Golarion Online

Game Master Jaster Kite

Prologue: The Birdcage

Day three.

The Birdcage is in an uproar. Questions shouted. "Where are we? Why is this happening?"
This was growing too long to just be a dream. Unrest swept the hub world.
Many 'players' have already left on their own 'adventures.' Others were caught in fear and never left their cozy birdcage.
Then there were six unique cases. The gates beckoned them. The rest of Golarion was laid out before them.
Honestly, there were legendary first meetings between legendary heroes, and then there was this one.
The Town Square was half-full, though some with the more negative disposition would say it was half-empty.
Almost like everyone in a bar all pairing off suddenly, just leaving a small group of awkward singles determined not to stick out in the crowd, the players in the Square were separating into groups, forming parties, leaving six individuals alone in the center of the Square. Through general happenstance, these six future heroes became the only two singles in the bar.
What was your business in the town square, folks? Thoughts running through your heads? Post in and introduce yourselves.

A young woman with flowing brown hair strolled through the market, humming a gentle song to herself, in a language perhaps unknown to the land around herself.

"Fais comme l'oiseau... Ça vit d'air pur et d'eau fraîche, un oiseau..."

Reflexively, she draws her white-wool-knit cloak tighter to herself, as if expecting to be cold. She soon loosens it, finding the weather to be much kinder to her than she expected.

On her shoulder, unperturbed by this movement, a thrush perches quietly, occasionally chirping a few notes.

"What a beautiful day today, wouldn't you agree, Mr. Whistle?" Florentine smiles. "Why, this seems like a perfect moment to work on my scarf."

Finding a comfortable bench, she sits and takes the half-complete scarf and knitting needles out of her bag. The tools click softly against one another as their handler follows her pattern almost instinctively, watching what littler passersby are around as she does.

At the same bench, the player registered as "tin_man" sits clenching and unclenching his hand repeatedly. Between each he counts five ticks. It was a method his therapist had taught him; to control stress.

It was a necessary precaution at a time like this. He'd already had a breakdown when he first found himself here. Three days and some considerable property damage later and he still hadn't recovered.

At least the crowd was thinning.

"Oh, please forgive me for butting in," Florentine asks, noticing her neighbor's repeated movement. "But I must ask: Are you injured? Is your hand hurting?"

It had been so long since she had been the one caring for someone else; ever since she'd taken that bad fall and broken her hip for the first time, it felt like she'd only been a burden... at least, until she'd come here.

She recalled her first day on Golarion, and how, with Mr. Whistle's advice and the guidance of a spirit of life, she'd helped a young lad who'd gotten quite badly hurt thinking he was invincible in this other world. Thankfully, she'd patched him up like new.

She was taking to her spiritual magic like a fish to water.

A man with short black hair is sitting on a bench across the road from Florentine, his deep cerulean eyes glancing around in annoyince at every passerby and square-goer.

"this is literally the worst, what am I supposed to do now?" Gabriel grumbles to himself. His gaze turns to Florentine and he quickly averts his eyes, his face burning a bit 'don't stare a girls Gabriel...it's creepy' he says in his mind.

Turning away from the young woman, Gabriel inspects the greatsword laying across his legs and sighs.
"I need to get out of the birdcage...but where would I go?"

Tin_man responds with a wide-eyed gaze until he releases the breath he had been holding, leaving his expression more tired than anything.

"No, I'm alright, don't mind me. It was just a long time getting here with nothing to show for it. I had hoped there would be a way out."

A lithe, dark-skinned elf with long grey hair looked around the area with mild interest. Ever since she had awoken in this area, she knew her Lord had a plan for her. So she embraced this life with all of her heart, in hopes that it would please Him and quicken the time until she was by His side.

Sitting down near a woman with a bird on her shoulder and a half-orc she looked over and said, "Greetings, my name is Mrs.Thanatos."

"Oh." Florentine gasps at the mention of "a way out". "I can't say I'd considered the possibility of such a thing, but I hope you do manage to find it, if it's what you're looking for."

When "Mrs. Thanatos" introduced herself, Florentine responded with a polite nod. By this point, she has already seen enough unusual races going around that a Drow barely registers as unusual. "My, aren't you formal!" She exclaimed. "It's a pleasure to meet you. You can call me Florentine, it's what the other townsfolk call me."

Janice nodded her head politely at the woman. "Yes, indeed a pleasure," she said softly, as though deciding if that was the correct phrase. "It seems that I was not the only one sent here. My Lord must have plans for us all, then." A small smile graced her lips for a moment as she looked at the others around her. "From appearances sake, it seems as though He is gathering a group of heroes as of old. Perhaps I shall meet Him sooner than I imagined."

...

"What the hell are you talking about?"

Walking over from a nearby market stand is a young man with tousled black hair, wearing a suit of mail and with multiple weapons belted and secured to his body. He moves fairly easily and takes a seat, removes a gauntlet, and runs a hand through his hair. He then gives you each a grin and nods, and launches into an introduction, having missed most of the prior conversation.

"Well, hi there. Guess in all my excitement to learn the system most folks just took off running, huh? Well, that's what'll separate the movers and shakers." He sighs. "At least assuming this is all what it seems. Given I've only woken up here, this is one hell of a long dream, or else..." He trails off, and eventually shrugs and stands up.

"Well, anyway, I'm Taran. Or, uh, you might know me by my other name. Mister Jingles?" He sticks out a hand, looking for anyone to shake. "You guys wanna go adventure? Or you wanna just do RP? Not that there's no middle ground, I like to do both myself."

Such language!

Florentine's eyes widen at both men's invocation of the unholy realms beyond but, for the sake of harmony, avoids bringing it up.

"You must think I'm quite behind the times, but I must ask: What is 'RP'?"

Before anyone else can reply, the finch on Florentine's shoulder straightens up and speaks with a surprisingly clear, if slightly nasal, voice: "RP, or roleplay, refers to the act of socializing for the purpose of developing a better connection with one's Golarion avatar."

Not very startled at the sight of a talking bird, Gabriel gets up from his seat; lugging his greatsword into its sheath, he walks over to the group.

"hello-uh my names Gabriel, sorry if I'm bothering you all but..." he trails off, turning his gaze to tin_man "...are you trying to find a way out too?" Gabriel asks, not bothering to hide his hopefulness.

Taran leans back and cocks his head at Florentine's question, then laughs and steps toward her. "Oh, cool, you've got a familiar?" He looks her up and down quickly and nods. "What're you playing? Looks like armor there, so not a wizard or witch. Shaman maybe?"

He pauses and then shakes his head. "Oh, sorry, you're new to this, right? The RP question. Yeah, never mind, I'm an old hand." He grins a little and rubs his neck. "Sorry. But yeah, roleplaying. It's like getting into character. Like acting, kind of. Not a lot of folks do it on games like this, but you know. It can be fun." He shrugs his shoulders and turns to Gabriel.

"Hi, Taran. Or, uh, Mister Jingles? Know the name, yes, no?" He pauses, looking hopeful for a moment, then shrugs again. "Well, anyway, if you mean finding a way out of this starting area, then yeah. I'm about ready. Gone through the documents I could find, checked out help stuff. Don't know everything, but hey, that's the experience of actually playing the game, right?"

He rests a hand on his greatsword and pauses, shifting gears again. "Or do you mean, uh, out of here?" He gestures to the general surroundings with his free hand. "Like, back to the real world?"

Either I'm way better at lucid dreaming than I thought, and my brain's on overdrive doing crazy sh*t, or something's actually really weird here.

"Yes, out."

...

"What the hell are you talking about?"

Janice looked over at the half-orc and raised a slender eyebrow. "Would you like to clarify your question?" she asked him before looking at the others. "It is a pleasure to meet you all. While I would like to gain access to areas other than this small area, leaving this world would be anathema to my Lord's plans. If He wants me here then my time would be best served in figuring out why instead of escape."

"Yeah, sure" spits back tin_man as he stands up from the bench. He wasn't particularly well-built, but his patience had immediately started to wear thin. "What. Are. You. Talking About. Who is "He"!? What do you know about-about, all of this?" he shouts, waving his hands wildly to indicate the world at large "Because if you know something about it, or someone who does, then you better start talking right now!"

"Whoa, whoa!" Taran steps forward, and using his large size and powerful strength, he pushes the two apart. "Guys, chill out. Can you even PvP in the starting zone?" He shakes his head. "Never mind. Seriously, don't fight already. We're all in this together, right? So everybody calm down."

He turns to Janice. "Now, are you just into the RP already, or is there something going on? Who's your "Lord," and what's going on with all that?"

Gabriel wilts a bit at being forgotten in the wake of this argument, neat. Turning to Florentine, he sheepishly says
"well I think we've all made a great impression on each other" he holds out a hand " once again I am Gabriel, do you know anything about this place?"

These poor dears... they must not know yet... No wonder they're so agitated. It'd be quite a shock to learn... I'd better wait until an occasion to break the news more gently happens.

"It's nice to meet you, Gabriel," Florentine replies. "You can call me Florentine. As for where we are now, I'm not too sure myself. "

Florentine being busy speaking with Gabriel, Mr. Whistle takes it upon himself to answer Taran's question. "You are correct. Florentine of the Spirits is a first level Unsworn Shaman."

"can't say that wasn't the answer I expected...thanks anyway" Gabriel gives a sigh and glances at the rest of the group, wondering what there problems were. Suddenly he zero's in on the bird on Florentine's shoulder "wait a secound, you, bird; do you have any info on this place...say the identity of the voice that made these 'classes', cause I got a bone to pick with him". Gabriel puts air quotes with his hands when he says 'classes'.

Janice backed up a couple of steps, wanting to put some distance between her and the upset half-orc. "There is no need to become angry. All you had to do was ask," she said, glancing around. When the large man stepped between them, she gave a nod of thanks. "I believe I was sent here by my Lord. In case my name didn't give you a clue, my Lord is also known as the Pale Rider, the Final Rest. I serve Death, for he is my Lord and the only one I shall give my allegiance to whole-heartedly." The entire time she had a small, serene smile on her face.

Mr. Whistle merely shakes its head from left to right in reply. "I possess only system reference information and have no direct connection to the system. My purpose is purely to guide Mrs. Florentine."

"I'm afraid Mr. Whistle knows as little as the rest of us," Florentine adds. "Believe me, I had a lot of questions for him when he first spoke to me here."

Tin_man shoots a wicked glare at Mister Jingles but backs off once he hears Janice's explanation. He returns to his seat on the bench, now even more tired than before. The man has come to match the well-worn soldiers uniform that he wears (though much of the heraldry and identifying patches have been torn off or otherwise defaced).

"Sorry..." is all he offers in reparation for his outburst.

Oh, and the bird was a dead-end as well. No point trying to parse together whatever the hell was going on there.

After a apology to Mr. Whistle, Gabriel turns to Tin_man
"so back to my original question, are you also trying to escape, if so would you mind some company?"

Tin_man indicates the seat next to him as a sign of compliance.

"Can't say how well of company I'd be." he adds.

"well, normally I would just go off on my own and work what to do from there...but-" Gabriel trails off and looks unwilling to continue, but he quickly man's up "...I tried before, once by myself and once with a group of three...the first time, I couldn't even find the exit, the secound time...we didn't get far..." Gabriels while face morphs into a mournful expression

Gabriel gets a hold of himself and continues
"-look the point is, that if you really want to escape. you are going to have to leave the bird cage. This world is dangerous, you won't survive on your own"

"Excuse me sirs and ma'ams, but have you seen a lady about this high, and hair and dimple like mine?"

A young girl, very young, approaches the folks gathered around the bench. Curly, golden locks bounce out the front of a red hood and she looks up at the other's with a sad type of hope. She points a finger up to each cheek to ensure any onlookers know what her dimple look like as she gives a big cheesy grin that shows them off.

At least the child isn't wandering about alone. Not exactly, anyways. Behind her a rather stocky wolf follows in the same way you'd expect an overgrown puppy to follow its master.

"You see, I can't find my momma..."

Taran steps back and lets the others continue speaking for a little while, trying to puzzle everything together, and only giving a short nod to Mister Whistle. He leans back with his hands on his hips and blows a long breath, then nods at what Gabriel says. "Good to meet you, Gabriel. And I agree, we need to get out there, and do it together. Always best to work in groups, safety in numbers and more fun with friends, right? Wonder if there's any sort of official clan system on this."

He shrugs and then turns at the question from the young girl. Cocking his head to the side, he looks her up and down and frowns. Wonder what the chances are that's actually a girl playing. With another sigh, he kneels down and sets his arms across his knees. By now it's obvious that Taran's an active fellow, moving almost constantly, but those looking closely see that it almost looks like he's testing his motion--seeing how far he can stretch, how easily he can move in his armor.

"Can't say I have, little lady. Any more description you can give of her? When was the last time you saw her, here?" He gives a smile and holds out a hand. "And what's your name? My name's Taran."

Tin_man's heart jumps up into his throat when he sees the little girl but otherwise he stays quiet.

"I haven't seen momma here. But she wouldn't have let me go on my own. And she'll come looking for me. Daddy will, too. He's taking me to a ball game on the weekend," she explained, adjusting her red cloak around her. "My name's Elsie. Normally I wouldn't talk to strangers, but I can't find any police officers either."

Tin_man swallows hard and finally manages to speak up:

"Hey, it's ok, don't worry. See this?" he says, indicating his worn uniform "Do you know what this means? I'm a soldier. Here" he scoots slightly so there is room on the bench "come sit. I'll help you find your parents, just tell me what happened."

"Well, MY daddy says military soldiers are nothing like the police, because military guys are not community helpers at all. They are war-guys. Especially the American ones. Gun crazy uhm, ...jarheads? Whatever, it's what my momma calls them. Very different from police, who are helpers," she says, sticking up her nose with a very know it all look.

Taran glances to tin_man, and tries not to let out another heavy sigh at Elsie's words. Geez. Either I'm way more screwed up than I thought, or something's seriously wrong here. Unsure either way, he stands back up and gives the girl what he hopes is a reassuring smile.

"Well, hey. This place is kinda strange, but you know this guy and me?" He gestures to tin_man. "We're kinda like strange police officers. All of us are. Because police officers are good guys who help people and keep them safe, right? And that's what we're here to do." He adjusts his sword for a moment and turns to the others. "By the way, what are all your names? In here or whatever. Just something to call you by."

Tin_man grinds his jaw.

"You're...right" he says, strained "But there ain't no police around, are there? Just this ol' bullet sponge. Whaddya think? Better than nothing?"

He also hesitates to answer Jingles question "My name is-"

He still didn't know about any of what was happening, and he didn't want to go staking his remaining sanity by association.

"Just call me Tin Man" he concludes.

Elsie clicked her tongue and planted a hand on her hips, looking to the two women of the group. Those had been who she had actually come to see anyways. Not the men. There was something comforting about a woman sitting on a park bench knitting and with a bird. Like a Disney Princess. And her granny. Best of both worlds. The other lady was... Well actually maybe that one was no good, too.

Ah yes, children. So innocent. So judgmental.

"You know, I'm ten. Not an idiot. 'Strange Police Officers'? What are you, like those ones who dance in zebra panties at my mom's pool parties?"

She sighs and climbs up onto the bench beside the woman knitting and swings her legs. Whatever her big talk, she's obviously still a kid looking for her mom. Scary stuff.

Oh dear... That poor girl.

"Don't worry your little head off, dearie, I'm sure we'll-" Florentine begins to speak, only to be interrupted.

'Strange Police Officers'? What are you, like those ones who dance in zebra panties at my mom's pool parties?

"Oh my!" She blurts out, bringing a hand to her mouth in surprise.

"Dearie dearie me, what was I saying again... Oh yes. This situation is a little scary for all of us, and it's okay to be a little afraid, but don't worry too much. I'm sure we'll know a little more in no time, and then you'll be able to find your parents."

The poor dear... So young... Cruel world, bless her heart...

Janice smiled down at the little girl in the red hood. "Well, Little Red, where was the last place you were with your mother?"

Behind you, past a gate, in a small room, you hear a voice, the same voice that welcomed you to Golarion.
"Where would you like to begin your adventure."
It asked.
"Ustalav." Said another voice.
Then a flash from the windows.
It had been the same thing every day. Players moving on. Only a handful the first day, but slowly growing up until today, where almost a hundred familiar faes dissappeared. The house behind you was one of the four Warp houses, teleporting players and parties to their desired destination.

"THERE YOU ARE YOU SHI-um..." Gabriels eye alight in fury when the voice rears it's head, his veins glow blue with mystical power, his muscles bulge and he looked like he was ready to rip the nearest person apart.

I've used one round of bloodrage

Before he finishes his sentence however, Gabriel remembers that he is in the presence of a lady AND a child and stops himself from finishing. His eyes and veins cease there glow and his muscle recede back to there normal size.

"...sorry about that, it happens whenever I get mad..." he explains before taking three steps back and awkwardly standing there.

Taran snorts at Elsie's comment and shakes his head. "Not exactly..." He glances over at the sound of someone leaving, and snorts again. Ustalav? Damn, guess they wanted to go hard on their firs time out. Wonder if you can get back here once you leave...

His thoughts are interrupted by the outburst from Gabriel, and he steps back, hand reaching for his sword. He stops when the man calms down, though, and steps forward again, cocking his head to the side and looking at him inquisitively. "Rage, huh? Good to see we've got a couple of tanks, then. Assuming we all work together, anyway. Probably a good idea if we do."

Thanks for the reminder!

Janice looked around at all of the new people as the mysterious voice called out once again. "For those who weren't here before, my name is Mrs.Thanatos, and it is a pleasure to meet all of you," she said to them. When adventuring together is brought up, she added, "Hmmm...yes. Yes, adventuring together would make sense. Perhaps it would allow us to find out my Lord's purpose for sending me here all the quicker."

Taran gives Janice a confused look. "Uh, hey, don't know if you read all the material, but I think the death god here has a different name. Uhm, Pharasma, I think? And it's a she." He shrugs. "Not that I'm against that."

He shrugs and takes a few steps toward the exit. "But anyway, we wanna head out soon? Not much to do here if we've got the gear we need."

"Oh! How exciting! I don't think I've done anything very adventurous since... I don't even remember!" Florentine laughs.

"Surely, someone out there can tell us more about this place," she suggests.

Taran gives Janice a confused look. "Uh, hey, don't know if you read all the material, but I think the death god here has a different name. Uhm, Pharasma, I think? And it's a she." He shrugs. "Not that I'm against that."

Janice looked over at Jingles with a confused look on her face. "There is a Death goddess here?" she asked before shrugging. "I suppose that does make sense, though I do not follow this...Pharasma, you said?"

"wow, I came here expecting to get turned away and I've now got three partners! Gabriel grins triumphantly, forgetting about his prior outburst for the moment.

He turns to Tin_man, holding out a hand "considering that I came here originally to ask you as our intrest aligned, the offer is for you as well!"

Suddenly realizing he is forgetting someone, he turns to Elsie and Big Bad and asks
"...uh, I don't think your parents are here little girl, what will you do if you can't find them?"

Elsie clings to the arm of the woman who had been doing the knitting, looking warily at the others. Crazy people, she thought, looking up to all of them. One of those angst emo teenagers, a scary American jarhead, a crazy man who named himself after a cat, and a nerd.

"Can I go with you, ma'am?" she asked Florentine.

"Of course, dearie." Florentine smiles. "The more the merrier, my mother always said!"

Gabriels grin widens a good bit when Florentine speaks, a large unmistakable blush of his face as he laughs sheepishly
"this is REALLY turning out better then I though!".

Afterwords he kneels down to Elsie level and gives her a thumbs up " ok Red, I got a super important job for you, it's called stay close to the group"

Elsie tilts her head to the side and gives the Gabriel guy a look like he's probably a little off his rocker, too. Rather than answer, she reaches up and takes Forentine's hand and gives a nod.

"I'm ten. You can talk like a normal person around me. Probably shouldn't cuss too much, though. It's not classy to cuss in front of a kid."