Spellcraft: The spiral is not designed for short range teleport and is very difficult to aim properly. Using it again could put you anywhere on the plane or maybe even on another plane altogether. You were warned that the more often you used it the larger the margin of error would be.
You can see the palace of Pharasma from here so you need only travel in that direction but it will take a long time on foot.
|
Devyhn points to Pharasma's Palace on the horizon.
"The Spiral Pendant got us to the proper plane, but it is not designed for pin-point precision. It appears we have a bit of a walk ahead of us. Our destination is there. Be aware that demons and devils are known to prowl this place in search of lost souls. Our journey will most likely be eventful."
Lyaro sighs
"I unfortunately do not yet have the magical aptitude to casta spell of flight, thus we shall have to walk"
He looks at his nice boots wistfully.
You are discussing it when you hear a squeaking sound approaching. You look around you see through the thin night mists the silhouette of a dark figure pushing a handcart. The wheels of the cart produce the squeaking sound. As it approaches directly toward you, you can see that the figure is swathed in a long, hooded robe of coarse, gray cloth. His face is not visible, though you can just make out the shape of a protruding lower jaw. The cart appears to full of all sorts of mundane items and junk, certainly nothing that appears to be threatening. If you were in any other place at any other time, you would think this a rather ordinary traveling peddler. The cart stops before you, and the dark figure begins rummaging through it saying only one word in a low, gravelly voice, "Buy?"
"May I look through your wares good peddler?"
Lyaro will examine the goods, picking up stuff and looking it over, regardless of the response
Nothing in the cart seems to hold any value. Among the items there is an old dried codfish, a tropical orchid, an old silver coin, a globe that seems to depict the material plane but the continents are all wrong, a spear and a scythe and a broken spyglass.
Nothing seems magical and it's all in bad condition.
He reaches down to the old fish. "Buy this, Fifty gold"
Lyaro will use detect magic on the goods
"An interesting item. Can you tell us some more about it?" Erik asks, watching the peddler carefully.
Nothing in the cart is magical.
"This is a fish. Still good to eat maybe" he replies. (it's clearly rotten)
"What about the globe, seems fascinating?" Lyaro points at the globe that depicts the wonky continents.
"Might be a bit out of date. 50 gold." he says.
"Maybe if we buy something, he'll be inclined to assist us?" He turns to the peddler. "Fifty gold for a fine globe such as this seems quite reasonable... " Bleyz pulls out the requested coinage and hands it over in exchange for the globe. He hands the globe to Lyaro. "Don't say I never bought you anything." He winks at the elf to show the comment is in jest.
"Perhaps you can show us a safe and easy path to the inner court?" he asks the peddler.
The old man takes the coins into his hand and they vanish into a wisp of smoke.
He laughs "You seek what was stolen but it is gone from this place. Closer to home than you would think it is. The one who is false, who worships death yet fears it has what you seek yet he doesn't want it. Life eternal is his goal yet it must be secret or all he has worked for would be lost. Once you learn the truth expect betrayal." he says and he picks up his cart and roll it away vanishing into the dark.
|
|
Devyhn silently parses out the meaning of each sentence in his mind.
"Very useful riddle," he replies after a moment. "We can compare interpretations at a later, safer time. We should be on our way towards the palace, lest our new companion believe we have abandoned the mission."
He begins walking in the direction of Pharasma's Palace.
Lyaro takes the globe and examines it, he speaks while looking at the globe
"Thanks Bleyz.. and that sounds like a good description for Razmir, except the worshipping death part?"
"I don't like this mention of a traitor that will strike when we discover the truth"
You press on among the graves.
As you travel you see a few ghostly form wandering about but they seem to ignore you presence.
You eventually come to a very large graveyard of simple graves in the dirt with a few markings in common for each one.
The symbol of the nation of Rahadoum. The worlds only Atheist nation. Were the worship of any god is banned.
Among them you notice and old crone in rags going from grave to grave sniffing around.
[spoiler = knowledge planed dc 23]
A Night hag. Terrifying murderesses and greedy soul brokers, night hags prey upon mortals while they're most vulnerable. Preferring to kill their prey slowly, haunting their dreams night after night, these hags trap the tormented souls of their victims within dark gems so they might be sold in the infernal markets of the outer planes.
[/spoiler]
Eriks hand slips down to the hilt of his sword.
"Aye" Lyaro says in reply as if talking to himself"[/b]
The hag has clearly noticed you but she is keeping her distance eyeing you curiously but with caution.
So you try to avoid her?
Lyaro folows devyhns lead
"Lets not kill it if we don't have too, it might anger the locals"
Bleyz follows along, warily watching her while giving her a wide berth.
Ok you avoid the hag and she seems content to avoid you as well.
You continue on for a while when there is a great chill in the air and a you all start bleeding from your upper lip as a black winged angel appears before you.
"Hello Devyhn, I welcome you back to the realm of our lady but you are a bit far from were you should be." he says laughing like a child "Cabalast is getting impatient, so I have come to assist you." says Ceyanan.
Erik waits patiently, preferring to stay quiet.
Ceyanan nods and in a moment teleports you all to the Inner court.
"Usually I shepherd the dead but when the need arises I can guide the living as well. I'm curious why did you spare the hag? Did you fear her or simply did not think she was worth fighting?"
|
|
"If she had attacked, we would have defended ourselves. This place is dangerous enough without looking for trouble. If she had wounded or killed one of us, our mission would be all the more difficult, and the sound of battle would likely have attracted more unwanted attention, Great Ceyanan," Devyhn replies respectfully. "For myself, the decision not to attack the hag was a practical one."
"Hmm interesting, most zealots would charge at the fist sight of the creature. However I understand the decision and I agree with your reasoning. Gabalast is up ahead he will take you were the soul was taken and from there you will be on your way to apprehend the culprit. Then as well goddess and I will be watching and we will be very interested in your decision. Best of luck to you." says Ceyanan. He bows and vanishes.
You press on and go see Gabalast who nods as you approach. "If you are ready I would like to proceed."
"I think we're ready... " steps forward, and looks to the others to confirm.
"Let's go."
Lyaro nods and braces for the impending teleport
With Gabalast you travel to the Embassy Above you the river of souls flows. A silver stream were the souls of the dead all flow to different areas of the courts.
"I always tough the river of souls was a metaphor...were are they going?"
"Heaven, Hell, the Abyss—each of the eight aligned planes has a place in the Outer Courts, and the souls in these larger branches are the ones already sworn to a deity, or consigned by their conduct in life. They flow directly to their destined courts, where portals take them on to the appropriate planes." replies Gabalast never breaking stride
"Oh gods! Those there they are screaming!" says Naila looking up
"That is natural, that stream goes to hell" says Gabalast
As if to confirm his statement, a black-winged half-nude beautiful, savage woman came swooping along the outside of the river, spiraling around it as she went.
"Is she there to keep them from escaping?" says Naila regarding her
"Hardly. They can no more escape the river at this point than they could escape dying in the first place."
"Then what is she doing here?" In the distance, the flying devil woman was now no more than a dot.
"All the planes have representatives here, most stay in their specific courts helping to shepherd the souls to their proper place but some stay out here patrolling the river against those creature that would attempt to steal a soul to sell them or to feed on their essence"
"Like what happened to my father."
"Yes but this case is special.Your father worshipped Abadar..."
"Hardly worshipped though I don’t know if his faith went beyond facilitating his business transactions."
"What more could a god of merchants ask?" replies gabalast
"His destination for the afterlife was Axis and your fathers souls was stolen after he reached it but before his final destination. That is to say it was stolen while under our watch here in the Inner court."
"That is why you are involved..." replies Naila
"Correct. We are close now, we just entered the court of axis"
All around them, the landscape had changed subtly. While the dirt was still dirt and the rocks were still rocks, the mathematics were all wrong. There were too many right angles, too many perfect curves. Symmetry and grids that, though sometimes so immense in scope that they were almost impossible to see, nevertheless gave the impression of having been placed precisely by an enormous hand, all the way down to the smallest grain of sand. Even the flow of souls above them seemed to be more regimented now, its course twisting and rippling less and going in a straight line.
"It's a pattern...All of it..." says Naila
"Order. The plane of perfect law. Or rather, its embassy—Axis’s court within the Boneyard. This is were the soul was taken." says Gabalast.
Just then a dozen or so figures approach, in appearance, the figures most resembled elves, but elves of a beauty and perfection never seen even among the fair folk. Their ears were pointed, their bodies long and lithe, and their hair as straight and smooth as rays of light, yet where the elves of your world were still mortal, and bore the scars and minor blemishes that are the gift and curse of life, these were something different—an ideal made flesh.
"Well met travellers" the one in front says
"Greetings says Gabalast. We seek a soul that went missing somewhere along the rivers course near this point."
All amusement vanished from the man’s face, replaced by a flat, neutral expression that seemed more natural there.
"Your claim seems unlikely, most souls stolen from the river are taken on their course trough the astral were it's difficult to guard it sufficiently. Not in the Inner court were the eyes of half the planes and Pharasma herself are upon them."
"yet here I am guiding those chosen by Pharasma herself to carry out this task. You doubt me?" says Gabalast
"No." says the man without pause
"I will consult the books" he reaches behind him and a woman passes him a giant book bound in clasps of glittering metal.
He opens it and the book automatic flips over to a specific page.
"Faldus Anvanory...Sworn to Abadar...Received at the central branching court and sent to the first vault...If the soul was stolen it was indeed done between here and the entrance to Abadar's realm."
"Your certain?" says Naila.
Gablast and the elven figures all give her a strange look.
"Were Axiomites" replies the man as if that was obvious
"I apologise she is unfamiliar with this plane of existence"
The man nods "Language is rarely a perfect construct." he replies He turned to Neila. "While the inherent instability of existence and the finite capacity for understanding, combined with the influence of the observer on both events and his/ her/its perception of them, make tautological proof inherently impossible, I believe that you were instead asking about the relative probability of the event in question, which is so great as to render the other possibilities statistically insignificant." He paused and looked expectantly at her.
"Oh..thank you" she says blushing "But isn't that the door to Abadar's realm over there?" she says pointing to a massive golden door only a few hundred feet away
"One of them, there are other ways course—the First Vault of the merchant god sits in Axis proper, where it guards the first, perfect archetypes upon which everything in existence is based. The perfect sword, the perfect chair chair—even the perfect human man and woman"
"And we are going there?" says Naila
"No. The soul was taken between here and that door so we must search this place for a clue. Search for anything that might hint to the thief."
Lyaro will begin looking around the area scanning with detect magic to see if he can glean any clues
|
|
"Greetings, friends," Devyhn says the to axiomites with a respectful bow of his head.
"As Galabast has said, we have been charged by the Grey Lady to assist in the investigation and apprehension of the soul thief. My name is Devyhn Rhyker." He raises his hand to show the mark of Pharasma on his palm.
As the suggestion arises on searching the area, Devyhn takes a moment to reflect on what he remembers of these realms. What kind of tracks would be left in this realm, if any? If the thief could fly, like that naked devil-woman, how could we possibly track them?
Knowledge planes: Axis is order personified. If anything here is out of place it should stand out.
Looking around while walking towards the gate Lyaro notices something white sticking out of the ground. He digs it up and pulls it out to find a harrow card, The Joke.
Lyaro brings the card back and shows it to all...
"Look what I found"
Erik's brow wrinkles as he tries to make sense of the card.