Properly equipped and carrying his trunk, Anumil gawks like a tourist.
Snapping back to the present he says; "What? Oh. Yes of course. Shall we?"
"Ready to head out." Inerii nods to the Monitor and Elf.
She makes her way to towards the air ship.
Current AC: 18 (15 Flat-footed / 13 Touch)
Current HP: 24 / 24 remaining
Current Weapon in Hand: none
Conditions in effect: none
Spells (0-level, DC 13, at will) Detect Magic, Light, Mage Hand, Mending, Prestidigitation, Read magic;
(1st level, DC 15, 4 or 4 spell slots) Cure Light Wounds, Grease, Silent Image, Vanish
Bardic Performance: 11 of 11 rounds per day remaining
You all board the ship and the Captain greets you and shows to the cabins, each crew cabin holds 6 people. Each crew cabin has a triple bunk on either side, a folding table between them, and three lockers stacked on either side between the beds and the door. Mr Big finds that the folding desk has an adjustable height and can be lowered to connect the two lowest bunks into a sizable bed.
Inerri gets put into the last open bunk in an officers cabin which has the same dimensions but has a triple bunk on one side and three desk/lockers opposite.
There is a small galley and a crew lounge. Moving from deck to deck is via ladders along the wall and hatches that can be opened mid-hallway for cargo and large items. On the bottem deck is a hatch that opens under the ship.
Ineeri stows her things and then takes a brief tour of the airship. Shen then will make for the main deck to watch as the ship launches.
Anumil throws his case on his bunk with a grunt, then loostens his collar as he looks around the cabin and greets his fellow passengers/crew. Spartan, as is right and proper.
Then he stores his belongings in the proper locker and emerges onto the deck to watch the departure.
A little while after you all get onboard and get settled many windmen suddenly return, board and get straight to work on prepping everything for cast off.
Soon everything is ready and the ship's mastermage takes his seat on the poopdeck and focuses on a dais behind the wheel. "Prepare to cast off!" bellows the captain emerging from his cabin followed by the major. They take position on the poopdeck next to the mastermage. The captain consults a couple instruments while the crew make preperations. When the crew is ready the captain bellows again, " Cast off!" he turns to the mage, "Edgar, take us up to the stream.". Edgar, the mastermage starts concentrating on the dias and the ship floats up into the sky. "Full sail!" and the crew unfurl the sails, which go from the tip of the foremast to the other four masts in a pyramid shape. The sails catch wind and the ship starts moving forward.
The ship keeps raising until it gets cold then you can hear the sails and masts suddenly strain as the winds suddenly pickup and you can see the ground below pass unbelievably fast.
Malazzesh, having taken notes on the ship's ascent, watches as it rises more and more quickly.
Anumil grips a stanchion to help his balance as he thrills to the feeling of ascent. Up until the cold drives him below.
The Faelin is smiling and feels a sense of exhilaration as the ship takes the the air and speeds along over the land. She look back at the Captain and the mage at his side wondering if she recalls how such vessels work.
The ship is often made of material that is innately super-light (either naturally or through powerfull spells). Super light meaning the some percentage of the material has negative gravity, thus floats. The mage uses spells to adjust the amount of negative gravity to normal/null gravity to change how high the ships floats.
Airships generally use winds to move, however with nothing but air to use a ship can go only downwind, and can clip sideways a little. The higher you go the faster winds get, there is also the jetstream which travels really fast.
To go against the wind or just sideways, the mage activates a few spells that create a bubble that the wind flows around to avoid the ship, and then use the engines to move. This isn't very fast though, so ships use the winds whenever they can. In fact storms are actually a good thing sometimes, because they usually push winds at low altitudes in different directions, so ships will ride low at the edge of a storm to fly quickly against the normal wind direction.
Generally ballast is kept in the bottom to keep the ship up right. The ballast is partially made of the batteries to run the motors.
Because the material that has negative gravity is only parts of the ship, the weight of cargo and people onboard counts against it's "buoyancy."
The mastermage can control the spells built into the ship through the crystal in the ship's dias.
The trip itself is rather uneventful beyond the beatiful views and biting cold. The crew sets up tent like flaps around the poop deck and fore deck. Which shields those areas against the wind and clouds.
Two days into the trip, the ship descends and cuts sideways a little bit. As you get closer to the ground the crew takes down the tent flaps as it gets warmer and you can see for miles. The ground looks painted green with small cracks, which become ever more common.
As you get closer, the small cracks turn into huge gorges, which look like the ground itself was shoved hastily aside, the streched thin.
That evening, you finally stoop down almost hitting the trees. The mastermage activates the dias and suddenly you feel no more wind at all. The engines start and the ships slows as the crew furl the sails store everything. Eventually, just before nightfall, the ship drops anchor just outside the town.
The major talks to you all, "Still nothing on radio. We made good time. Get some sleep. In the morning you get to explore down there."
Inerri will spend much of her time near the mastermage learning of how he uses the dais to control the airship.
As the ship comes to a stop she looks out over where the town, looking for any signs of life.
"It is tempting make for the town using the cover of darkness. The woman comments to the others. "But I suppose that there is some good sense to move in with the light, considering the unknowns that we face."
"See you all in the morning then." Inerri heads off to her quarters and spends an hour or morning trying to calm her nerves about what they might or might not face.
The Faelin is up before dawn eating a cold breakfast of fruit when she comes up on deck and whispers to those on watch, "Anything from the town during the dark?"
Current AC: 18 (15 Flat-footed / 13 Touch)
Current HP: 24 / 24 remaining
Current Weapon in Hand: none
Conditions in effect: none
Spells (0-level, DC 13, at will) Detect Magic, Light, Mage Hand, Mending, Prestidigitation, Read magic;
(1st level, DC 15, 4 or 4 spell slots) Cure Light Wounds, Grease, Silent Image, Vanish
Bardic Performance: 11 of 11 rounds per day remaining
Anumil is up with the dawn and eats breakfast rapidly.
Equiping himself, he grins at the thought of action again. And this time devoid of the politics he had been wading through for so long.
Malazzesh spends his days carefully examining the land as he passes, getting a sense of the landmarks and navigation across it.
@Inerri
The windmen on watch, "Not that I could see, but with this foiliage, it wouldn't be hard to hide."
@Malazzesh
Watching the land go by,
There are the occasional river, lake, or town, but other then having a white streak of the mountians constanly to the NE, you see few enough land marks that navigation would be difficult, trying to come back by foot would be a matter of keeping the mountains on your left until you find a road.
The most you all can see of the town from the ship is the radio tower. There are many tall trees here, so visibility is wanting.
A hatch on the bottom of the ship is opened with a rope ladder to climb down, for those who don't jump off and feather fall to the ground anyway (A trick most windmen make a point of learning). The crew make a small clearing and encampment here under the ship and secure the anchor better as well.
You can approach the town however you wish. Though the major does expect you to leave in the morning.
Anumil turns to the others when safe on the ground.
"Well then, shall we make our approach screened by the trees? It would seem to be prudent; given the radio tower is silent, yet still intact."
The Faelin climbs down the ladder and once on the ground nods to Annumil, "I think that best. Try to stay hidden from sight from whomever might be in Dustfall until we can tell what is going on."
Inerri pulls out a small dark wooded shortbow, "Just in case we come across unfriendly individuals."
"Stealth is not my strength," Malazzesh indicates, presenting himself and his armor. "But I will do what I can for you. Perhaps it is I they should meet as you find what you can from the shadows. Yet remember that I and my kind always stand in the light."
He descends the ladder, and readies his bow.
A few minutes walk and and you come across the road from Dustfall to the northwest following the ravine , down the road you can see the city gate, which was a pair of doors at one point, is missing one door and the other door is just laying in the street, heavily bent.
Stealth checks for those sneaking closer and perception from everyone.
Inerri whispers at noticing the city's door on the ground, "That cannot be good."
Current AC: 18 (15 Flat-footed / 13 Touch)
Current HP: 24 / 24 remaining
Current Weapon in Hand: none
Conditions in effect: none
Spells (0-level, DC 13, at will) Detect Magic, Light, Mage Hand, Mending, Prestidigitation, Read magic;
(1st level, DC 15, 4 or 4 spell slots) Cure Light Wounds, Grease, Silent Image, Vanish
Bardic Performance: 11 of 11 rounds per day remaining
Malazzesh lays a scaled hand on Inerri and Anumil as they approach. They sense a slight shift in mental clarity, as if the world was brought more into focus.
Anumil accepts the touch spell from Malazzesh, then eases his way past the gates.
As you walk up to the gates, listening to Mal's armor echoing off the distant canyon walls, you see the street is clear of anyone, living or dead, though blood stains abound, as does debris.
The doors to many buildings, including the radio shack, are hangin open, some ripped completely off. The foot prints of some large creature are all along the street. A large vehicle for moving raw materials, is laying on it's side against the library entrance. The school house, is in absolute ruins, and is barely standing.
There are several small shops, many apartments and houses, a few taverns, and a game house.
The hospitol, at the other end of the street, seems mostly undisturbed, except the missing doors.
Inerri motions to the radio shack and moves in that direction if there is agreement. She looks within to see what if anything is left/salvageable.
Current AC: 18 (15 Flat-footed / 13 Touch)
Current HP: 24 / 24 remaining
Current Weapon in Hand: none
Conditions in effect: none
Spells (0-level, DC 13, at will) Detect Magic, Light, Mage Hand, Mending, Prestidigitation, Read magic;
(1st level, DC 15, 4 or 4 spell slots) Cure Light Wounds, Grease, Silent Image, Vanish
Bardic Performance: 11 of 11 rounds per day remaining
At Inerri's move, he nods agreement and moves after her; watching for movement around them in the eerily empty town.
Looking into the radio shack you see all the equipment is smashed and broken, the wires all cut. Someone didn't want these to be usable ever again.
Suddenly CRASH!.... Anumil bumped the wall coming up behind Inerri and that caused an unsteady window pane to crash into the ground, shattering the glass and spreading shards all over the area. Watch where step!
Anumil scrambles back to his feet and freezes guiltily, looking around for a sign of an enemy that heard it.
He signs to the other to move around to the back of the radio tower for cover.
Inerri looks back to Anumil with a raised brow as the window pane crashes... She peers to the side and then comments, "There was a wolf, went behind the building over there." She motions in it's direction.
Really not wanting to stay out in the open, Anumil nods and heads off in the direction Inerri pointed.
Anumil, you head off across the street, you find some wolf tracks headed to the far side of the town away from the gate, but you don't see any wolves. You do notice an unusual weapon hiding under a piece of debris. It is sized for a small creature and the form is unfamiliar. It is appears to be simple iron and poorly forged, though it is completely metal with no wooden or leather parts at all, though some pieces of chitin or shell are used on the pommel.
Everyone suddenly feels a slight quivering in the ground, which looses a few more panes of glass, and they hear a loud deep rushing sound from the gorge.
Anumil immediately thinks its a good idea to get under some hard cover, like inside somewhere.
You are next to the backdoor of the building to your left (which is east and you entered town from the west) the door is open and you can dart inside if you like, though the sound didn't last but for 3-4 seconds, now you can just hear the rocks settling in the gorge.
Other then the loose glass, not really any damage was done. It did seem to be more of a local event in the gorge rather then an earthquake. Possibly a landslide.
Anumil will motion towards the doorway and then dive inside. Better caution than charging into a dragon or something.
Going inside it appears to be a housing unit for the workers, the door opens to the back hallway, and there is a communal washroom, with baths attached, and followed by several rooms that have been trashed but you can still see remnents of beds and cabinets. Most of this stuff is common quality, and made for multiple people per room, so this was probably the temporary barracks while waiting for more housing to be constructed.
Strangely, some things were left behind that normally wouldn't be, such as a new style music box that can play any music from cartridges put in the top of it. Any civilised person would know that it is expensive and worthwhile loot, yet it lays on on the floor, scratched and nicked but seemingly undamaged otherwise. Several cartridges are scattered about, mostly new style music, like albums by Purp!e.
Strangely, all the lighting lamps are missing.