Bella and Khiari have no reservations about diving right into the pool to see who can retrieve the rucksack first and...everything is fine. The water is cool and clear and the sisters have no problem diving down to the bottom. Bella moves faster than her sister (hooves don't seem to work quite as well as feet when it comes to paddling) and has no problem taking hold of the bag and bringing it up, even with it weighted down.
Once the pair are out of the water, the rucksack is opened to reveal a steel shield. Despite being submerged for who-knows-how-long, the shield is surprisingly clean and shiny and radiates a magical aura when inspected further.
Curious as to what other treasures you might find in the maze, you continue on past the calm spring, heading east. As first there doesn't seem to be anything out of the ordinary as you move along but suddenly Roark stops and stares at a section of thick trees along the maze wall. He then steps forward and begins pulling at the foliage, revealing a narrow passage that leads to the north!
Due to the proximity of the planes, the area leading up to the currently inactive portals of the Planes of Earth and Fire have merged into one stony and fiery path whose rocks give off considerable heat. Runes pulsing with light litter the surfaces of the stones. Occasionally, flames flicker from the carved symbols.
"How strange!" Taiwalei gasps, peering over your shoulders. "The two areas have formed some sort of...amalgamation, from the looks of it. I wonder if that's normal?"
While this landscape does indeed remind Bella and Nicole of what the area in and around a volcano looks like, neither one is sure as to why it's happening in the middle of the maze where there are no volcanoes (that they're aware of). Stitch and Clover haven't seen anything like this before either. Vardarel, on the other hand, is able to piece together the intention behind the runes on the stones to discover that they use the elemental connection between fire and earth to make the portals here mutually suppress each other. Given what the landscape looks like with the portals suppressed, this might very well be a good thing!
While there doesn't seem to be any sign of the runaway wisps here, Nicole does find several small agate fragments scattered among the larger rocks that you'd estimate would be worth maybe 20 gold. Even better, she finds a shimmering green scale that's attached to a golden clasp; Vardarel has no trouble determining that there's some manner of enchantment bound to it.
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Stitch looks over the 'amalgamation' of earth and fire but shakes his head "Can't say I've seen such a thing before. Does sorta remind me of a giant forge though." He looks a bit relieved when they find no evidence the wisps have been here.
"So far this little side trip is all good, no bad. How long before that flips on our heads I wonder." He flicks a few stray leaves off Meat Wagon's hood, looking around for some annoying fey that surely dropped them there.
"Guess we keep looking for the next portals? I'm guessing a wet one and a breezy one.. and maybe a fifth of some sort for bad luck?"
Though all of this has been very interesting (and rather lucrative so far, as Stitch has pointed out), you're not any closer to finding the missing wisps and you don't have a lot of time to dally. So you make a mental note of what you've seen thus far and backtrack back onto the main path, ready to keep moving and looking for the other portals.
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Roark does indeed find a way forward! After backtracking a slight bit and following another branch of the main path, Roark spies another odd-looking gap in the trees and bushes of the maze. Much like the previous hidden area, this one also features an odd confluence of elements. Unlike the previous area however, the portals here look to be actively pulling in elemental power from the planes. This creates a strange waterfall—or water-rise, rather—that is approximately 5 feet tall. The water here is seemingly never-ending. While the currents are rapid, the river here looks to be only knee-deep at least.
As you first step into this area, a strong gale kicks up...but instead of blowing like a normal wind, this wind is blowing up and down and exerts strong pressure on all of you!
Unable to resist the wind, you find your gaze forced upward/downward . Those of you forced to look up feel yourselves beginning to be uplifted by the wind and those of you who look downward are forced towards the water!
"Yeah, yeah yeah. Show off." Khiari dries herself a bit more before walking through...
"Come on, get up." She grabs Bella's arm and pulls her up.
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"All that dancing somehow helped your sense of direction Roark, you found that windy water fall I figured was out here." He rumbles ahead on top of Meat Wagon, a blast of wind lifts him up towards the reversed waterfall. "Woah, think of the possibilities to harness this energy!"
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Lots of things to mow in here, why aren't we stopping to cut a fine edge on that path?
A gust of wind drives Meat Wagon towards the water as Stitch floats up up up and away!
Nicole and Khiari are the only ones who manage to keep their footing as the rest of you are either pulled up towards the sky or shunted towards the water. Luckily Bella, Roark, and Clover are able to grab hold of sturdy rocks and keep themselves from being completely pulled off their feet but Vardarel, Stitch, and Meat Wagon aren't so lucky. While the elf and dwarf are lifted into the sky, Meat Wagon is pulled down into the water!
Just as the rest of you are wondering if you'll have to mount a rescue mission, the powers of the elemental planes suddenly shunt the trio back into the maze. Vardarel and Stitch, at first looking like life-sized balloon figures, drop out of the sky like rocks. Meat Wagon comes exploding back out of the water and makes a short arc through the air before hitting the ground with a loud *WHUMP*.
And somehow, Meat Wagon the Riding Lawnmower of Death figures out that anyone who actually looks into the water here will be pulled in, hearkening back to part of the riddle given to you by Selan.
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Bella takes her sister's hand and climbs up. "Well, that wasn't too bad, was it?" Her rhetoric is responded with a resounding THUD. "Oh! Mister Steeltoe! Honored Vardarel!... and Meat Wagon." She tries to assist them in standing up, although Meat Wagon is well beyond her weightlifting category. "Let's flip this over. Sister, assist me. One... Two... Three!"
Though Vardarel and Stitch are both a bit bruised for their ordeal, it certainly could have been much worse. As for Meat Wagon, Stitch can see where a few pieces of metal are bent and battered, but it's nothing that can't be fixed with a little time and elbow grease.
"I suppose we're lucky that the other area's planar magics were kept in check," Taiwalei muses as he helps to get Meat Wagon righted. "And since we don't know if that phenomenon is going to happen again or not, we probably shouldn't linger here."
It seems like a sound decision - the missing wisps clearly aren't here and there doesn't seem to be anything else of interest in this area either. So you quickly make your way back out onto the main path and continue on, eyes peeled as always. Just when you're starting to wonder if maybe the wisps managed to actually slip through a portal or something, Nicole and Vardarel both spot an unusual change in the landscape off what looks to be a dead-end path. Picking your way through, you emerge into an area of strange, fractal trees that are in a state of decay. Just a little further up the path, you see two individuals who seem to be in the middle of a conversation: one looks rather humanoid but the other appears to be tree-person, easily standing 10 feet tall. As you enter the area the tree-person quickly snaps their head in your direction and steps in front of the humanoid, pointing a wooden spear hand at the group. You see, held in a cage in the tree's torso, six elemental wisps.
"Wow! Hold your hostility, everyone. Especially you, my friend," the humanoid is quick to speak as they put a hand on the tree's arm. "We've only just met these folks! No need to come to blows just because we’ve found each other, right?" The humanoid in leather armor with metallic veins shows their empty hands. Their voice has the timbre of fine metal particles rubbing against a singing wind chime. "As you can see, I’m quite unarmed here. My good friend...well, that is their hand, so do pardon us. I'm sure from their face you can tell they're actually extending a friendly handshake. Right, budding? That was totally what you wanted to do?"
The figure, resembling a carved wood statue, turns to stare at their companion, articulate joints fluid as they transition between poses. "Not if you call me that in front of strangers again." The spear point retracts as the elemental’s arm rotates at the elbow. Their expression remains unchanged.
"Ah hah! I believe those are the wisps we're looking for," Taiwalei whispers. "I'll go and fetch Selan while you see to their release. Spear hands aside, these folks seem like they'd rather talk than fight, which is a good sign!"
Vardarel steps forward and greets the two strangers saying “I am Vardarel, what are your names?” Looking towards the one who’s hand was just moments ago a spear, he adds “I have not seen others like you. How is it that you can reshape yourself like that?”
"Ah! Hello and well met! I'm Roark! Roark Thunderbird! I'm a tengu! Who are you?"
"Gedun and Yeyacha, a pleasure to meet you all," explains the humanoid with metallic veins, gesturing first to themselves and then to their tree-like companion. "I’m a scout and my partner here’s a collector. We mostly collect valuables from the hands of the undeserving and gift them to those in need. What about you all?"
Gedun nods at Vardarel and adds, "As to your second question, never met a talos or a kizidhar before? I’m what they call a planar scion, I believe, around these parts. A mix of metal and some humanoid in essence, literally. Yeyacha here is an authentic wood genie head to roots. Now, do pardon me turning the question back but what are you folks? I’ve never seen people like some of you before." Though this question is addressed to the group as a whole, you notice Gedun's gaze rather pointedly shifting between Roark, Khiari, and Meat Wagon.
"We are here for the wisps." Nicole cuts the chase. "How come they are inside there?" Nicole asks the one who looks wooden and have the caged wisps.
"Ah! You have found the wisps we were looking for. I wonder why they are caged..."
Yeyacha, who has so far chosen to remain mostly silent, gazes impassively at Nicole and Bella. "They were rude. Someone needed to teach them manners."
"Ah...while Yeyacha is right, it isn't as serious as it sounds," Gedun is quick to say. "They *were* very impolite. In fact, the fire one even called me something very insulting! Who raised these rascals? I have a word or two to say on their discipline and manners! That said, we don't wish them harm. If they belong to you, I believe I can coax Yeyacha here into releasing them into your custody. All I ask is that you take a little time to chat with us," they smile.
While Nicole can't tell if this is all some strange trick or not, the pair do seem to become more relaxed as the group shows reciprocity in wishing to chat rather than fight. Vardarel's calm demeanor and Roark's extravagant demonstration of respect definitely seem to be helping as well.
"Oh, hello. I'm Khiari. Like my sister said." She waves hello.
"These wisps are just joking around, you know?" Her nose twitches a bit as she kneels down to get a better look. "Right, wisps? You were just joking. Now, it's all fun and games until you hurt someone's feelings. That's what Father taught me. And then it's time to apologize."
She looks up at Gedun. "Go ahead, make an apology."
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“We are members of the Pathfinder Society, a group of explorers. We like to refer to this path you are traveling as the Maze of the Open Road. It allows us to travel long distances in a short amount of time.”
When it is mentioned that the wisps were rude, Vardarel gets a puzzled expression as Khiari asks Gedun to apologize. He looks back and forth between the two for a moment, then says “My apologies, I was only told the wisps were mischievous not rude. I fear that I don’t speak their language.”
Gesturing in the direction Taiwalei went, he says “They ran away from their sitter, and we were helping find them.”
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”I’m Stitch and this is my creation Meat Wagon. A perfect blend of Dwarven craftmenship and invention! Able to travel long distances drawing from the blend of explosive combustion and steam pressure locomotion.” He starts to go down the path of TMI, trailing off as the eyes glaze over.
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"You two are sisters, huh?" Gedun repeats, looking from Bella to Khiari. "Fascinating! Well, it's nice to meet you both and everyone else," they add. "But, ah, were you asking me to apologize? I mean, jokes or not, Yeyacha and I are the wronged parties here and so-"
Gedun's thought is interrupted as the wisps contained within Yeyacha's chest-cage begin squeaking and making noise; it sounds like communication but none of you are able to understand it. Your two new acquaintances, however, do. Though Yeyacha's expression is imperceptible, Gedun smiles. "See now, was that so hard? Thank you, little ones, and let this be a lesson to you! Alright budding, they seem sincere enough and they've got homes to get back to, so go ahead and let 'em out."
"Fine by me," Yeyacha shrugs. "We don't have time to babysit anyway." The cage swings open and all of the wisps rather quietly flitter out and hover around the group, apparently chastened by their scolding and experience sitting in 'time out'.
"Now, that's much better! I'm glad we could settle all that without any trouble," Gedun beams. Even Yeyacha seems to relax, as much as one such as they can. "So, you're with the Pathfinder Society and this is the Maze of the Open Road? Wonderful! Are we somewhere on the Material Plane, then? You said you were explorers, are you exploring this maze?"
Yeyacha sighs and gives Gedun a look. "Too many questions and not enough answers. Tell them why we're here."
"Oh!" The talos puffs their chest out in pride. "Well, we became big names back home after a job. I’m talking wanted posters and bounties big. We’re not exactly celebrity material though, so after hearing the Material Plane is quite nice around this season, we decided to take a vacation. Might even make it a staycation if things get interesting!"
"No, I meant they should apologize-" Khiari huffs. "Well, at least everyone's okay. My sister's home, the Universe, Material Plane, whatever we're calling it this week. It's pretty fun, it has a little bit of everything. Almost like my home world but it... has finality."
She moves alongside Gedun. "We're on our way to a party. I'm certain you'll have some fun there!"
"Oooh, a party! Well, sign me up!" Gedun laughs, delighted at the thought. They give Yeyacha a playful nudge. "C'mon budding, even you can't say no to a party! It'll be fun - and even give us a chance to get to know our new friends better. What do you say?"
There's a long pause as Yeyacha simply stares at the talos. Then, finally, a sigh. "May as well. Better than standing around here, at any rate."
"Then it's settled," Gedun smiles with a clap of their hands. "We'll join you for your party and thank you very much for the invitation! And on the way we can chat a little more, especially about that fascinating contraption made of metal, and perhaps even partake of whatever it is that's in that pot," they grin at Clover. "It smells delicious, whatever it is!"
"Hey now, just wait right there a moment," comes a familiar voice, as you all turn to see Taiwalei approaching with Selan in tow. "At least wait for us before you go charging back out into the maze!"
"You found the wisps! Oh thank you so much!" Selan exclaims as she comes running up, her expression a mixture of relief and gratitude. "I was afraid we'd never find them!" She stops, having caught sight of Gedun and Yeyacha. "Oh!"
Suddenly, you and Taiwalei find yourselves observers to a very animated three-way conversation between the ardande, talos, and kizidhar that flows in what sounds like a mix of two different languages - neither of which anyone in the group speaks. Taiwalei looks on in awe for a few moments before turning to the rest of you with a shrug. "Well, looks like we might be here for a bit but I wouldn't worry too much. We should still have plenty of time."
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Vardarel will work on identifying some of the items found so far. If no one objects, he will start with the steel shield.
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Stitch looks back and forth between the parties as they 'converse' amongst themselves and the group. He definitely seems distracted, those bruises on his back side throbbing, and that dent and scratch on Meat Wagon gnawing at his sometimes OCD self really starting to get him.
"Ok, I've got some stuff to do while you all catch up..." He gets out some repair tools first to straighten that rod, pop that dent, and buff out those scratches. His eyepiece really helps keep him on track.
Stitch dusts his hands off and puts away his tools "Flawless!" Before turning to his own injuries with much less vigor and interest, but a lot more rubbing alcohol and blood. "Gotta draw out the pooled blood to heal a bruise thoroughly.." He mutters as he makes the first incision, dark blood spurting out. The rubbing alcohol is mostly to just dull the pain.
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"Now then, let's entertain our guests." Bella nods to her sister, turns to the wisps, and then does a backflip.
Khiari decides to begin jig, knocking her hooves together to tap dance.
Khiari mutters, "This is something I was taught back home. If you have squishy feet you need to knock them together, but my hooves are made of stronger stuff. You see, it-" she opens her eyes and notices the wisps watching Bella break dance. "Bah! I was just warming up!"
Bella pauses to catch her breath. "Nonetheless, little ones. A bit of practice goes a long way."
While the three plane-touched folks converse, Vardarel sets about examining the shield you found while Stitch does some repair work on Meat Wagon. After a short time the elf determines that the shield is a Minor Sturdy Shield and all of the dents and dings in Meat Wagon's chassis get hammered out.
Meanwhile, Bella and Khiari do their best to entertain the wisps, lest they get bored and run off - again. While they don't seem too impressed with Khiari's stomping around, Bella's acrobatics do seem to hold their attention. A couple of them even zip around the backflipping, cartwheeling human, their colors adding a bit of pizzazz to the whole thing.
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"Strong than steel you say? Sign me up." Stitch hoots, accepting the offer for better defenses. He leaves his old shield in the seat next to him, just in case.
"So you guys all sorted out now? Maybe we can get rolling back to the party before there's any other distraction that pops up?" He climbs back on top his steel steed.
Stitch is more than happy to take possession of the shield, swapping it out for his old one. It's about this time, and with a bit of gentle prodding from the dwarf, that your trio of new friends wrap up their conversation.
"Oh! Yes, sorry, sorry, I know you're all on a bit of a time crunch," Selan smiles apologetically. "Let's get going. Yes, that means you little rascals as well," she says with a nod to the small symphony of wisps. "Just...please behave yourselves, okay? I've had a rough enough day already..."
The wisps crowd around Selan, chirping and chiming and buzzing and seemingly sad for having caused so much trouble for their babysitter. All the attention finally gets a smile and a laugh from the ardande. In fact, everyone is smiling - even Yeyacha, though it vanishes as soon as they notice anyone looking at them. "Okay, okay, enough! You're forgiven - this time! Now come on, these nice people have places to be."
With your rather large entourage in tow, you set back off the way you came, eager to get back to the Grand Lodge in time for whatever surprise Fola has in store. Unfortunately, the Pathfinder life is rarely that simple. As you reach a crossroads in the maze, several things happen at once. From the sky, water begins to pour down into the intersection, creating an ankle-deep pool in its center. Though clear enough to see, the currents push Taiwalei and Gedun back and away and separate them from the rest of the group. As Selan and Yeyacha turn back with the intention to help, a wall of swirling red flame erupts, stopping them both in their tracks. As the fire burns away a patch of foliage it touched, the bark peels away to expose a metal core, as if someone used the wood of the tree as a mold for a metal sculpture. A patch of trees to the southeast of the pool has become ash-covered and barren, save for the spiky metallic branches left behind.
Though the water you stand in is only ankle-deep, you see that shadows dart below. Somehow, a back fin breaches the surface, then goes under again. "That’s definitely a shark!" Taiwalei calls out. "I don’t think it’s one I’ve seen before though, so be careful! The bigger ones can drag prey under the water and the little ones seem to have a hypnotic way of moving!"
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Roark
Clover
Stitch
>Meat Wagon
Bella
>Khiari
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Orange (Riding on Blue; submerged)
Yellow Shark (Submerged)
Blue Shark (Submerged)
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Nicole
Vardarel
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Purple (Riding on Yellow; submerged)
Red Shark (Submerged)
Active Conditions: None
Environmental Conditions: Metallic Tree Patch (Difficult Terrain)
Roark, Clover, Stitch, Bella are up!
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Bella wastes no time holding her breath and looking underwater. She peers at a Red-tinted shark as her entire body sinks beneath the waves.
Oh well, may as well make the best of it. She pulls out a dagger and uses it as an impromptu baton, pointing it and swinging it about to distract the big biter.
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"What the crap? More water.. AND fire! And sharks?!?!" Stitch's brain revvs furiously, connecting the dots between now and the painful experience from earlier. Must not look up or down.. yet!
"Time to prepare for battle Meaty, we'll see how well you smash and thrash underwater soon enough!" He hauls out that 'patent pending' WD12345 can, filled with unlisted proprietary ingredients, and sprays the two of them down.
Overdrive ◆:
*Success: +3 damage to personal and construct damage rolls for 1 minute.
He raises up his new shield and commands "Ok, go gett'em, full throttle ahead!" He takes a deep breath and points towards the orange and blue sharks nearby.
Meat Wagon's exhaust tubes blast out a mixture of water, smoke and flames as it throttles up to Meat the threats ahead. The WD12345 has its bearings and pistons operating efficiently.
As it looks forward and churns its wheels, Meat Wagon and its rider descend deeper into the pool.
Meat rolls up to the larger blue shark and tries to ram it like a steel hammer.
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Seeing little other choice, Bella takes a deep breath and looks into the water, allowing herself to sink underneath the surface. As she does, she draws her dagger and focuses her attention on the nearby Red Shark as she attempts an underwater performance. To her immense satisfaction, Red Shark begins to bob its head around in time with her movements.
Stitch also sees the writing on the wall and busts out the WD12345 for Meat Wagon and himself. That done, he raises his shiny new shield and gives the signal to submerge. And though perhaps not truly designed for aquatic maneuvers the construct sinks below the surface, revving its engine as it advances on Blue Shark and slams into it!
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Roark
Clover
Stitch
>Meat Wagon
Bella
>Khiari
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Orange
Yellow Shark
Blue Shark
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Nicole
Vardarel
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Purple
Red Shark
Active Conditions: None
Environmental Conditions: Metallic Tree Patch (Difficult Terrain)
Roark & Clover are up!
