Even though he was conscious, Flint couldn't move. Not because he was physically incapable, but because pain was excruciating. He could barely stay awake. And he was still very cold. All he knew was that things were going on around him. And that his attacker had been...imploded? Who ever did that was his friend now.
The tall mechanical being glides over to you and presses a glass, liquid-filled tube up against your left buttock, a sharp pain flares up immediately but is replaced by a glowing warmth that washes away your pain and especially the cold.
"Stand, champion, and join your fellows for the briefing on the task at hand," the being's voice echoes inside your head and he proffers an elegant metal hand to help you up.
"Ah what?" Flint yelps indignantly. Owwwwait. Pains gone. What? He gets up and rubs his abused behind. "Yeah, a little explanation would be nice before you pull someone through the void," he says sorely. "What's in that stuff anyway?"
Your muscles relax, Ham giggles like a schoolboy inside your head, and the two four-armed beings release you, a nod from the female the cue.
"I like you, human, maybe if you survive this ordeal we might get a drink or something. A pan galactic gargle blaster would blow your mind."
The female being giggles and kisses you on the head, placing your hat back on your head.
As if the whole thing was a dream you blink and find yourself sitting on the middle rise of a large set of stone stairs overlooking a large stage. The cool breeze causes hairs on your face to tickle and you notice your comrades are also nearby, some faring better than others.
"Life, Mister Blackwood, life itself," the being's tone somber and almost distant,"My methods are necessary I assure you. My enemies are many."
Savyon looks around the area, noticing the other two from the alleyway, and the beings before they disappear. He finally takes the time to start wiping away the sick on the front of his robes. "This is going to stain something awful. Blasted teleportation."
He finally spots the mechanical being, and quirks a brow.
"Sorry to impose, but could you be so kind as to divine away the mess that your minion caused with that surprise teleportation? If not, can you point me in the direction of the nearest place I can take care of it at?"
While waiting for an answer, he casually re-straps the sling to his staff, and secures it tight at the end.
"Yeah yeah. We all got enemies," he says cleaning an ear with his finger in a bored fashion. He holsters one weapon and absorbs the other into his glove. "Guess you hired us then? We gonna know the job eventually?" His abrasiveness is a calculated maneuver to see how the metal man reacted.
The tall, regal mechanoid smiles thinly,"Please be patient, Sayvon, there will be a place to tend to your soiled clothing but for now you may benefit from this."
He snaps the fingers on his left hand and a small, floating spherical machine of some kind appears bearing a folded set of clothing in its sizable arms.
"Change into this outfit and join the others on the steps, please," the machine being quite obviously irritated with the ordeal's mundane nature.
"Hired implies you had any choice in the matter, Mister Blackwood," the tall machine being raise his arms in a broad sweeping motion,"the universe operates on principles far more demanded than our individual whims."
The last few words seem to draw a hint of irritation before it vanishes beneath the creature's noble bearing.
Was that jealousy? Wonder if he's an outsider? Incapable of being anything other than what he is. Makes since they would be jealous. No free will and all. I am not getting out of this. He then looks over at the mess that is...was his partner. Yep. Best not push that button. Go with the flow Flint.
"Oh don't get all philosophical on me metal-head. I would've said yes. This has turned way too interesting to pass up. So who needs to get shot?" He looks over at the mess again. "Besides him." Flint pops the spent casing out of his revolver and tosses it over into the puddle. It lands upright like a little grave marker. Couldn't do that again if I tried.
Brooks raises an eyebrow at Blackwood's abrasive behavior. "Is it really wise to antagonize such a clearly powerful being?" he asks. "Especially seeing as we rather depend on his good will to get home, I might add."
He shrugs. "Assuming you want to get home. I like to travel." Then a thought crosses his mind. "Who's Ham?"
Brooks winces. He really ought to stop talking to Ham out loud. "Ham is my... other half, so to speak. You remember I mentioned something akin to lycanthropy? That's Ham. When I'm in trouble, he takes over and... well, he's rather vicious. You'll be meeting him rather soon, I expect."
Flint stares long and hard at the Professor, trying to gauge if he is kidding or not. I got nothin. "You know you really should phrase that differently. Like maybe add "but don't worry, I have full control", you know. Something that instills a little confidence. I've had wild card companions before but this is pushing it. You got a code word or potion to make him stop. Cause you won't like what I have in mind."
"When I said 'you'll be meeting him soon,' I meant the next time we get into a fight. Ham and I have a deal. He only attacks appropriate targets, and I make it a point to seek out jobs that provide opportunities for him to come out. Why else would I accept this sort of job? Do I really strike you as the sort to indulge in this sort of venture for the fun of it? And I strongly advise you not to shoot me. You might survive the ensuing fight, but I rather expect not. This is not a slight on yourself, of course, simply a warning of how vicious my counterpart is should you make the mistake of making me your enemy."
As you all settle in on the giant stone steps, the being calling itself Solivagus floats roughly 8ft off of the center of the stage.
"Welcome, dear comrades, to my world," he makes a dramatic sweeping gesture with his right arm, a small globe materializing in the palm of his hand,"Most of you are probably aware that Golarion is not alone in the cosmos as life has flourished far and beyond your wildest imaginings."
The sphere shrinks and above Solivagus' head springs into existence a myriad motes of light, some revolving around brighter motes and others blazing trails across the display.
"The universe is enormous and largely inimical to life," a blazing object slams into a slowing revolving one, the slower sphere exploding lazily and having virtually no discernible effect on the display,"But there are havens where powerful beings have corralled and nurtured it as a shepherd or a butcher..."
He let the implications sink in.
"My world is not such a world," his tone stern and sharp,"and your stay here will be eventful and fulfilling, unfettered by the whims of gods and other beings that would seek to chain your essence to theirs."
The last statement almost seems spit from his moisture-less lips. As he finishes you each feel straps of fabric hold you in place.
"Hold on, friends, do not panic," the edge to his voice now gone and replaced by a consoling one,"I would like to welcome you to Hideaway, your new home."
The stone theater rumbles all around you and begins descending into the earth, the sound of gears turning and the hum of a massive machine accompany the event.
Once you're deep enough, some 50ft down, the shaft you're lowering into closes above you, metal plates sliding seamlessly into place.
Solivagus remains very quiet with his back turned to you all though he seems to nod every so often as if acknowledging some unseen conversation.
Bright, electrical lighting illuminates the platform as you all come to a halt, a metal link fence all that lies between you and a sprawling mechanical metropolis.
@ Mr. Brooks: Flint waves his finger back and forth at Mr. Brooks but nothing seems to come out of his mouth. He walks away for a bit, hands on hips and obviously struggling over something. He spins back around, throwing his arma out wide. "See I don't get that. Right now you don't seem like that kind of person...but apparently you are on some level." He shakes his head. "You're obviously uncomfortable with it...him. Afraid maybe. So why make it stronger? See this?" he says holding out a firearm. "Every bit of alchemical knowledge I know and have learned is to make this best weapon in the world." He then tosses it on the ground or a nearby table. "In my hands its the most dangerous thing I know. Now it can't hurt anyone. That's the difference between us." He then picks it up and points it right at the prof. "I have seen the darkside of our profession. There is a line. Don't cross it." He then puts the gun away and smiles. "Do that and we won't have a problem. So lets have an adventure."
@ Solivagus: "Neat," is all Flint can manage in an awed voice.
"I am not that sort of person. Ham, however, is. We have long been led to believe that he is not simply a suppressed part of me, as is usually the case in this kind of thing, but a separate being entirely. What he is doing in my body, we have no idea, though we suspect it is tied to my amnesia of thirteen years ago, and the attack in which Ham first made himself known. In our early days, I sought to suppress Ham entirely. This proved to be impossible. In times of great stress, he would forcibly take control of my... our body, then go on a murderous rampage until he was forced to flee. So I sought to kill him. He retaliated by, during one of the times when he had control, seeking out and brutally murdering a dear friend of mine. Now, with our deal, he does not harm the innocent, and is, in fact, something of a force for good. I do not like him, nor he me, but I no longer fear him (at least, not as I once did) and he is no longer constantly striving to take control from me. I fail to see what you describe as the difference between the two of us. You use alchemy to enhance your ability with guns, and then point them at those whom you deem to be acceptable targets. I do the same, simply with a different weapon."
At the phrase "your new home," Professor Brooks stiffens, and, had he not still been under the effects of whatever the strange beings had done to him, Ham would have fought for control- indeed, the Professor would have been tempted to give it to him. The pair does not take kindly to kidnapping by any means- the idea that this is not simply another job, but a permanent change of residence, is not one they appreciate. The closed, reinforced exit, and metal fence around their "new home" support this belief, and the Professor mentally debates the possibility that drinking his mutagen will free Ham from his strange ailment.
@Brooks: "Well I like my guns. Can't imagine puttin that much effort into something you hate."
Savyon watched the metal being go on his rant. He looks at each orb as they get created, only half listening to the metal man, except when he hears the name of his 'new home'. He doesn't say anything for the moment, content to hear the explanation for the nabbing.
The professor shrugs. "I work with what I have. Ham is far more effective a weapon than anything I could use. Why not make him more so? It is not such a hard thing, and the work truly is fascinating. We have even tossed around the idea of trying to create a wholly separate body for Ham, though neither of us is sure it would be wise. For my part, I do not wish to be responsible, directly or indirectly, for the murders he would partake in. Ham, on the otherwise, recognizes that, left to his own devices, he would likely be captured and executed before too long. So we work as a team. He provides me with personal protection, and I provide him with targets whose deaths will not lead to our own. Besides, Ham is not my sole avenue of research, nor is contractual violence my only occupation. I am well known in some circles as a scholar of many subjects, and have made some minor advances in the field of healing. To these ends, I act as a tutor for nobles and merchants, and something of a surgeon, when called for."
The restraints gently release as another tall cloaked being appears very suddenly adjacent to Solivagus. Solivagus turns and bows shallowly.
"Ah, I must bid you all adieu. Other... tasks to attend to, you understand. This here is Altaen, he shall accommodate you with your stay here in Hideaway."
He gestures lightly to the newcomer who bows deeply, almost ceremoniously, and then vanishes in a bolt of lightning.
The journey to Absalom's inner city was uneventful, the evening cool and pleasant right up until stepping into the alleyway.
The assault on your senses is incredible. You would know too, having wading through the excrement and viscera of countless dead on battlefields abroad. Despite the sensory bombardment you maintain your composure and near the door at the far end.
Reaching for its handle your hear a 'PFFT!' as a small pain pricks your neck. You reach up as your vision swims and you pull away a tiny metallic dart from your neck. Something inside your bucks this effect and you sharpen your focus and burst into a frothing rage.
"S@$#! Hit him again! Damnit, these candidates are getting tougher and tougher to bring in. This should put down a young dragon for void's sake!" blurts a strange voice from nearby but you can't see anything as a pair of darts pierce your flesh. One strikes your thigh and the other your neck again.
The tranquilizer is starting to take effect as you go blind suddenly and lose all feeling in your extremities and dropping to the ground, a river of drool oozing from your mouth as the power recedes from your amped up body.
"Lord Belisarius will like this one for sure, he got's fight in 'im."
The last words garble into a fog and the next thing you realize is the cold, hard feel of a metal floor beneath your prone body. All around you are massive mechanical structures with all manner of fascinating people milling about them.
Nearby you notice a small metal linked tunnel leading from your location.
"Welcome, chosen," Altaen's voice is far more pleasant in tone than Solivagus',"I apologize is Master Solivagus is a bit gruff but he has been at this endeavor for some time now, he isn't who he used to be."
34 and Below: You notice only the pleasant change in company that Altaen brings.
35-39: A sharp pang of regret flashes across the machine being's face, barely noticeable.
Natural 20/40+: The sudden flash of regret across Altaen's face smacks against your senses, a ringing beginning in your ears as you notice a black armor clad individual slink into the distant shadows, glowing white eyes always watching you...
"Step forward for your mark to proceed to the Choosing," Altaen brandishes and wand from his cloak and twirls it stylishly,"Don't be shy, this is merely a precaution. A necessity to maintain our secrecy here in Hideaway."
As you listen to Altaen you notice something is amiss: you cannot feel your divine power anymore, the familiar warmth now replaced by a vacuum in your very soul...
Mr. Brooks looks at the being warily. "And what exactly does this 'mark' entail? And the Choosing, for that matter? You have us here against our will, and you expect us to mindlessly comply with your wishes?"
Flint mindlessly comply's to their wishes and steps forward. They weren't getting out. They weren't fighting out either. Time to play along. "So like an arcane mark or something to prevent scrying?"
Altaen nods and bares his metal forearm, a glowing runic 'S' softly flickers just below the surface.
"I understand your hesitance, but it is all in good spirit, chosen ones," his tone somber and smooth,"I can explain the magics involved if you wish at a later time, but for now you are needed in the atrium for the Choosing Ceremony. I do wish you would comply without incident. I will warn you before such brash decisions are made, our enforcement procedures are swift and harsh. The choice is yours: take the mark willingly or be forced to take it."
Altaen's last statement is said nonchalantly and he even shrugs as if to accentuate the current predicament.
Cthanos realizes pretty quickly that his divine abilities are no longer accessible to himself. This causes a worm of doubt to grow in the pit of his stomach. What's going on? This can't be happening. He thought worriedly, hardly catching a word Altean was saying.
Unsure what else to do, he approaches Altean slowly for the mark.
Savyon eyes the new arrival up and down casually, this one a bit more pleasant it seems to the metal man. But, given his own gruffness, he understood. He looks at the wand with troubled look. He then shrugs. Might as well get this over with. He steps up and holds out his left hand to Altaen.
Ok, it all works. Let's go find someone to take this out on. Looks like I'm going that way. William then walks toward the tunnel and down it.
The journey to Absalom was quiet and your dear friend Savyon said that he had also received an invitation and journeyed this way early.
Upon entering the alley you bite back the urge to vomit, never have you smelled such refuse.
As you reach the far door with the hanging sign you open the door which leads into a small square room lit by an odd hanging lantern of some kind, the smell of burning oil somehow absent.
The door closes behind you and some kind of harness drops from the ceiling,"You're late, chosen, put on the harness, the Choosing is in like 15min." a voice beckons all around you and the box begins to shift and shudder.
Having no idea what the 'Choosing' is you put on the harness anyways, the possibility of breaking your antlers in this now shaking compartment too forbidding to consider a reasonable risk.
After 10mins of the compartment rattling the door you came in opens but in a far different way than before, descending into a ramp, the harness releasing and dropping you lightly to the floor. Outside lies a tunnel of some kind, metal links like chains sculpted as its walls.
Scrying into the origins of this mysterious vellum has offered nothing but a void as a response, in fact it almost seems as if it was indeed made in a void of some kind given the odd properties of the ink used.
Your curiosity piqued, you travel into the heart of Absalom and swiftly jaunt down the disgusting alleyway, careful to avoid stepping in anything too ripe.
The door with the dilapidated sign makes you smile at the clear attempt to hide something amazing and you turn the knob gently, the door coming clear without incident.
Beyond the door lies a void so black that it seems to draw in light from outside of it. Your satiated curiosity is rapidly replaced by panic as your being begins to disintegrate with alarming speed and is sucked into the void.
Like dust in the wind you begin to waft into the yawning abyss but cannot simply let this be!
Fighting this sudden attack on your self you conjure a blast of light and direct it towards the shadows. They scream in a terrible hiss and spit you back into the alleyway unceremoniously.
A black-armor clad figure steps from beyond the door,"Gods-damnit! My eyes!" it growls through some kind of helmet,"Always gotta fight the process, damn mortals," it shakes its head and offers a hand in aid.
"Nice spell, Khazia," intones the being,"you wish to see the strings behind the veil of the universe, right? Take my hand and I promise to keep the shadows at bay."
You recoil slightly from his reach but acquiesce at last reaching up and grasping its armored hand. Almost instantly you find yourself standing elsewhere, a gaggle of people speaking with a tall automaton of some kind. All that you have to remind you of your mysterious encounter is a black coin embossed with a large 'C'.
A grizzled looking man in heavy armor emerges from a nearby tunnel of some kind and is soon joined by a bizarre deer-man bearing the symbol of Sarenrae on his dazzling cod-piece, and to top it off a woman in ornate plate armor simply pops into existence at the platform's periphery.
After marking Savyon, Cthanos, and Flint, Altaen nods to Professor Brooks,"I understand your suspicion, Professor, but I assure you that we are the 'good guys'. Even the 'good guys' need security measures, yes?"
Saying the term 'good guys' is extremely stilted, as if it's unfamiliar to Altaen.
The Professor sighs. With Ham out of commission for the time being, he really has no choice but to comply. He has no way of leaving this place without fighting his captors, and any fight would depend on Ham. His distaste and general unwillingness to comply with this course of action clear on his face, he steps forward to accept the mark.
Khazia looks around the strange mechanical city with wonder, mouth hanging open.
These others were likely abducted just as I was. She watches as three of the men receive a strange mark from the machine-man, and frowns suspiciously at his explanation to the 'Professor.'
More troublesome than her strange abduction, mysterious beyond the wonders of the machine city, and far more distressing than anything to happen yet is the hollow emptiness where her oracular powers should have been. Not having been so horribly vulnerable in many years, she instinctively reaches to the pole-hammer at her back before noticing the black coin she still held.
A quick glance up to the sealed entrance above confirms her fears. Shaking her head, she tucks the coin away and watches the others, for once entirely unsure of her path.
Flint draws arms yet again. It is starting to become obvious he likes to do that. "So these the opponents for the choosing thing?" he asks sounding excited. "Or more companions?"
"You misunderstand, Master Blackwood," intones Altaen as he marks Professor Brooks," we here on Hideaway need the likes of you, the Chosen, to replenish our ranks. The staunchest of heroes gathered from the harshest climes and circumstances. The Choosing is a two-way process and now that we are all properly prepared, follow me."
The mechanoid walks to the metal link wall separating you all from the city at large and waves his Mark over a small cube structure held there. A spherical hole expands from the cube marking your entrance into the city.
"Stay close and form a single file line, please and thank you," Altaen beckons you all to follow him and pass.
Savyon tries to slip into the middle of the line. He follows whomever goes first, and watches the hole appear in the wall. "Spared no expense, have they?" He muses aloud to his new companions.
You get the distinct impression the machine-man is not telling everything he knows about your predicament.
The coin you were given brings to mind nothing you've ever encountered save for a scant few articles in old tomes concerning personalized coinage resplendent with initials or even a coat-of-arms.
The Professor falls into line towards the front of the group, and tries to rouse Ham from his giggling fit.
Cthanos is slightly shaken by what he has just experienced.
[quote = Cthanos said]"Where am I? What is going on?!"
Cthanos starts to walk down the dark and ominous tunnel.
Cthanos starts to walk down the dark and ominous tunnel.Cthanos is slightly shaken by what he has just experienced.
[quote = Cthanos said]"Where am I? What is going on?!"
Flint looks at the glowing S below the skin. For a moment he wondered what it was. But it didn't matter. They say they didn't have a choice but he could have put the gun to his head and pull the trigger. There was a choice for them. It was just a bad one. But it was there. And somehow, he got the feeling that annoyed them.
When the gate opens, all reservations about doing this escape him. That city was amazing. So much metal and gears. His own firearms seemed archaic. This place could advance his research by years. He is first in line to enter.