working for Dr. Quolorum is true! Do you think you could help us find what we're looking for?"
_________
Honaire remains silent ... but he and Estra both do listen to the conversation...
Estra hears that others have already stated their business here and simply adds her own question from the doorway. "Hello Lady Tabetha. I am Estra... I was wondering, dear, if anyone else has been here recently besides us... perhaps someone who might have taken the vial we seek?"
The book rustles again but instead of Lady Tabetha's or Tobin's voices you hear a third voice, that of a young socialite.
My name is Teresa. My Uncle and Aunt and I may have seen someone, but for people like us, gossip is all that we have and I'm bored. Stay and talk with me.
Lady Tabetha's voice cuts back in.
You all seem like a nice group of people and you say you are here to help. The three of us are members of the Luralia family. We, as a family, have always had an interest in spirits and such.
As Lady Tabetha's voice tails off Tobin's can be heard once again.
We all put some words here in this book and now a part of our personality be imprinted 'pon it too.
Lady Tabetha appears to have gained control again and begins to speak.
We three have been part of this book for two hundred years now. We have only eachother to speak to and after that much time the conversation can become....tiresome. You hear the Teresa making offended sounds and Tobin gives a hearty chuckle. We will tell you what we saw, but first PLEASE, give us some news of what the world is like. Something ANYTHING.
|
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Herald's ears perk up.
Have you heard the Bad News about our impending doom? It-She comes from beyond the stars with a ravenous power to destroy the world and all that's in it. She-It-They have no form that can be described without both the speaker and the listener going insane. We have only a scant 10,000 years to master the arcane magic known as Tek'gnoll-ajee before They-He-She arrive, with a hunger enough for a multiverse. I know little of this strange magic, only that it is the key to vast power. A sage in Taldor once told me, after booting me physically from his parlour, that such magic is impossible, but the truth is that it does not yet exist in our plane of existence. Here, let me draw you an equation that describes the situation...
|
|
"Um...well, good thing we've got 10,000 years to work with, right?" Fran awkwardly breaks in after the Herald has gone on for a bit about the doom from beyond the stars. "As far as what things are like right now, well..."
"Did you know that some of Ustalav's counties aren't ruled by the nobility anymore?" she asks. "They deposed the old ruling families and formed citizens' councils. It was uh...Canterwall, Lozeri, and Vieland; the rest are still ruled by the nobles, though."
__________
... And goblin attacks have become more common in Sandpoint... very bad news for the folks there... or so I've heard anyway..."
|
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
”We’ve been on quite a journey to get to here. We’ve been to a haunted tavern in Dunhob, the foothills near Lantern Lake where red lightening was mingling with angry spirits, Lady Illirigarde’s manor, an ancient kellid site known as “the monolith.” ...So Dr. Quolorum hasn’t told you about us? We’ve been helping him. He’s sent us all over the place recently.” Elena rests the palm of her hand comfortably on the hilt of her longsword. Elena's stance is the same as if she were at court, showcasing her armor and weaponry.
"Fran's telling the truth. And you know how talkative taverns get while they're serving ale! We've been spending the nights in taverns - well, except for when we were collecting the ectoplasm - hearing all sorts of local tales."