The Planewalkers' Journies

[Idran1701]

Wisprunner

Spreading Istishia's gift about the crew, Zant gives his allies the first of the healing before moving to the mephits. Stepping back from him, the first of his beneficiaries shakes his head before speaking. "Save it for the mortals. We'll be fine quick enough," he says, and indeed, their wounds already seem to be healing, their wounds drawing on the steam itself.

Moving on to Shawn, he gathers his energy, and Shawn's own wounds heal closed, though her vision's still clouded. Though the blinding seems to be lifting with time, things are still too blurry to make out more than vague shapes at the moment.

And as Zant helps Shawn, the rest of the mephits let out a cheer, grinning and shouting Aquan exhultations out to the fog. Yunefrithanak looks over their number with a broad smile, pointing to the surviving of the two summoned mephits. "You, help us while you're still around. Daniel, Anne, replace those two ropes; we don't want that one snapping when Zippy's pulling us along. Once that's done, we'll all head down, and celebrate our victory! One of ours was lost to the plane, and we must properly honor his sacrifice in the name of our superiority! Steam for steam!"

[Jak Snide]

Zant had taken their advice, saving his spells for those without the power to heal themselves rapidly.

"So. What is the nature of this malady you are suffering?" he asked Shawn, voice neutral.

[Shinigori V2]

At first, Shawn didn't seem to be paying any attention, going as far as to seem to be collecting her thoughts in private.

A moment later, she opened her eyes again, looking up at Zant- Showing they had returned to their normal color. "Sorry, what? I wasn't listening."

[Jak Snide]

Zant cleared his throat and repeated himself.

"What is the nature of this malady you are suffering?"

[Shinigori V2]

Shawn narrowed her eyes and made a face- One of those ones that's cute on a younger person, but silly on an adult. "..What?"

[Jak Snide]

"What is wrong with you. Your eyes, that is."

[Shinigori V2]

"Well, everything's all blurry." Shawn said.

[Idran1701]

Wisprunner

Looking over Shawn's eyes, Zant can see a bit of contamination in them; whatever the mephit exhaled on her seems to have given her eyes a slight coating. Whatever the substance is, though, it seems to be slowly wearing away; perhaps a more direct washing could speed things along.

[Jak Snide]

Zant was feeling more at ease now. The Shawn thing had become slightly less frightening, especially since he assumed it wasn't going to bite his face off for coming within five feet of it.

"Your eyes have been coated in some sort of residue. If you refrain from moving for a moment I can attempt to clean them."

[Shinigori V2]

Shawn nodded, wondering why she hadn't started to tear up just yet- Certainly not because of any pain she may or may not have felt, because that's a childish thing to do, but more because that's generally what happens when something gets into your eyes.

"Yeah, go ahead. Just be careful, I need those to see."

[Jak Snide]

Hesitating for a moment, Zant offered up a prayer to his Lord once again, asking for a boon of cleansing water before applying it to Shawn's eyes.

(Conjure Water)

[Idran1701]

Wisprunner

Summoning forth a small bit of water, Zant carefully forms a small stream across Shawn's eyes. As pure as the water is, it causes no discomfort to Shawn at all, and quickly, after a single blink her sight is restored to normal once more.

[Seethe]

Even after the mephits withdrew, Rosalyn stood for some time, sword in hand and eyes staring off into space. She'd known she would likely end up in combat on this trip, but those were intelligent creatures she had helped to kill. Not only had she fought them, but they had even gotten close enough that she'd had to use her sword against them. She'd never been as good with that weapon as she could have been, never attacking aggressively enough with it. Firing her arrows at people was unpleasant enough, but it only required concentration and skill. Attacking people with weapons such as the longsword, on the other hand, required an actual desire to see them harmed and killed.

Zant's healing spell caught her attention enough to bring her somewhat out of her post-combat disorientation. Putting her sword back in its sheath, then returning her bow to her back, she glanced around the deck to see how her allies fared. She let out an unhappy sigh on seeing that one of the sailors was dead, but at least the rest of her party seemed alright. Shawn was still in her inhuman form, but didn't appear to be any sort of threat. What actually bothered her more was the weapon she'd heard causing what sounded like some kind of explosions. If her ears had served her, Anne had been the one wielding it.

Collecting herself a bit more, she approached the woman. Her eyes were on that weapon, but she was trying not to look as disturbed as she was.

"Excuse me," she addressed Anne. "That weapon you were using. What... what is that?"

[Justice Augustus]

Lux turned away from watching the rapport between Zant and Shawn, and gave a small smile to Joss. "What, that little scratch? You should have seen what they used to have to stitch together after a bar brawl in Waterdeep. I've had a few cuts and breaks in my time, usually from someone missing with a projectile and me being a large target on the stage. Thankfully there used to be this training priestess of Sune who had a bit of a soft spot for me." Lux rubs his chin, and a whimsical smile crosses his face. "Actually she had a bit of a soft spot for a lot of singers, especially ones with legs like..." and he trails off, looking at Joss with a touch of embarrassment. "...Perhaps a story for another time. The captain is right, now is a time for repairs and remembrance of the fallen. Those who sacrifice their lives to save others, they are the most deserving of song."

[NebulaQueen]

"Oh, these?" Anne blinked at Rosalyn, reorienting herself after the girl had broken her train of thought. However, soon a wide grin spread across her face, as she drew her weapon again. The firearm was held out so Rosalyn could see (and it was pointed at the ground, thank you) "This lil' beauty's called a flintlock, and let me tell you, it's saved my hide more times than I can remember." Quickly, Anne's grip loosened, and the flintlock spun around, twirling around her finger once before she gripped the handle and put it back in its holster. "I guess you've never seen anything like this before, huh?"

[Idran1701]

Wisprunner

The repairs proceed easily enough, with the damaged rope and its snapped partner soon replaced, without so much as a listing in the steamship; sometimes the odd gravity of this plane comes in handy, it would appear. And thus, the ship proceeds onwards, continuing its journey.

No further violence mars the travel, and unlike what many crews might go through, no pall is cast over the mephits; quite to the contrary, as their fallen companion is congratulated, merging with the essence of the plane in what they consider the best way one can do so. Though the mephit - Hathfarnassen, the All-Knowing Brewer, they soon learn - was quite well-liked amongst the mephits, his memory shall endure amongst them eternally. And when they say eternally, they seem to mean it quite literally.

So, things continue. The ship presses on, moving forward even while the humans sleep under the guidance of the mephits. Though it takes time to grow accustomed to sleeping under the surge-and-stop motion, the adjustment is much faster than they might have expected; it even helps a little, almost like a gentle rocking.

The second day is calm, with the party starting to get into the swing of things. Zant, Shawn, and Rosalyn each take a bit of time trying out Gathenrakfast's game, and though just starting out, they catch on to the basics fairly quickly. They're still no match for him, of course, but they provide enough of a challenge for one another to make things interesting. Not that he's entirely happy with them playing one another instead of him, but he can't exactly stop them.

The only encounter of note this day preceeds itself with a low, droning tone, as a vaguely fish-like creature almost the size of the steamship swims alongside them for a time. It keeps pace well, almost seeming to watch the crew go about their business and occasionally releasing a spray of bubbly water from the blowhole atop its mass, before splitting off after an hour of shared transit, heading back into the fog, its drone audible for another full hour afterwards.

With another day having passed calmly, on the third, the Wisprunner draws ever nearer their destination. The party's finally seemed to have adjusted to the air, the fatigue having passed upon their awakening this day. The mist seems to be starting to glow, looking thinner and thinner as they press on. And eventually, that "afternoon", the ship slows to a stop, with Lux called up from the cargo deck as Captain Yunefrithanak gathers the party to speak with them.

"Well, this's where you get off. Positive's right towards the light; keep swimming that way, and you'll reach that tower. Remember, we'll be back for you in a day. Don't worry about meeting us, we'll find you. And be careful you don't get too close and move over into Positive, unless you like getting so full of life that you burst. If you can still see the glitter of water, you're safe."

With a pause, he grins to the group of six, hands behind his back. "Good luck, and thanks for the help. You lot're a good deal more helpful than the last group of passengers we took on. The Wisprunner'd be glad to take you on again any day."

---

The first leg of your voyage is complete! The fatigue condition is lifted from everyone that was suffering from it, and all damage from combat is healed by now. Also, for your choice of job, each party member gains a single rank in a specific skill.
Anne: Use Rope
Joss: Handle Animal
Lux: Appraise
Rosalyn: Handle Animal
Shawn: Spot
Zant: Profession(Sailor)

Also, to clarify since Jak asked: it's still just steam here, but as the whale's visit showed, folks can still swim in steam on this plane. Somehow. Or if they want, they can instead take advantage of the subjective gravity they may or may not have figured out by now to fall their way through, but that's obviously a bit more dangerous.

[Jak Snide]

Zant smiled and gave his thanks to the captain before diving overboard, eager to finally get to grips with the "sea" of this plane.

[Seethe]

No gloom came over the mephits after the battle in which one of their number was lost, but one did come over Rosalyn for a while. Luckily, it was lightened by the various distractions available, and she was able to get her spirits back up by the end of the day. Her initial concern about Anne's weapon eventually abated somewhat as well, her typical eagerness to embrace the unknown overruling her worries about the potential outcome of such a weapon becoming commonplace.

Upon reaching the end of the ride, Rosalyn learned that she was going to be swimming the rest of the way. She would have had her doubts that such would have even been possible if she hadn't seen the fishlike creature doing it with her own eyes. With her load and armor, that was going to be an interesting thing to attempt. At least she didn't have to worry so much about drowning, though. She just hoped she didn't sink right into the Positive Energy Plane.

In any case, after thanking the captain, she followed Zant in diving overboard. Dina back in Adrift had mentioned falling as a viable method of travel, as Rosalyn recalled, so she could probably use gravity to her advantage if she got into too much trouble with the swimming.

[Justice Augustus]

Lux thanks Yunefrithanak for his hospitality, and waves farewell to the rest of the crew before running to the railing of the ship, jumping on to the railing itself, and using that as a springboard to jump out into the steam. A new experience awaits him, and he cannot wait.

[Idran1701]

Raging Mists

Saying farewell to their temporary companions, the six travelers leap from the railing of the ship, swimming off towards the glowing light. Though some aren't quite as fast as others, and Zant could likely outpace the lot of them, they stick largely together, eyes forward. It's disconcerting even to the genasi to be swimming in what to all appearances is open air, and to forget about gravity as they go, but they manage it fairly well.

The party looks to have varying degrees of competency at the act. Zant takes to it quite easily, of course, and Shawn seems to have some degree of experience with it herself. The rest of the party manages well enough, untrained but doing their best effort. And so the swimming continues, the Wisprunner quickly receding off into the distance. Nothing to keep the party company but one another now as time ticks by, minutes flowing on. Soon, an hour's passed, or perhaps two; it's hard to tell with nothing but the occasional bit of conversation to pass the time. The fog does seem to be slowly thinning, and the sparkle of light grows more present, surrounding them in an iridescent sheen. Beautiful in its way, and a welcome distraction from the pressing greyness around Adrift.

[Jak Snide]

The past few hours had been the most idyllic Zant had experienced in weeks. Not quite as good as swimming in the waters of his home plane, but closer than anything he'd experienced since he left. He swimming towards the light, keeping his eyes out for the Tower of Ice and, far more importantly, the glitter of the water. He wasn't sure what "so full of life that you burst" entailed, but he'd decided it was a fate he wanted to avoid.

[Justice Augustus]

Lux was having a great time, spinning over and over, swimming on his back, testing the subjective gravity to see how well he could control himself, kicking along lazily at times with his arms behind his head. He began humming, quietly to himself, and then louder when he found a tune that fit the setting they were in. A ululating hybrid between a sea shanty and a pastoral ode, paying tribute to this countryside of water. He was smiling. He was at peace. Eventually, he pulls out his lyre to accompany himself, strumming along almost inaudibly softly while he tests out melodies.

[Seethe]

The sea of mist remained strange to Rosalyn for a while. Once she was able to overcome the initial disconcerting sense of being suspended in the air with no ground below, she began to appreciate it as another one of the new experiences for which she had joined the Planewalkers. But then, as the hours wore on, it became disconcerting again, for if she didn't know any better she might have thought she wasn't moving. Only the thinning and brightening of the mists proved that she was actually making progress. She just hoped the direction in which she was moving was the right one.

It seemed to her that it would be easier to get lost in this empty mist than in the thickest of forests. At least she had the promise that the ship would find them again on the next day, though.

[Idran1701]

Raging Mists

Pressing forward, accompanied by a gentle traveling tune from Lux, the group of six continues their swimming expedition. And before long, something does indeed break the repetitious scenery. Anne's the first to spot it, but they all catch sight before long; though they can only see the shadow of it at the moment, it appears to be a small cottage, a mere 100 feet distant right in the middle of their path. A figure, humanoid, can be seen to pace back and forth besides it, but not much else can be made out quite yet.

[Jak Snide]

"How peculiar" the gensai commented, switching to a backstroke so he could talk to the others. "Have you all sighted the oddity ahead?" They hadn't been told about anything else out here, and a single home being this far from anything else seemed strange indeed.

[Idran1701]

Raging Mists

As the party draws closer to the building, patches drift into and out of view; a bit of stone wall here, an ivy-covered trellis there. As the mists thin, the entire house comes into view, with the pacing fellow catching sight of the six, waving to them in a friendly manner as they near. He and his home stand alone, sitting on a cloud quite thicker than the ones surrounding them, well-kept and looking quite cozy a place to live. The man calls out to the travelers as they float along, his voice booming in the humid void. "Ah, hello there!"

[Justice Augustus]

"Well met!" Lux replies, waving as he does. "Might a group of swimmers come ashore for a brief visit?" Turning to his comerades, Lux says in a more normal voice, "I was under the impression this region was uninhabited, perhaps this person can help us find our goal?"

[Seethe]

"Perhaps he could," Rosalyn agreed with Lux.

She could use a bit of a break, anyway. Between her armor and her heavy load, all the swimming was getting to be fairly tiresome. Though it wasn't anything she couldn't handle, she really wished she hadn't brought all that firewood. For some reason, she'd been expecting a longer trip and more solid ground.

[Idran1701]

Raging Mists

"Go ahead! Always glad to have some visitors! The name's Thesset," the fellow shouts, as he comes more clearly into view. Pale white skin, shiny silver hair down to his waist, and bare-chested, wearing only a pair of fur-lined trousers and boots. The party draws closer and closer, finding the cabin seems to have been much further than they thought. A trick of perspective, it would seem, as it grows larger and larger. Why, that fellow must be 10...15...25 feet tall?

As they reach the edge of the cloud, the fact is well hammered into them: they seem to have stumbled upon a giant's cottage. Built of stacked, flat stones from the look of it, and showing all the signs of handmade construction. It stands at least 80 feet across and 60 feet wide, and now that they've landed on the slightly-giving surface of the cloud (it feels as if they're walking on a down mattress), they can spot a wide, wooden porch across the far side, about 6 feet tall and stretching out at least 15 feet from the wall.

Sorry for the delay; would have posted this up yesterday, but I was exhausted from the trip home for vacation.

[Jak Snide]

Zant made his way onto the shore somewhat hesitantly. He'd occasionally come across creatures this large back home, but he'd understandably never been at ease around them. This was no exception, even if the giant did seem to be a friendly fellow.

"I am Zant." he stated after a moment, waiting for the others to introduce themselves as well.

[Kai]

Joss spent a moment settling himself down on the giant's 'lawn' before craning his neck back to take in the massive scenery. Everything was huge! Clearly for a giant it wouldn't be a problem, but Joss... was no giant. The boy just couldn't get over how big everything was! Where on this plane did Thesset find all the wood for his porch? The stones for the house? What else was here? There was just so much to figure out about this place. Couldn't all be air and water. After all, if someone six times Joss' size could live here, he had to have something to eat and drink and use to build houses. Joss just... didn't know what.

And he really was easily that tall. Really awesome-looking guy, this Thesset. Joss had to respect a man who was comfortable walking around in just his pants and a good sturdy pair of boots. Kind of imposing, now that Joss was thinking about it.

He... felt small, and that was a very foreign impression. Like many very small dogs, Joss just plain didn't think about his size relative to other men but every now and again... at times like this... it caught his attention.

Still. Being small physically was no excuse for having a small personality.

"Hi, Thesset!" Joss called back, having much more reason to worry about being heard than the giant. "Joss David Hunter," he announced himself. "Pleasure to meet you, sir."

[Justice Augustus]

"Greetings, Thesset, we were under the impression that this area was uninhabited, but believe us we are happy to learn otherwise." Lux smiles and bows, experimenting with the consistancy of the cloud, alternately standing on the clouds and trying to float above it.

[Shinigori V2]

For once, Shawn seemed to be caught off guard, possibly even panicked. She floated backwards, cowering just slightly, before forcing herself forward. "..S..S-Shawn."

[Seethe]

As Rosalyn made her way to the house, she couldn't help but to remember an old cautionary saying her elders used to tell her about giants. How did it go, now?

Oh, right. "Always be nice to them or they'll crush your skull."

Yeah...

"Nice to meet you, Thesset," she said accordingly. "My name's Rosalyn."

[Idran1701]

Raging Mists

Walking towards the six, Thesset grins, kneeling before them but keeping his distance after a glance to Shawn. "Well, it's good to meet you too. Mostly uninhabited, yes, but that's why I moved out here myself. I like my space, and this place is just about perfect."

Looking to the sky, he gestures to the sparkling fog as he speaks. "Who could resist living somewhere like this, hmm? Not to say I don't like the occasional guest, even if it's something of a surprise for me too. You don't tend to see people this far out in the plane. Some sort of business?"

[Jak Snide]

Seeing as nobody else replied immediately, Zant spoke up.

"We are sightseeing, or at least that is what I would judge it as. We journey to the Tower of Ice to investigate it."

[Idran1701]

Raging Mists

With a deep chortle, Thesset grins. "Ah, a trip of exploration! Wonderful. I've never visited the Tower myself, though I have seen it once or twice. A wondrous sight indeed. Well, then, I wish you luck on your trip!

"And you are of course quite welcome to rest here for a spell, small ones. Such a trip as this, I can only imagine how tired you must be. Although...I would ask a favor, if you would. Nothing too great a task, but a job especially suited to your size. I would be ever grateful...but I'm afraid I have little to reward you with.

"You see, Quizzy, a pet of mine...seems to have gotten himself lost beneath my house. Such a sweet animal, so curious, but I must admit, not especially bright. I can hear his squeaks from within, but he doesn't seem able to find his way back to the hole in the wall. It's much too small a space for me to fit, but I think you could manage. Truly, it's a gift from Stronmaus that you arrived when you did. Will you help?"

[Kai]

Aha! Joss knew that he liked this Thesset. A man had the right to stay and mind his own homestead if that's what made him happy, but Joss positively demanded that all people respect the excitement and drama and great heroic potential of a good adventure. Thesset understood; he could tell.

And it seemed the man was at a bit of a disadvantage when it came to locating a pet. Well! It was just lucky Joss and his allies had come around. In fact it probably wasn't luck at all. More likely it was fate that brought them together for companionship and mutual assistance! Destiny worked that way sometimes. Clearly Joss was intended to assist the giant with this task, and he had no intention of shirking on his duty. While he couldn't really volunteer the others to assist, they would surely see the example he was setting of proper charitable action and follow suit.

Well, perhaps. Some of them were adults after all. One never knew these days.

"Yeah, sure! I'll help." Joss offered. "Though I've gotta ask. What am I looking for?"

[Idran1701]

Raging Mists

Grinning, Thesset turns to Joss, a look of relief passing over his face. "Quizzy's a white-coated mountain weasel. I brought him with me from the Evermoors, and he's been here for years. You've never met a friendlier beast, I can guarantee that much. He just needs someone to help him find his way out, that's all."

[Seethe]

"I'll help too," Rosalyn piped up.

Actually, now that she thought about it, the underside of a giant's house would be a new sort of experience. Therefore, how could she pass it up? Of course, it would probably just be like the underside of any other house, but just bigger. And there would probably be a lot of dust and... spiderwebs in there. But still... it might be worth it. Maybe.

In any case, Thesset had mentioned seeing the tower. Maybe in exchange for this bit of help, he might point the group in the right direction.