|
As the throng of Pathfinders and other pedestrians continue to crowd the packed streets of Absalom, a young man suddenly stumbles through the open door of a tavern along the street, reeling to regain his balance. He leans over for a moment and puts a hand to his mouth. The hand comes away with a small smear of blood, and the man stands up, staring back into the bar with a devilish grin, "Heh. Not a bad left hook you've got there, lady. Not a good one, but..." Before he can finish his sentence a wooden pitcher still half-full of ale soars through the doorway toward the man's head. He is able to duck away from the worst of the missile, but some of the contents still find their way onto his attire.
The man runs a few paces down the road, just long enough to get away from the door and out of sight of the apparently perturbed patron. He approaches another man in the street and jabs a thumb back at the tavern, "Can you believe that! What a waste of perfectly mediocre ale. He got some on my clothes too, the wench! Oh well, I suppose the lady objected to my comments about the cleanliness of her establishment. S'pose they can't all be as tidy as the Grand Lodge, eh? The name's Gallix, by the way. (Soon to be) Known throughout the Inner Sea as the famously fabulous prize-fighting Pathfinder, Gorgeous Gallix Granbonne! Pleased to meet ya!" He strikes a rather flashy pose intended to display the size of his admittedly rather large fists and upper body musculature, some of which is visible through the mostly open front of his shirt.
|
A bald young man, with an exotic style of mustache and a ring in his ear, strode among the masses.
His obvious eastern lineage was hard to miss. He walked in an eastern styled traveler's outfit. His composure was reserved, but something drew his attention.....a tankard flying past a rowdy man's head, and towards him.
He looked at the tankard, at it stopped in flight, hanging in mid air.
The young man walked after the rowdy man, and while he was flashing a pose, the floating tankard was placed upon his head, like on a table.
Of course, he himself was observing the rest of the surroundings.
|
A dark haired broody looking Elven man in soaked caster's robes makes his way out of the tavern, not long after the pitcher flew through the doorway. He's angrily stuffing a book into his backpack grumbling about something while looking in Gallix's direction. "You know you caused quite a stir in there man, thanks to you I've got cheap ale soaking my robes and splattered all over my spellbook! Why don't you think next time before you start up a brawl." With that he goes about casting a spell and cleaning and drying his robes, backpack and spellbook while shaking his head in disgust.
|
As you continue through the gates of Absalom and turn around the wall outside, you arrive at a field. The hustle, bustle, and chatter of hundreds of people surrounds you.
The sun beats down across this muddy plain, a scant five miles from the walls of Absalom. Fellow Pathfinders gather on all sides, including well-traveled field agents and more permanent staff from the Grand Lodge itself. In the center of the field stands a wooden platform, raised some ten feet off the ground. The excited chatter drowns out the buzz of summer insects as the gathered adventurers speculate on what’s to come.
Several vendors have also setup their stands in this area, allowing you the opportunity to make any last minute purchases. One boisterous dwarf covered in various garments and seemingly random items yells out, "Axes, swords, armor! We got it all right 'ere! We take coins, we take Faction credit!"
You may roam along the plain, asking any of the dozens of gathered Pathfinders questions.
Something has been abuzz around the Grand Lodge the past several weeks, keeping many Society scholars and casters busy and away from the public eye. This follows a recent conflict at the Grand Lodge that the Society kept from spilling into the rest of the city.
Supposedly the Society has reassembled the Sky Key, a dwarven relic it started piecing back together a year ago. The Society has been "secretly" buying up large quantities of sky metal whenever it appears in the market. The Pathfinders have also been recruiting dozens of arcane spellcasters, especially evokers.
The Grand Lodge has been importing all kinds of experts on Dwarven artifice, which seems reasonable—but also experts on Numerian science,
conjurers, mathematicians, and even historians who specialize in Absalom’s earliest history.
Apparently today is about a "big test," and it sounds like the Decemvirate needs a large number of assistants to handle whatever happens next.
You might analyze some of the markings on the broad field.
The field has been marked out with a series of circles, which are unusual for social gatherings but standard for arcane rituals.
The assemblage of circles suggests a conjuration ritual, but there are enough variations that even this seems unlikely.
The markings across the field don't align correctly for any sort of magical ritual. It seems to be something completely new.
You might think back to the history of Absalom and observe the field you stand in.
Locals call this field the Bloodwatered Meadow. Many of the invading armies that tried to conquer Absalom assembled here before being defeated.
One of the most famous conflicts here did not even involve Absalom’s army. The Linnorm King Yardvun Skolson clashed with the Thuvian warlord Attagesha hundreds of years ago as both attempted to besiege the city at the same time but refused to share the glory with each. They crippled each other’s forces and were forced to retreat without ever attacking Absalom.
An archeological excavation led by the Pathfinder Society uncovered truly ancient sites in the Bloodwatered Meadow. The exact age is unknown, but several building foundations and pieces of pottery seemed reminiscent of old Azlanti designs.
|
|
Mr Peppers proceeds to the field once the muster is called, eager to learn more of what's to come. A nice walk would be a good way to start things up, get the muscles moving and the blood flowing after spending the last few days in relatively quiet study, save for the fiasco at the bar. However after the first couple of miles under the hot sun this proved to be a short sighted decision. "I should have summoned my mount, this sun is boiling me alive." He grumbles after arriving, taking a soaked handkerchief from his pocket and wiping his brow yet again. After replacing the sopped hanky, Mr Peppers retrieves his now half full waterskin, says some Elven words and focuses on it.
After cooling off and making himself somewhat presentable to his peers, Mr Peppers will wander about making some small talk with any fellow Elves he comes across, especially if they appear to be fellow spell casters.
Mr Peppers will then seek out these odd markings and join the group of onlookers and hypothesizers, not afraid to weave through the group to get a up close and personal view. "Make some space gnome, there are others here that want a look."
"Someone totally screwed up these summoning circles, the angles of those lines there are totally wrong. They can't be that inept to make those mistakes... I wonder what's going on."
|
|
"What the--?! How did that--?!" Gallix angrily takes the tankard off of his head and throws it on the ground. He looks around in the crowd, trying to identify the person that had somehow placed the tankard on top of his head in the midst of his pose.
He doesn't notice any directly incriminating evidence, there were too many people sniggering at his unfortunate appearance to single out the individual responsible. Vexed in his efforts to impress his fellow traveller, Gallix moves on, but is soon delayed by a morose-looking elf who begins to berate him for causing a scene. "Look, Skinny, I didn't mean to rain on your parade. I was just trying to have a conversation with the barkeep and she got all uppity about me calling her bar dingy. I can't help it if I've seen better kept Pesh dens than what she's got going on in there! Anyway, sorry about the mess. I'll be more careful next time. Fair?"
After making his apologies to the elf, Gallix joins him in the long trek to the gates of Absalom and out into the wide field where scores of Pathfinder agents have begun to gather. The elf's attention is quickly drawn away by something magical-sounding, but Gallix has no real interest in the matter. Elves. Always buried in their magical, mystical, mysterious studies. Bet half of 'em don't even know how to throw a punch.
Gallic takes his time meandering about the crowds, asking about what the big assembly is all about. "This sorta thing happen often? I'm pretty new around here, but where I'm from, usually our big social groups don't make a big show of themselves unless they wanna keep the neighbors in line."
|
|
D. is not too accustomed with the taldan tongue just yet, his thick eastern accent needs working on, and so he utterly fails to get some information.
"このスピーチは予想以上に厄介です。"
"This speech is more troublesome than anticipated."
To compensate, he stays within hearing distance to a duo who seem to know more. One of which was the rowdy man from before.
|
|
The sprightly gnome responds to Mr. Peppers pushiness, "'Ey, I was here first!" The tiny creature attempts to push the elf back, but the fact that he's twenty pounds soaking wet means his attempt is all but futile.
"I's not sure wut's goin' on 'ere either, but it's something m-m-...magical!" The gnome rubs his hands together as he continues to bounce around the plains, looking for information just as you are.
A burly human, his gut so large one wonders how he doesn't constantly fall forward, responds to Gallic, "This is... A unique event, and quite the showy one at that. I'm not all sure what Master Shaine will have in store for us. These carvings are like nothing I've ever seen." He stares forward at the marks, looking for clues.
|
|
Uesugi grumbled quietly to himself as he followed the herd of other Pathfinders assembling. He was a stranger to these lands but from the people and things that he had come into contact since arriving here he seemed to be one of the more 'normal' types.
Take for instance the barbarian who flew out of the tea house followed by a cup aimed at his head. The crazed barbarian had laughed it and hadn't even been fazed by the cup when it stopped in the middle of the air hovering. Worse the barbarian seemed to want some more abuse from whomever had inflicted it upon him. Yes this Absalom was a weird city indeed and he had wished his late master had given the task of journeying to this awful city to another of his student but that was not the case. Uesugi had sworn upon his late master's dying bed to fulfill a promise and that was what he would do whether he liked it or not. He was a samurai and his honor meant more than his life. He would not question his master's order he would follow it no matter how long it took.
Lost in his own thoughts he quickly looked up and found himself still close to that barbarian and another individual who clearly was from Tian Xia. Too many people blocked this man so it was hard to determine what region of Tian Xia this man came from. Although to all but a small few of the barbarians they felt that anyone from Tian Xia came from the same place. If they only knew the size of Tian Xia they would hide their faces in shame at thinking this.
Uesugi turned his attention back to the speaker who seemed to be corralling everyone. Taking the cue he quickly looked for a spot to stand.
|
|
While many kitsune obfuscate their heritage to try to appear more human, you see one in particular who doesn't appear to mind that he appears to be an erect fox, strolling into the group, carrying a fancy looking musket.
"Hello, fellow Pathfinders," he says as he flashes a grin. "What is that you say about what's going on here? Ya know, things ain't been quite the same since the recent scuffle that happened back at the lodge. I hear tell rumors of this dwarven key to the sky, or something like that. They been hiring an recruiting more and more spell casters, and buying up 'sky metal' where ever they can find it. Whatcha wanna bet today has something to do with that?"
|
|
Uesugi turned his attention back to the speaker who seemed to be corralling everyone. Taking the cue he quickly looked for a spot to stand.
D. noticed a fellow Tian looking around.
With this number of people, i guess he's looking for a spot.Seeing a chubby pathfinder with a juicy pear in his pocket, taking up the space of where three people could be standing, he willed the pear to fall out and roll away.
"サムライは、スポットがこっちにオープンしました。"
"Samurai, a spot has opened over here."
|
|
"Many people are here...Master Shane as well. To what purpose?" One blond woman, with hair dangling to her knees, makes her way through the crowd. A constant breeze seems to keep her hair from tangling up as she squeezes her way through.
Eventually she stops in front of someone she thinks would know more about this event.
"Excuse me, do you know why we are at this event? Why would the Society expose us to danger-"
The patron walks away without a word. A bird lands on her shoulder and seems to squak unnaturally, like it can whistle in the wind.
"Yes, I know. Give me a moment to think of a conversational topic."
Making her way through the crowd, Sirettis makes her way towards a man with a fox's face, carrying a strange tube like one would carry a weapon. She introduces herself by rattling off a few facts about the area, instead of, say, her name.
"Did you know we are standing in the Bloodwatered Meadow? Many invading armies would assemble here, before assaulting Absalom, then fail. For example, the Linnorm King Yardvun Skolson and the Thuvian warlord Attagesha tried to besiege Absalom at the same time, but they refused to share the glory and fought each other instead. They crippled each other and had to retreat before firing a single arrow into Absalom."
"With the many different societies and cultures traveling through this region, it has been ripe for archeological digs. For example, several building foundations and pottery were found bearing old Azlanti designs. The exact age is still unknown, though."
|
|
Gallix wanders through the crowd, chatting idly from time to time with some fellow Pathfinders. He eventually meets a young, airy woman and a kitsune man holding a firearm talking about the history of the field and the events at hand. "Well don't the two of you seem knowledgable. I've been asking around a bit myself, but haven't really heard anything of worth." He looks down again at the field and notices another set of the strange symbols etched into the dirt.
He turns to his new acquaintances again and, with a somewhat confused expression, says, "Ya know, I've been to my fair share of parties, and I can't remember ever seeing marks like these around. This looks more like it belongs in some kind of ritual. Maybe it has something to do with the spell casters and those sky metals you were talking about, Foxy. Oh! And the name is Gallix by the way..." He then performs his usual introduction pose and extends a hand to greet his new friends.
|
|
The bird on the woman's shoulder chirps away.
"Mind your manners." She turns to the bird and it shuts up.
"My apologies. I did not mean for you to mind your manners, but..." She shakes Gallix's hand, with some of her hair wrapping the two hands. "I go by the name of Sirettis. I am pleased to meet you, Gallix." She is about to continue when Master Shaine steps up and calls for their attention.
"A lost society should stay lost," she mumbles. "But that's not the Pathfinder way, is it?" A bubble emerges, enveloping the Pathfinders. Despite her protest, Sirettis begins to scan the entire area, like a cat in a new home. "We should stick together." She looks at two Tian humans and an Elf and quickly beckons them over. "Come. We should stick together and explore. My name is Sirettis, and this is Gallix and... I'm sorry, I didn't ask for your name."
|
|
D. looks to the side, at the bird and the exotic looking woman.
Somehow she's as common a sight, between these westerners, as the samurai and i am.
He looks at Uesugi and steps towards the invitation.
"My name is D., of the Kuroikarasu family, which roughly translates to Dark Raven in the Talden tongue, but it was simplified to Arthraven for the people of this land, after moving here.
Westerners have such a peculiar look on family names."
He briefly eyes the bird, then back at Sirettis.
"Good day to you, Sirettis-san, Gallix-san."
|
|
Uesugi moves to join the other Tian just as the...hmm he was not sure to make of this one. Her features were delicate but there was magic about her. Literally magic almost as if she breathed it. In Tian Xia he would have thought her to be some oni but he knew better beings of all sorts frequented these lands and especially this city.
This spirit although talkative seemed harmless enough. He said nothing to the others and let them proceed with their conversations. It seemed he had unknowingly joined up with these people. Looking at the others at least he was safe not to stick out as much. He nodded to the others and then uttered his name. "Uesugi Hideyoshi"
|
|
Mr Peppers attention is called to the center of the field where Master Shaine, a fine Elven fellow, addresses the crowd. As such Mr Peppers quickly pulls his journal and ink pen from his pack and to take some quick notes during the speech. Soon however the pen stops writing as he decides to take in the moment. The lightning spells are cast all around him and the giant shield springs up, revealing odd things around them. "That is amazing... so that's what those runes were for!" He then jots down a few quick notes, especially the 307 minutes part, followed quickly by the 'don't die' part, when a curious looking woman with a bird and inconveniently long hair beckons him over.
"Umm, hello. Do I know you from somewhere?" He says as he takes a good look, trying to get a bead on her race. "My apologies, I'm being rude. My name is Mr Peppers, and you are? I've never met someone with your striking features before." Now noticing the other individuals in her company, he again apologizes and reintroduces himself to the two Tian gentleman and the Kitsune. He then turns to see Gallix "Ahh, you again. I hope you've managed to not start any fights out here as well? I'll have you know my spellbook will never be the same... every time I open it the smell of stale beer lingers."
|
|
"The Taldan tongue. I will learn this one day. For now, thank you for your presence. I feel safer already. The... bird's name is Isa. Think of her as my guardian."
The bird chirps, seemingly as a laugh.
"Hello, elf. I am not sure we have met before. But I am from the race called Sylph, descended from air genies."
|
|
Seeing his options limited he begin to walk towards the crack while the leaving the others to talk on what had little if any bearing on him at this present moment.
He still did not fathom why looking into the past was of so great concern to the Pathfinders especially when the past could not be rewritten. Worse there was a reason why things remained lost from time. And even worse than that he had a certain distrust of the shugenja trickery. What could not be solved with a blade he had little he wanted to do with. Still he knew that there were others he had aligned himself with that were interested in this artifact. Gather the information and report back to her was reason he was here and not 'volunteering' for another Pathfinder assignment. He doubted things were about to get any better so best he get this over with now.
|
|
"A slyph you say, that's very interesting. Descendant of magical beings, what a gift you've been granted! Lets head inside before we're left in the dust." He says as he draws a quick map of the outside 'cube' then stows his journal and heads towards the crack. Upon reaching it he says a few firm words in Elven and soft torch light glows from his hand and he enters.
|
|
Link to current map (added to my stat bar in just a moment)
Entering the crack, you emerge in a large chamber, consisting of sprawling networks of caverns and artificial tunnels. Moving further in, the stink of animal scat and rotting meat fills the place. Shelves, passageways, and fixtures have been carved into the wall by careful hands, each stylized to resemble a serpent's head or body.
|
|
Mr Peppers quickly covers his nose "Well it is obvious that either wild animals live here and learned to carve, or perhaps personal hygiene was not yet commonplace.. Either way I believe I'm going to protect myself." With that he pulls out a stout little wand made of ironwood and speaks a word, and with a flash a glowing shirt of chain appears across his body then fades away into his robes.
"If, more like.. when.. we find hostiles I just want to let you know that I currently can electrocute with a touch of my hand or send forth a blast of fire in an area like so." He then begins to describe a 15 foot cone shape. "If we run into swarms of insects of some such please be advised to stay back and let me burn them. Your weapons will likely be ineffective. We ran into some in our last mission... needless to say the bug bites itched for days."
|
|
Uesugi looks at the elf named Mr. Peppers and nods. "This is not your first assignment so I will heed your wisdom."
His right hand draws near the hilt of his katana ready to draw it should it be needed. He moves cautiously keeping a lookout for anything out of place which right now seems to be everywhere. "Where are we? Have we walked back in time already?"
|
|
Gallix stands amongst the crowd, initially nonplussed at Master Shaine's words. As the demonstration of the Sky Key's power proceeds, however, his eyes catch the light of the expanding bubble and those standing nearby see a glint deep in his gaze that could almost be mistaken for the shape of gold pieces. "Study and observation? Why not! But think of the money the Society could make offa this thing just as a show for the masses. Eh... I suppose the danger might make it tough to make a profit though. Have to think about that one a bit."
He follows after the others as they proceed toward the crack. "It's certainly a pleasure to make everyone's acquaintance. Sounds like we've got quite the diverse cast of characters here, and that's not even mentioning all the other odd balls besides our little crew. Oh, and I do apologize for the stains on your book, Mr. Peppers. It wasn't my intention to ruin anyone's day."
The group enters the crack and emerges in a strange room with various carvings and a foul stench on the air. "Gah! Smells disgusting in here. Odd sorta carvings here too. Anyone familiar with this sort of thing?"
|
|
The cavern appears unique in its construction and stonework, truly like something that wouldn't belong in the present day. The walls are rough to the touch and you can feel the impressions of serpents that have been masterfully carved in them - or at least that's about as much as you can make out, given the darkness that surrounds you.
Regardless of a proper light source currently in hand, Sir D. moves forward to take a better look, and he's able to determine that the smell of rotting animals and feces is much more pungent towards the north.
|
|
"Well let's not be rude and keep them waiting." Gallix produces a torch of his own and touches it to D.'s lit torch. Gallix's torch blazes to life, and he moves boldly up the stairs in the norther end of the room. "You weren't kidding about that smell though, D. Wish I had thought to pick up some tobacco before I came. That might take the edge off this stink."
|
|
"Ah? We rub mint salve under our noses, in Tian Xia. Not only is mint good for tea, but it neutralizes the worst of foul odors entering the nose."
A small smile shows on his face, one of clever preparation.
He takes out a small wooden box, the size of a switchblade's hilt, and pulls the string loose.
"When coming to foreign lands, i try to come prepared.", as he rubs some of its white substance on his upper lip.
"This might be strong to westerners, you might find the smell stinging in your noses."
He offers some to Uesugi first.
|
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Looking at Gallix he states. "Smells like the rest of your cities. I am surprised you are all not used to it" Uesugi takes the ointment and rubs it on his upper lip thanking D with a customary nod.
Staying near the front he slowly leads the way with the light from the torches.
|
|
The cavern comes alive with flickering light as D and Gallix light torches. Gallix moves up the stone stairs to get a closer look. He's especially assaulted by the smell now, and it's more pronounced from the corridor leading north than the one to the west. Bits of broken rock can be seen in seemingly random patterns scattered on the ground here.
A dark corridor exits to the north and another to the west.
|
|
"Bugs you say, by the description i take it that it was a large group, yes? Like a swarm of bees or an army of ants?
The force i am learning to wield, has proven somewhat useful on it."
"Yes they were tiny spiders if I remember correctly, they burnt quickly."
Mr Peppers takes a few steps into the room and begins looking around at the carvings, hoping to maybe make something out of them.
He then remembers to cast a spell and begins scanning the room.
"Mind if I get some of that mint from you Sir D? My nose has a hard time with this stench."