Tristain leaves the strange dream guy and follows Al around. He’ll get to a wall and begin to bonk as he thinks.
*bonk!*
*bonk!*
*bonk!*
*bonk!*
*bonk!*
*bonk!*
”That was a strange chat, wasn’t it? I just couldn’t get the idiot to understand that more testing doesn’t lead to more more cases. The cases already exist and testing just reveals them. But the moron moron’d all over the place. It was in the ledger! Geez.”
Kyffin leaves Tenebrynn and joins the others as they're leaving the chamber. "What, aren't we? ..." he trails off when it's clear they mean to let the creature live. Well, it is only the dreamlands, and it seems harmless enough...
Frowning, he takes up his position on point with Al, and finishes searching the ground floor. He seems to eye Tristain, as if wondering when would be a good time to chat with him about his carnal infatuations.
He decides not now.
Jasno follows Al.
As promised, you discover another denizen of Leng and more Yeth hounds in the room where you previously discovered the haunt, but you're able to defeat them with a minimum of harm.
The only room remaining is the baths, where Kyffin died -- only to come back -- for the first time.
Kyffin, calmer now that he's had a chance to fight and bleed off the adrenaline he had coursing though his system, approaches the baths with caution.
His scimitar is out and held firmly, if a little shakily, as he approaches the baths, leading with his blade. "We're not just talking our way through whatever lies in here..."
He proceeds with caution.
Tristain wishes he had time for more good bonking, but that's not where the party is right now. And Tristain is way too much of a pushover to voice his needs, or much less think that anyone else would care. They had things to do now, and his needs could wait.
He follows along, hoping more and even worse dream monsters aren't nearby, but also he knows at the SpiderBride Dance was pretty much the worst for many reasons.
"Have any of you all ever realized how much these dreams are made of piss? I'm not one to disagree with that."
Despite any trepidation at entering the room, it too seems to be empty, though the strange tiles again seem to distort your vision, making you ill.
”Well, at there wasn’t anything in here to squeeze me to near death this time. Let’s go upstairs then? I like the Dreamlands less and less as we go and it’d be nice to find this splinter of Lowls and be done with this place.”
"The calm does not reassure me." Looks around cautiously.
”Upstairs now? I’ll follow you guys,” Tristain bonks as he waits for the sick feeling to pass. He does not enjoy it, and the bonking helps.
”I’m sure glad we found the red webbed foot. Lucky us. Let’s get on with this.”
Kyffin relaxes, slightly, on seeing an empty room. "Upstairs indeed." He'll march to the stairs and climb to the second floor beginning the groups room-to-room search there.
"Right, upstairs it is. We need to make sure nothing else is around when we take on that nightmare man. Let him be distracted by his book for now while we deal with the others, then we'll circle back to him." Blade in hand, Al follows behind Kyffin up the stairs.
Aside from the dark night sky, the roof looks much the same as it did before -- not counting the truly massive creature wearing a massive teak howdah. Larger than an elephant, the blue-scaled, bird-like creature turns its vaguely horse-like head toward you, stretching out its vast, slime-encrusted wings.
It's a shantak, a strange creature with the ability to travel the gulfs of space. Despite the howdah this one wears, you know they are intelligent creatures and cannot usually be trained as mounts -- a would-be shantak rider must use diplomacy or magic to secure a shantak's cooperation as a mount.
Know (Planes)
"Oh man...I think that's a shantak, a space traveling mount. That's neat. And from the howdah, it's been trained...or is agreeing to be ridden," Tristain notes. "We should be careful here. Think before acting."
Tristain moves back to privately bonk and think, plotting what to do next.
*bonk!*
*bonk!*
*bonk!*
*bonk!*
*bonk!*
*bonk!*
"Do you guys remember the nightmare man?"
"If that's the shantak, then Weiralai must be around here." Albert steps forward and addresses the creature.
"I am Albert and these are my companions. We are seeking Weiralai. Would you be able to take us to her?"
"A what? Jasno looks on amazed even though he has no idea what he is looking at.
The shantak speaks in a high-pitched voice that sounds like glass grinding against stone.
"She is not here," it says. "She rode my sibling to the moon with a man dressed in yellow. I could follow the same path as I also know the way. But what is your business with Weiralai? Would she approve of my
taking you there?"
Tenebrynn, despite being told the shantak was intelligent, still can’t help but drop her jaw as the creature speaks. Glancing nervously from it to her friends and back, she shrugs. ”I can’t speak to Weiralai‘s mind, but her companion, the man in yellow, has been awaiting our return. We’ve been all across the Dreamlands acquiring various items at his instruction and are trying to return to him now that our work is complete.”
Kyffin looks at the creature and shakes his head. "Only in the dreamlands..." he mutters. When it speaks he tries not to wince.
He nods in agreement with Tenebrynn, "Yeah, we have all this stuff we've collected." he holds up the one or two items that he's carrying. "Important these are."
"Yes, I think Weiralai would approve of you taking us there, because I believe she means to leave the yellowman on the moon and we need to talk to him, so instead of bringing him back here, we could just go visit them on the moon."
Jasno nods as Kyffin and Al speak.
Tristain keeps quiet and hopes that they don’t have to ride the beast, and instead are about to go into the nicer parts of the Dreamlands where stuff isn’t so unsafe and insane.
*bonk*!
*bonk*!
*bonk*!
*bonk*!
*bonk*!
*bonk*!
"Very well, if you have materials she needs, I guess she wouldn't appreciate me not bringing you and them to her," he says. "You may get in the howdah. This trip will take some time."
You know ominous dark galleys travel from the Dreamlands to its moon frequently, and that the moon is the home of the wicked, froglike moon-beasts, who live in cities of pale, hard stone.
It's an eerie journey, the moon seeming to get every larger as you get closer, while the stars seem to watch menacingly, instead of their welcoming twinkly back home.
Upon arrival, the shantak descends quickly to the rocky surface of the moon. The terrain is stony and barren, with hills rising around a lake of dark, viscous fluid. A large, windowless building squats at the edge of the lake, constructed of enormous, close-fitting blocks of the pale stone from which the moon is formed. The building’s largest entrance pierces one end of the structure, with a smaller entrance to the side. The other end of the structure rises several dozen feet above the level of the lake like the humped back of a great stone beast. The shantak lands in a large, empty paddock a few hundred yards from the imposing building. It looks around nervously as it hunches down so you can exit.
Weapon Equipped = None
Cold Iron/Silver Blanch Arrows = 7/10
Cold Iron/Ghost Salt Arrows = 7/10
Conditions = Magic Vestment (1/9h, +2)
Scimitar: Attack: BAB +6/1, Str +4, Magic +1, Focus +2, (Power -2) Damage: Str +4, Magic +1, Specialization +2, (Power +4) Crit: 18-20
Longbow: Attack: BAB +6/1, Dex +1 Damage: Str +4
Blessings (7/7, su) (Holy Strike (std) or Powerful Healer (sw))
Fervor (6/6, su, sw, DC 16, 3d6)
Sacred Weapon (7/9r, su, sw, +2)
Sacred Armor (8/9m, su, sw, +1)
Boots of Speed = 9/10 (+1 attack, +1 on attack rolls, +1 dodge to AC & Reflex, +30’ move)
Pearl of Power (1/1, first)(1/1, second)
Spells (Caster Level 9, Concentration +11)
Zero (12): Create Water, Detect Magic, Light, Mending, Stabilize
First (13): Command, Compel Hostility, Divine Favor, Divine Favor, Divine Favor, Shield of Faith
Second (14): Bull’s Strength, Burst of Radiance, Hold Person, Protection from Evil Communal, Sound Burst
Third (15): Dispel Magic, Invisibility Purge,
Kyffin spends some time in wonderment at the ‘flight’. It’s all a dream of course, so not that weird all things considered. But these dreams feel so real - he enjoyed the trip. Still, he gets some sleep, and as it looks like they’re about to land, he’ll refresh the Magic Vestment on his buckler.
When the great beast lands, he happily disembarks, enjoying the firmness of the ground beneath his feet.
He’ll look to the others, ”So what’s our plan here? Are we talking or fighting or what?”
"Thank you for the flight, may we secure your services for the return trip home?" As he negotiates with the Shantak Albert observes their setting and the strange building. "Is that building by the lake where we'll find Weiralai?"
"If that is where we need to go then it may be time to decide. Do you all know much about this Weiralai? Is it likely to come to a fight? It is hard to imagine talking to someone on the moon."
Tristain is slow to disembark from the big bird thing, but eventually does. He walks out, onto the *MOON*, and stretches his legs as he does. He looks around.
”This is the moon? What? I was expecting...something different,” Tristain yawns again, and decides that this place can’t possibly be safe. He casts Heroism on Al & Tenebrynn, leaving others to be heroic without magic.
”I’ve never been here before, believe it or not. And I don’t know what to expect, Kyffin. You, uh, we, just need to see what there is to see. Mostly, I think we’re gunna die. None of this makes sense. How did we sleep in our sleep? I can’t help but think that we’re still back in the spot with the room with the starting corner...and this is all a dream. All of it.”
"I do not know. My brother is not here," the shantak replies, nervously. "We should go back now."
It flaps its wings in agitation a few times at Jasno's question, rearing back to look carefully at you.
"Fight? Why would you fight? I thought you were bringing something for Weiralai!"
"Flight, he said Flight, not fight, don't worry." Al soothes.
"Maybe your brother needs help. We'll go to that building and ask about him and Weiralai. Wait for us, we'll be back, hopefully with your brother."
Albert is ready to approach the building, unless the party has another plan of action.
Jasno follows Al, slowing to look to the others after a few steps.
Tristain follows along, eager to avoid a flight or fight.
The shantak still seems concerned, but also seems to accept Al's lies and crouches back down.
"I will wait for a while, but ... hurry!"
As you approach the building, you can see a closed metal portcullis fifteen feet wide and fifteen feet high blocks a long hallway into the stone building. A squat guard post stands to the right of the portcullis as though budding from the building, its blank three-foot-square windows resembling empty eye sockets.
Kyffin, scimitar still sheathed to support their ruse, approaches the portcullis and guard post. He's looking for someone who might actually let them in, but barring that, he's also looking for a way to open the portcullis.
As he pokes around, he'll cast Bull's Strength.
If no one is about, he'll try to lift the gate, though he'll wait for others to assist as well.
(bull)
"Let's knock first. No need to be rude," Tristain says as he head bonks the side door to the guard(?) tower.
He'll move back after he knocks.
As you approach, you hear a scratchy voice from inside the guard tower.
"Turn back, strangers, it's not safe here," the voice says.
"Turn back, strangers, it's not safe here," the voice says.
"Yeah, I know I hate it here," Tristain pulls up short at the voice. "But we're supposed to be here and we brought the right gifts. So let us in. I don't want to be here any more than you want me here."
"We know it's not safe here. We get it. Now please open the portcullis." Kyffin agrees with Tristain.
Tenebrynn's enthusiasm and excitement at first traveling to a moon and then actually being on a moon, something she's sure she expressed at least once to her companions since their departure upon the shantak, remains plain to see despite her previous exclamations being somehow lost to the strange void between the stars.
She's so excited and wildly thrilled to be on the moon that she doesn't even notice when Tristain's magics settle on her.
As the group knocks on the nearby door, she exults cheerfully to the voice beyond, "Yeah, but did you realize you're on the moon?! This is the most incredible place!"
"Yes, well, you see, as my companions have mentioned, we are actually suppose to be here, so, ahem, please do let us in, kind gatekeeper."
Jasno watches the door, glancing around at Tenebrynn's excitement about being on the moon.
"Look," the voice says, "this isn't just any prison. Look around. Like she said, you're on a moon. What do you think is inside? Why do you think this prison is out here. You don't want to be going in there. If you do, you're not coming back out."
Kyffin looks at the others in the party and shrugs, "I don't think we have any choice. Open the gate. We're going in."
”Well, do we need to be here? We’re looking for the Yellow King or Weiralai. Do you know if they’re inside?” Tenebrynn’s words are directed to the door, but she shrugs for the group as she voices the question.
Jasno follows Kyffin.
Tristain shrugs. He doesn’t want to go in, but he also doesn’t want to be in the DreamLands, nor on the moon. In fact, nothing that he actually wants ever happens, so why would he think it matters now?
He follows in. Because that makes sense.
"Oh, my mistake, we just want the visiting chambers, please. We only need to interrogate a witness, not visit the actual prison." Al hopes he has a proper understanding of moon prison infrastructure.
"Ah, you know Wieralai? I don't know about any king, but Weiralai did deliver a man in yellow robes here for incarceration several days ago. She then left, however," he replies.
He does not seem to be at all inclined to open the gate.
Tristain stares dumbly, wishing he had a good wall to bonk his head into.
"We're here to see the man in yellow robes. Please open the gate. We'll make our own way out, thank you."