The Planewalkers' Other Journies

[Jak Snide]

Zant stood silent for a moment, struck dumb by the response. He ran through the construct's words in his head a few times before replying.

"I do not possess the funds to offer you employment. I can inform you of an alternative means of supporting yourself, if that is what you require."

[Christian]

The construct seemed somewhat confused by the answer, taking some time before it replied.

"This is irregular." It seemed to mince over Zants words a bit more, eyes glowing in a bit more intense green. "Wall would accept."

Then, it seemed to speak for the first time. The words came not chopped up into syllables, but rather with emotion, or something like it, behind them.

"For now, I would be thankful for such council. It has been many years since I left Wall, many years since descent into Pandemonium. Many things will have changed, this one is in need of guidance."

It turned towards the others as if to say something, but then instead turned again, this time towards the staircase. "This is where you came from?"

[Jak Snide]

"Yes, though only in a broad sense. We are members of an organisation based in this region. As members we gain access to numerous persons who seek the able-bodied for outlandish tasks across the planes. Groups are formed, accept a task and then set out to complete it. Our current task is why we journeyed to Pandemonium."

[Spleen]

Theller breathed a profound sigh of relief at the end of the winds. "Finally...I am a creature of Air, and I could not have abided that any longer."

He said nothing more as they stood upon the landing, smoothing out his ruffled wing feathers and listening to the odd exchange between Magpie and Zant.

[Idran1701]

Infinite Staircase

As the group talks, they descend the stairs back along the path to the headquarters of the guild. Things grow brighter as they leave the Pandemonium gate behind them, and even more so as they reach the Sunbeam region. Beams of light shine through the fog from all directions, glittering in the air in a rainbow of much-needed colors.

Things aren't completely calm yet, however; walking down the stairs, Magpie has the strangest feeling of being stared at from a number of directions. Trying to tell the source, he gets a short glimpse of a winged snake-woman through the fog on a distant landing, but she's soon gone from sight as the fog drifts past.

---

Zant, Theller:

Spoiler:

Though you didn't see the creature, if Magpie describes it to you, you'll recognize it as a lillend, the guardians of the Staircase. They don't care much for creatures that lean heavily towards Law and tend to be suspicious of the strongest such, but they don't attack unless provoked, instead preferring to keep watch. Ask me if you want more information on them.

[Christian]

Magpie continued to walk down despite what it had seen, eyes dimming somewhat as the voice once more returned to its old, machine-like speech:

"Caution adviced, we are being observed. Possible ambush, suggest proceed with increased pace to better footings. One spotted, could be more nearby. Winged Snake-woman."

[Spleen]

"Lillends protect the Staircase," Theller explained. "They're not the type to be fond of the lawfully-bent, but as long as you pose no danger to them, they will pose none to you."

[Christian]

"Understood." Magpie's response was quick and without neither disappointment nor satisfaction with the answer. For the rest of the trip down, it stayed quiet unless anyone chose to speak with it. It didn't seem to show too much interest in small-talk, engaged it would seem in deep thougth.

[Idran1701]

Infinite Staircase

Walking down the staircase, the party takes only a short couple of hours before reaching the Guild headquarters. Although that sensation of being watched never leaves Magpie, they face no opposition on the way there. It's late "morning" when they arrive, with things looking a bit less active than usual but by no means staid.The sight of so many familiar faces after so long is sure to hearten the spirits of some of the party, but to Magpie, the entire place is nothing but a new experience. Though not yet a member, it is told that it's still welcome here for the time being, though there would certainly be encouragement on all sides to join.

---

This adventure is now officially over! Since things in this game are somewhat scant on combat encounters, and thus XP, I'm going to be scaling up story awards while I work out what to do about that.

1750 XP for completing the mission to all but Magpie, 300 XP for it. And again, though it doesn't matter much at this point, 1200 XP to Alvar.

300 bonus XP to Zant, Theller, and Magpie for their players posting fairly regularly.

There's also a reward due from the researcher for the Styx water, of course. You can work out if someone heads out themselves to bring it to him on the Outlands, or has another guild member deliver it and bring back the reward or whatever, but here's what they end up getting out of it, including the stuff they got while there:

The trio of gems from the winged creatures, worth a total of about 400 gold.
The symbol of Gorellik (if any of them wanted to keep it, although it doesn't detect as magic)

250 gold worth of alchemical objects of their choice
Amber amulet of vermin, giant wasp (MIC)
Chronocharm of the Laughing Rogue (MIC)
Crystal of Return, Lesser (MIC)
Enemy Spirit Pouch (Outsider (Lawful)) (MIC)
Fhorge-hide Armor +1
Light steel shield, mwk
Potion of barkskin +5
Short sword, mwk
Wand of Bear's Endurance (10 charges)

(If asked about the latter set of items, he'd say something about a recent attempted robbery that didn't go well for the thief, and leave it at that.)

The four of you can work out the details on who gets what, though if you're going to do it OOCly (which would probably be faster) I'd ask if you could do that in the OOC thread instead of IM/PM just so everyone can see it at once.

As for other things, you're about 11-12 days ahead of the other thread right now. Once you two catch up, which should happen once the questing gets done over there, we can do downtime stuff with both groups outside the thread in IM or chat. Until then, you can still do that for stuff that doesn't involve people outside the thread. Anyone with specific plans for what you're doing, get back to me, and if you don't have any, I'll figure out something for you. :D

[Idran1701]

Other group in the other thread.

Infinite Staircase

At the fork in the stairs, Shawn, Theller, Rosalyn, and Florence leave their companions, whose footsteps and conversation soon fade into the ever-present fog. A quarter-hour later, the four reach their doorway, a simple wooden frame. They step through, emerging in an alleyway outside a candleshop in Bradshire, the Outlands town closest to their goal - an Indep settlement in the sixth ring, just a single ring from the mystery village. There they have the chance to rent a mount (though with Shawn's inability to hold reins, she may end up needing to share with Florence), and after travel arrangements are set up, the four depart out in the general direction of the Spire, the infinitely-tall pillar at the center of the Outlands.

Outlands

Days pass for the adventurers, as they walk the savannah between Bradshire and their goal. There are no roads here, no paths, and barely even a sign that others have ever been here; an old campfire here, a bundle of forgotten rope there, but little more. There's been plenty of animal life, at least, for the Outlands are second only to the Beastlands in terms of how much natural life thrives here. With little of the unnatural conditions and ethical influence in other planes that force plants and animals to adapt, especially in these less magical regions, untouched flora and fauna can thrive. In the morning, gazelles and wildebeest run through the tall grass, prairie dogs pop up in curiosity before again hiding themselves as they pass, and at one point they even spot a pride of lions lounging in the distance. At night, the shrieks of jackals echo over their campsites. (Thankfully for them, with enough time, people can learn to sleep through anything.) It's the fourth day of their journey before they pass through to the fifth ring, a tingle passing over them and a sense of distance settling onto them.

Shawn:

Spoiler:

It's less of a tingle and more of an itch for you as you pass over the border, though it still fades as quickly as theirs did. Still, though, you suddenly can tell you're fixed in shape.

---

The horizon is a strange thing on the planes for those not used to it. On a Prime world, round as most of them are, objects seem to rise above it, slowly emerging into view as a person draws closer. On the planes, though, for the most part all is flat. Rather than rising, an object seems to merely grow; a small speck at the edge of your vision, increasing in size until you can finally see what exactly it is. And so the village appears after a week and a half's travel, small buildings expanding into view. There's no signs of movement within its bounds, though; no people, no animals, nothing but the light wind blowing the trees that dot the prairie.

[Seethe]

"So this would explain why communication stopped," Rosalyn thought aloud as they entered the village.

It was rather unnerving, really, that a whole village would just disappear.

"I suppose we should start by getting a closer look at the place," she suggested. "Hopefully there might still be some sort of clue here about what's happened."

[Spleen]

Theller hit the butt of his spear against the ground to dislodge a dirt clump. "Agreed," he said solemnly, unnerved in no small part himself. He stretched his neck and squared his shoulders, though, suddenly aware despite himself that he was the only man present and that if he were a more old-fashioned person, he might consider himself the de facto leader. If he were more old-fashioned. "Let's go forward, then."

[Idran1701]

Outlands - Empty Village

The three walk through the seemingly-abandoned village, alert for any signs of...anything. It's a well-sized place, big enough for 50, maybe 100 occupants when populated. From what they can tell looking in windows and the like, there's all the sorts of buildings one would expect in a place like this - general stores, smiths, tailors, wood carvers, all left behind. Peeking in the windows of the various houses, they see the remains of candles long since burnt to nothing sit in dishes. Books rest open on end tables, and children's toys lay strewn about the floors. In one or two places, a half-drunk mug of ale or an unfinished dinner sits out, ignored like everything else.

Soon, they come to the center of town, where things get a bit stranger. The corpses of members of the region's wildlife lay out in the streets, most half-eaten, though the bite marks are like nothing they've ever seen. Not many - a wildebeast here, a boar there - but enough to be noticed. In most cases the blood's long since dried, the bodies looking a few days old at least, but in some the bodies are still fresh, perhaps a few hours. None have started to rot yet, thankfully for their noses, but the slight coppery scent of blood does hang over the square. Much of the dirt around the remains show drag marks, almost as if whatever did this wished to gather an open-air meat pantry. Yet even here, there's no human or even humanoid bodies, nor the remains of such. Not even a pet or farm animal is to be seen, purely native wildlife.

[Shinigori V2]

Shawn will slide herself off of Florence's horse, and sit in her haunched position. Her ears are directed straight up and out, in an attempt to pick up any sound they can, although she's trying not to vomit at the smell of so much blood.

"No people, that could be good or bad."

[Spleen]

"It's good," Theller asserted, turning over a body with his bare, clawed foot. "I'd be sick to see the bodies of men strewn like these beasts. Even if we find the people of the town murdered and buried in a mass grave, better that than half-eaten in the street." He shuddered, fighting back nausea from the smell of blood.

[Seethe]

Either way, Rosalyn was finding this all the more disturbing with every new detail she saw.

"Unpleasant as the sight of these animals may be, I think the most troubling thing here is the way everything's just been left behind," the girl mused. "It looks like everyone just dropped whatever they were doing and left. If they had just decided to abandon the place, I think they probably would have at least cleaned up after themselves. It doesn't look like there was an attack either, though, or there probably would have been more damage..."

And after saying her piece, she decided to get a better look at the bite marks on the animals. Holding her nose, she moved in a bit closer and tried to at least make sure they didn't look like the work of human teeth.

[Spleen]

"Implying what?" Theller asked, standing over Rosalyn but not close enough to crowd her. "Do you believe they may have been teleported away? Destroyed by a single, violent spell? Neither seems likely in the Outlands." Theller scratched his feathered head with a taloned hand. "Let's keep looking for more clues."

[Idran1701]

Outlands - Empty Village

Rosalyn squats near one of the corpses, doing her best to ignore the stench. As far as she can tell, it doesn't look human, but it doesn't look animal either. It looks like whatever the thing that did this was, its mouth was filled with dozens of needle-sharp fangs still hard enough to rip rather than bite through the creature's flesh.

While Rosalyn checks the body, Florence dismounts behind Shawn, looking a little green from their surroundings herself. Trying to keep from retching, she nods to Theller. "That sounds like the best idea to me. Where do you think we should start? Anywhere other than here, I hope."

Shawn:

Spoiler:

You can just make out some sort of sound on the other side of the village, about a hundred feet off or so and behind some buildings.

[Spleen]

"Inside. Anywhere that looks like there were a lot of people. An inn or something similar."

[Shinigori V2]

How. Bloody. Stupid.

"No, if they wanted to abandon the place in a hurry, they wouldn't have cleaned up after themselves. They'd have up and left as quickly as possible."

She padded over to one of the corpses, batting it with a paw. "Something scared them off in a hurry."

Her ear twitches as she picks up the sound, and she starts off, running in her new form as if she was completely used to four-legged mobility.

[Spleen]

"Where are you going?" Theller called, turning to see if the girl was running from something. He swung his spear over one shoulder and ran after her, wings furled tight, looking for a low-slung outhouse or easy-to-climb wall he could use to get enough height to glide after her.

[Idran1701]

Outlands - Empty Village

"...Shawn, wait!" Shawn darts off past the square, with Theller and Florence both quick behind her. Hopping off a nearby platform, Theller gets a good 10 feet of height to glide after her, and Florence surprisingly manages to keep up with his glide easily. The two of them soon spot what it is that caught her attention, just after Shawn turns a corner to see it herself. They can only get a glimpse of the creature - vaguely feline, about Shawn's size, and murky-brown - before it darts away between a pair of nearby buildings, its body growing a milky-white, translucent film that obscures its appearance as it flees.

Left in its wake are the bodies of its kill; a tiger and her cubs, heavily wounded and covered in bite marks. Most look to be ripped to shreds and already fed upon to some degree, but one still shudders with barely-held life, struggling to breathe.

Rosalyn might be here too, depends on what Seethe decides when he shows up.

[Shinigori V2]

Shawn screams/roars at the creature as it flees, and almost begins to chase it, before noticing it's more recent kill.

As she notices the cub, she slows to a stop, and her face falls, ears and tail drooping. She quietly approaches. She gently sniffs at it, and begins licking it's wounds, trying to clean them.

[Spleen]

Theller dipped in his glide and touched down, running a short distance with his wings as a parachute to slow himself down, coming to rest near Shawn. "Should we go after the creature?" he asks, before noticing Shawn licking the wounded animal. "What are you doing?"

[Shinigori V2]

Shawn looks up and over at Theller. "Aba blegh hargle eck-"

She coughs violently, and spits out a nasty clump of bloody hair. "I'm cleaning him up. We can't just leave him, he's still alive. We'll have another chance to go after that thing, but if he dies, he's gone! We have to help him!"

[Seethe]

Rosalyn had meant something more along the lines of the people abandoning the village over something like not having enough food in the area, or some other normal reason. Not really getting scared off by something and leaving in a hurry. She had been too busy thinking about zombies or mass mind-control to consider that possibility.

Before she could become defensive, though, Shawn ran off after something. Rosalyn followed.

Though she only managed a glimpse of the creature that had apparently attacked the tigers, it was enough to convince her to quickly draw her bow and stand ready in case whatever it was returned.

She gave a nod of agreement to Shawn's reasoning regarding the tiger cub, but all she could really do at the moment was stand guard.

[Idran1701]

Outlands - Empty Village

The cub twitches at the cleaning, but it doesn't make a sound but its breathing. Barely moving, it hardly reacts to the gathered group. Florence kneels down next to Shawn, putting a hand on her shoulder and not saying a word.

Meanwhile, Rosalyn keeps an eye open for the return of the creature, but it doesn't seem to be coming back. Whatever it is, it's smart enough to not risk going up against four well-armed adventurers.

[Seethe]

There was one other thing Rosalyn could do, actually. Once she was fairly certain the creature wasn't going to come back, she searched through her pack to recover one of the potions of Cure Light Wounds she had bought. This wasn't exactly what she had meant to be using them for, but she offered it anyway. She didn't know whether it would be enough to fully revive the cub, but it would at least help it to stabilize.

[Idran1701]

Outlands - Empty Village

Though not in a condition to drink on its own, the cub manages to take it when Rosalyn carefully pours it down its throat. Many of its wounds heal up, and it breathes becomes a little steadier, but it doesn't seem to have noticed yet that it's healed. Looking around, it finally notices the presence of everyone around it, and Shawn can feel it suddenly get tense, its breathing quicken.

Frowning, Florence stands, speaking quietly, though not quite enough to keep Shawn from hearing. "Why don't you two start searching? I think Shawn might be a while, and I can stay here with her."

[Shinigori V2]

Shawn hears, but doesn't particularly mind. Her job, right now, is to calm this animal down.

She slowly hunkers over it, running her tongue one more time over it's head, and nuzzling her own against his. "It'll be okay. You're safe now."

[Seethe]

Florence's suggestion sounded acceptable to Rosalyn. At the very least, thinning the crowd here out a bit would probably help to allow the tiger cub to calm down. She gave a nod, then looked at Theller to see if he agreed.

[Spleen]

Theller nodded and motioned to Rosalyn to lead the way.

[Idran1701]

Outlands - Empty Village
Shawn

With Theller and Rosalyn heading off, the cub seems to calm down a little. It nuzzles back, mewling softly and closing its eyes. Before long, it falls asleep in her lap; as it does, Florence returns to Shawn. She keeps her voice low as she speaks. "How are you feeling? Are you going to be all right?"

---

Rosalyn & Theller

Rosalyn takes the lead, looking for something that meets Theller's earlier suggestion. It doesn't take long to find the local inn, as it's one of the largest buildings in town. The door opens easily, and inside is about what one would expect; a large common area with a fireplace and a few places to sit. No tables, however, so it must not have served as a tavern as well as some do. In back along the far wall is the innkeeper's desk, with a door behind it leading to a back room, and next to it on the left is a staircase heading up to the upper floor, with a door set into the staircase. There's still no sign of people here, and the fireplace is filled with nothing but ash; any fire that once burned there has long since expired.

[Spleen]

Theller looked disappointed. "I was hoping that there would be evidence that there was a large number of people here before they all disappeared, but evidently this was an inn but not a tavern. Where do you think people gathered here?"

[Seethe]

"I would say the town square, but we've already seen that," Rosalyn answered. "Maybe a town hall, or a church or shrine of some sort? A place like that might have some written record of what was going on here up until everyone left, anyway."

[Spleen]

Theller nodded in agreement. "A good thought. I want to see how a place that was full of people looks - we'll know if it was fled in panic or if they abandoned it in an ordered way."

[Idran1701]

Outlands - Empty Village
Rosalyn & Theller

Leaving the inn, Theller and Rosalyn seek out the town hall. Though forced to pass through the town square yet again, they soon find it, another of the larger buildings in the village. It's a single-story building, with most of the windows covered with curtains, but the two broad front panels shine into the building's foyer. From the small sign next to the double doors, it serves as both a meeting hall and a records office, suggesting it's the perfect spot to continue the search.

The foyer's empty, of course, with a clerk's desk across the thin entry hall. A few chairs are scattered about, and a pair of doors stand on either side of the desk, heavy oak with well-crafted bronze edging. Unfortunately, they both seem to be locked, but that should hardly pose a problem for them.

[Spleen]

Theller tried the left door. Finding it to be locked, he wordlessly withdrew his roll of lockpicks and set to work on the mechanism.

[Idran1701]

Outlands - Empty Village
Rosalyn & Theller

Theller gets to work, and hardly any time at all passes before a soft click comes from the lock as it falls open. Easing the door open, Theller and Rosalyn take a look inside, finding...nothing. Almost literally. The entire back of the building is one massive room, and the light filtering through the windows is enough for them to see there's nothing whatsoever in here. No furniture, no records, nothing. The other door looks to also open onto this space; for whatever reason, the only true room in the building is the entry hall.

[Seethe]

"Huh... well..." Rosalyn stammered a bit upon seeing the cleared out room. "That's not what I was expecting."

Staring at the empty room for a while, she tried to think of what possible explanation for that there could be.

"I... imagine this probably isn't normal for a town hall," she thought aloud. "I'll just... hazard a guess that whatever it was that we're dealing with here is what cleared this place out."

Not sure what else to make of all this, she turned back to the clerk's desk in the front room, deciding to search it in a last hope of finding something. Otherewise...

"Stores next?" she asked as she searched. "We can see if they're cleared out too, anyway."