Agripos dutifully gathers around, not wanting to miss out on Sigrid's divine healing. "For a moment there, you seemed like you were really the blood god incarnate!"
The Greek warrior then regards the new allies. "I remember you all from the Casting. It's a blessing to see you alive. Whatever land we've arrived in is both strange and corrupt--we'll do well to escape here with our lives. How did you know to rescue us?"
"We're here to get the captain of a vessel we're travelling on. It was a happy coincidence that we found you. We should be getting back to that vessel. "
Pytheas remains uneasy during the brokered surrender, and he paces around. "I yet have another companion with whom I would very much like to be reunited," he says. "And I would prefer my possessions returned to me as well. Where would you all have taken an elk?"
"Thank you," Alejandro nods to Sigrid, as his wounds heal. "I remember you at the launch from Atlantis. But something terrible has happened."
He relates what they saw here
BLYAD EBAT, Hel bugger my lovelife, was zum verdrecksfickten Henker Sigrid swears in a variety of languages.
S*!%, that would explain some things during my fake ceremony, I actually felt as if something supernatural was watching me, probably drawn in by the act of unprovoked mass murder just committed. Can this device be possibly sabotaged? We are now, in effect, witnessess to a murder on a scale that could pausibly trigger divine retribution, this empire will strive to exterminate us. Likely hitting any place they think we are in indiscriminately with this thing.
Maybe I should not have told that probably Erinye to bugger off, s~!~, this is above my paygrade She thinks.
Oh Lady Ran, I am in way over my head, the ones who abducted us just did committed an unprecedented act of completely dishonorable mass murder. Any advice, any sign, would be much appreciated. She prays silently.
Maybe, we can use its destrucive capabilities against itself?
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"I don't even know if they were trying to hit Atlantis - it seems like it might have just been a side effect of using the weapon. So I reckon we have to destroy it - who knows which place it might just hit next."
But the other thing is - it must be using the same sort of magic that sent us here - if someone understands it, then maybe it can be changed to send us home?" He shakes his head in frustration.
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"I'm pretty sure Atlantis is no more, so we can't get sent back there. I think we better get to the ship out of here. This place is crawling with soldier. "
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"What? This is madness! Atlantis destroyed? Are you sure this wasn't some illusion?" Agripos can hardly believe it.
Agripos decides that he needs to verify some of this with the Captain they had captured. "Alright, Captain. You have some explaining to do. Does this ship have some kind of island-destroying weapon? How is that possible?"
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"It's a thing they cause a phase induction cannon. I don't know how it works but I've seen it destroy tiny islands for testing." the Captain answers.
Shortly after questioning the captain and getting the prisoners tucked away you begin to hear the sounds of a gong. It is distant at first but gets louder as if others have picked up the same signal.
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Pytheas' grits his teeth and clenches his fists as the half-elf named Alejandro shares what had become of their home with this "phase induction cannon". He raises his spear to the captain's throat and presses the tip in, drawing a rivulet of blood. "Your people capture us without provocation and destroy our home. There is no honor in this. What the f@#$ is that gong, and where the f@#$ is my elk?"
He doesn't even bother looking at Agripos or the others, nor care whether it seems like he is threatening to break their negotiations of surrender. The dwarf has only anger.
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"What? It's real? Phase induction cannon? Those words were meaningless to Agripos. He asks the questions that Pytheas would ask also. "We want our stuff back. And my friend is missing an Elk. Where would we find that?"
As the gong rings, the Greek fighter realizes that time was short. "Sounds like trouble. We better get moving, agreed Captain?"
The Captain of the guard, obviously concerned with Pytheas’ demeanor, responds. ”I’m sure I don’t know what an elk is but the gong is the general alarm. It is calling for all troops to muster at their combat stations. once an elk is described for the captain, he says that livestock would be kept topside near the birds.
Meanwhile Captain Christoff gives a hearty thank you to those of you who came to get them out of the brig. He gets his sailors armed with spear or crossbow and adds the other prisoners to his crew. ”Well lads, it looks lime it is time to be going. Let us be about it.”
The captain also says that prisoners are stripped if all weapons which would be added to the armory, personal belongings are kept in the brig (you found that room), but iron and steel items would have been moved to the officers storage.
Yes, lets skeddaddle, these f!%@ers are incredibly lucky that I do not actually worship the Dread Angel of Vengeance Infernal
She gives the guard captain a withering glare, has her crossbow out, shortspear and shield sheathed for now, and moves with quite practiced ease.
YET Only she hears a voice.
You again? Look, if you invite yourself into my brain, and thus availa yourself of my cranial hospitality, why arent bringing some gifts? She answers mentally.
All she hears in return is a chuckle.
Switching back to Atlantean, Let's get out of here, I think we need to move, they've probably found the bodies we hid earlier. Do we need anything else in here? he looks to the other Atlanteans.
"Yes, we need to move fast. " and he starts to lead the party back the way they came to the ship.
Having gotten much useful information and with the alarm blaring, Agripos breaks off further interrogation.
"Let's hope we can find your Elk," says Agripos sypathetically. "If it's aboveground, we might have a chance. Captain Kristoff, lead the way to your ship!"
”When they took us from the ship they hauled us straight down this hall.” Christoff says and heads down said hall his crew and the Atlanteans in tow.
Along the way you come across some soldiers hustling down a side corridor. Spying them out from behind you see they are going up a stairwell. Along your route you also meet a couple of four man patrols but your group is so large the soldiers just flee on first sight. You finally reach the hangar where the Ageless Seahawk sits at rest. Once everyone hustles onboard the Captain turns to the group of Atlanteans who have naturally gravitated together. ”As I said, I will take you wherever you wish to go once we get out of here.”
Then Leir who was silent most of the time speaks up, ”What about Orin’ve? He is an Oathbound of the old pact. The alarm could be for him. Even now he may be pursued by soldiers above ground for he said he was going to sabotage the aviary. We at least owe it to him to check.”
"Yes, let's go. The captain and crew can defend the ship - the rest of us should be enough to at least provide a distraction. And we might find the elk on the way." Alejandro gets ready to head off.
"I'm for doing as much damage to these guys as we can get away with," chimes Agripos. "And these Oathbound sound like good folk." He grabs a couple of extra spears and a crossbow with bolts. He makes sure someone takes the weird pistol.
"Livestock!" Pytheas says incredulously with a spit to the ground. "Fie! I assure you that the Ceryneian hind is no mere beast of burden."
Still, he withdraws the spear tip from the guard captain's throat and sulks. He wants to argue to make their way to officers' storage, missing his favored implements, but respects if the others want to leave sooner.
As they get to the ship, the dwarf seems almost frantic until Leir mentions Orin've and the aviary. This was his best chance at retrieving his companion. "Yes, that we do. Captain Christoff, we will return, hopefully no worse for the wear and with a few more companions in tow. Can you wait for us a bit longer?"
"I'll do you better than that master dwarf. Once we weigh anchor, I'll take the ship topside. If Orin've has done his job then we may should not have a flight of bird riders to deal with. So, it looks like you could head up those," Christoff says gesturing to a stairwell in the center of the hangar, "Or you can ride up in the ship when she's ready. Either one, as you please."
Pytheas weighs the options. Going up with the ship might be safer than going up the stairs. But they might find other things of interest if they stayed inside a bit longer. And then there was this notion of going "topside": how could the ship possibly rise above sea level? The Atlantean dwarf doesn't fully understand what he is hearing but grumbles lightly as he weighs their options.
"How long will it take you to weigh anchor?"
My understanding of air ships is rather limited Sigrid states the obvious.
If I understand you correctly, we have a period of time to conduct additional sabotage, assist and possibly rescue Orinve Oatbound and to reduce their capability to pursue us? I am low on magical resources, but I think I have proven to be handfull in a fight regardless.
She pauses
Lady Rans teachings for such situations suggest things, first, a way for us to signal you that we have suceeded and are coming.
Second, a signal for us that we are coming without having been succesfull.
Third, a signal for you to tell us that we must move back to the ship immidiatly. For our signalling towards you I propose this:
Sigrid casts light, and makes a crossbow bolt shine green.
She then makes another shine red.
Green means success, we are moving back, red means failure, coming back. Do you have anyone among you capable of casting the light cantrip? If yes, if we see a blue light from your direction, we shall know that we must hurry towards you.
"It won't take us long to prep. The hard part will be having the boys haul her to the edge since we can't get any wind in this place. They probably use birds to tow ships out." As he speaks you see Dimas organizing teams with ropes to drag the ship to the edge of the hangar.
"Well, I'll be... that's impressive." Captain Christoff says when he sees Sigrid create light. "I can't say as we have anyone who can do that, at least not without throwing some chemicals together."
Nichodemus, one of the Atlanteans speaks up, "I can do a light spell and I'm definitely not much for a fight. So I'll stay with the good captain."
Pytheas furrows his brow as he listens to Christoff both explain the notion of the airship and express his own amazement at Sigrid's trick with the light spell. For its part, the airship makes a certain amount of engineering sense. Pytheas was no shipwright, just a decent sailor, but you couldn't be a navigator and not have a basic idea of the available propulsion mechanisms. There were plenty of theoretical ways to achieve flight. It was just the maintenance and the cost and the...
Wait, how had Atlantis not figured it out, but these warmongering heathens had?
Then again, these warmongering heathens were impressed by minor orisons. Parlor tricks. Not to diminish Sigrid's capabilities--she was a frightening and capable person--but that was a simple trick! Granted, Pytheas hadn't thought to focus the light in such a way, like a portion of the sky after a rainstorm, but...
And then there was the particularly odd hand crossbow.
There were strange things afoot here in this land.
"All right, then. We'll meet you topside after we connect with the Oathbound and my hind."
Gripping spear and shield, he sets himself to the stairs.
Agripos gets ready to go with Pytheas, but asks a quick question. "Besides the fact that the soldiers will be chasing him, how will we recognize this Orin've fellow? I think one of you capable fighters who knows him may need to come with us, so he doesn't mistaken us for soldiers." After all, many of them had taken the soldiers' weapons and armor.
"I can easily identify him, and I am definitely going." the young man Leir responds.
Gheorix nods, Orin've's been a big help, let's see if we cannot aid him in kind... and follows with the group.
Battle calls once more lads and ladi She pauses
Lads and me I guess, nobody call my Lady, by Rans divine t##+, I work and stab things for a living. She finishes with an infectious grin.
Pytheas raises his brow a bit. He was no stranger to vulgarity (obviously), but the casual blasphemy towards one's own god was new. Then again, he doesn't know much of Ran. Maybe Ran was a more libertine god who did not mind her pilgrims casually referencing her anatomy.
"I wouldn't dream of it," he says, hustling forward. "You want a title other than your name? you just tell us."
Eh, the beautifull picture of her divine breasts, rising from the rivers and seas has inspired many an artist, inspired many a worthy endeavour and admittedly caused a fair amount of clothes to get torn of and stolen. Ran is as we humans, only more so. Adventurous, bold, michevious, surprising and most importantly free and fun.
There is a Saga in which the ugly svartalf, Svartalfs are distant cousins of you dwarfs I believe, Eskill managed to beat her at a Flyting, these are insult contests, which made her laugh so hard she made him his, I think, 3rd consort. Sigrid, somehow sensing a religious question breaks out into a short religious exegesis.
He performed well as her consort, venturing into hell and stealing the demon witch of Midnight eternals white crystal dream powder, only for Freya to mistake it for flour, make bread from it, and well, that feast got quite interesting. She adds.
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"I--" Pytheas furrowed brow seems ready to fold in on itself from the amount of scrunching he is doing.
I didn't ask anything.
"Interesting."
Is she reading my mind? he wonders. The dwarf fixes his eyes on Sigrid as they make towards the stairs and focuses his mind in her general direction. Are you trying to read my mind?
The group hurries to the stairs and on up. After a ninety foot climb takes them out of the hangar completely the stair continues to ascend through the rock at least that far again. Finally, it breaks from the ground depositing the team on the top of a large island or plateau as it would seem. The surface had obviously been worked and was nearly as flat as a table with a slight rise on one side. To your immediate left is a three story wooden building with windows every ten feet or so. You assume it is a barracks and the troops forming up in front of it would lend credence to that idea. To your right and ahead you see a large field with pennants marking various areas some with archery targets, others with sparring dummies, yet others with sand pits; a training area you are sure. Rising from the ground at the center of the island is a huge iron lattice tower. It stands nearly 500' high with a large cable running down the center and into a large hole in the ground. Around the edge of the island are several towers armed with ballistae which they have trained to face inward. On the far side of the island three huge wooden cages sit at the top of a long sloped hill rising from the iron tower at the center of the island. Numerous giant birds perch hooded within the cages. Before the cages are small shacks and just behind them is a medium sized silo.
There is a disturbance, perhaps a fight at the rookery.
Troops are coming up from various holes, presumably other stairwells and are forming up in units.
The troops on the training ground are forming up to move out as are the soldiers in front of the barracks.
You notice a man in dark clothing and a black helm striding from the antennae tower toward the rookery. For those who have seen him, you know it to be Kul'Gressor.
You see a man with a large brimmed hat fighting among the soldiers near the rookery. For those who have met him, you know it to be Orin've.
Seeing the tower along with previously seeing the command deck helps you to connect the dots on how the phase induction cannon works. You believe you could play a tune on the controls that would cause the cannon to fire upon itself.
The large cable coming down from the antenna tower must lead to the command deck.
Topside, Pytheas marvels, looking around at the size of the structure they now stood atop of and almost losing his balance as it takes it all in. It had to be nearly a kilometer from here to the rookery! He peers ahead.
"Maybe Orin've is busy now. I'm not keen to engage an army with a strike force, but we need to make our way north. I'm not the stealthiest dwarf, but I can try what I can. Anyone have a better idea?"
There is a fight at the rookery, the enemy is sending in reinforcements. Someone in dark clothing and a black helm is moving towards it as well, he seems powerfull. I see a man with a large brimmed hat fighting close to the rookerie
Sigrids eyes are sharp, she informs her comrades of what she sees.
Alejandro peers at the figures. "Yes, that's Orin've over by the rookery. And that's Kul'Gressor in black. I.. I don't feel like we can take him." he says nervously. "If we can make some sort of distraction, we might be able to get Orin've some time to escape.
"Who's Kul'Gressor?" Pytheas asks Alejandro, intuiting that he's an enemy. The dwarf starts looking around at the buildings for some way of causing a distraction. "The Ageless Seahawk may be better at providing a distraction than we can, but that may only be possible if Orin've has done what he set out to do for sabotage."
"The empire's enforcer - we heard stories of him from the ship's crew before it was captured - he can take on ten men without getting a scratch, that sort of thing" Alejandro replies. "Thought it was exaggeration at the time, but he was in the chamber where we saw the weapon - and I'm not so sure any more."
Forgot to mention, you see three hard boats behind the barracks. It is the type used by the soldiers in your previous encounters. The non-original team members were captured relatively soon after arrival. The original team had time to train on the boats and may have the expertise to fly one.
In addition to the pic, the rigid boat sides are made of lacquered wood and there is a small cabinet in the back next to a tube that leads into the side.
Agripos looks around, trying to get his bearings. He eyes the nearby ballista tower. "What if we take over one of those? I bet firing it off would be a good distraction. And maybe we could do some real damage."
Alejandro points down to the barracks - "Look, there are some small boats down there. Gheorix and I were shown how to fly them - if we can get to them, we could fly to the ballista tower or over to Orin've."
Risky but reasonable, I am ready to move, on any account, we should take them or sabotage them
Is what powers them explosive? Can they perhaps be turned into make shift weapons? We set a Skandza fleet on fire with burning rafts, maybe something like this can work here too!
Pytheas nods at the developing plans. "I am loathe to split us, but if there are two who know how to fly--" the concept of flying a boat still baffles him "--those boats, then we could send one to the ballista tower and another to Orin've. We can still use Sigrid's idea to use colored lights to signal each other."
Ghoerix nods, Yes, we could make it to that boat and make a distraction with it. Might buy Orin've some time to do what he can. So Alejandro and I make for the boats, one tries to grab Orin've, the other heads to the ballista? Remember, we're not here to fight them all, but cause a distraction and get an opening for Orin've. Leir, you with us? And everyone, avoid Kul'Gressor he's bad, bad news.
Alternatively:
Skald, I believe you are about to do something important? Have some guidance and a bit of luck!
"I just don't see how a boat flies. " he mutters to himself.
Yes, one may aid the skald, perhaps pointing out the cable that runs down that he missed or surmising that it leads to the command deck or maybe even the simple observation that the iron tower is in someways similar to a tuning fork. Either way, the aid is sufficient to get him over the hump.
How does the group split its resources?