Post by hubertbartels on Jul 11, 2020 15:06:06 GMT -5
Members of the party awoke from their sleep by a knock on the door. It was restful and peaceful in the Palace of Fallen Stars after the events of the proceeding day. True, the night was not uneventful – the sounds of fighting and explosions could be heard through the heavy curtains.
They answered the knock. At the door stood Ashmael, the hand maiden to the Consort. She asked the party to attend the meeting upstairs at their earliest convenience.
Upstairs, in the former fest hall of the Black Sovereign, the party found the debris, trestles and benches of the Sovereign’s feasting pushed aside to be replaced by a large table surrounded by chairs looted from the Palace. At the head of the table sat Kul-Inkit, the consort. She was surrounded by several dogs including a few fat corgis. With the consort was Zernebeth, the blue-skinned new leader of the Technic League, Ghartone, the lieutenant trying to turn over a new leaf, Drak-Mol (the Mockery) who represented the city of Starfall, Barnaby Cutler, Erasmus’ uncle and Baern Musdaerg, Obin’s uncle.
According to reports, members and lieutenants of the former leader of the Technic League were still fighting in the city. Zernebeth’s and the Mockery’s forces were trying to root them out and destroy them.
Kul-Inkit and Zernebeth’s data diving people had been able to find information on Obin’s parents – according to computer files, they were taken up to Silver Mount by Gearsmen several days ago. Zernebeth advised them that Captain Silas ran the local Technic League outpost in Silver Mount and might have more information as to where Obin’s parents had been taken. She then gave the party a box of Old Werner’s Hand-Rolled Own, a foul smelling cigar that was Silas’ favorite.
Zernebeth warned them that the inside of the ship that made up Silver Mount was itself an inter-dimensional space and things like Leomand’s Tiny Hut would not work there. Nor would teleporting out or Word of Recall or other things like that. Kul-Inkit invited them to use the opportunity of shopping for supplies and such before they left to go up to Silver Mount.
After buying spells, rings, and a new magical mandolin for Eramus, the party set out for Silver Mount. Climbing the steep path, they found themselves on a dusty clearing facing the wall of the ship. There was an enormous cargo hatch, now cracked and standing partially open – they entered the ship through that.
Inside, the party found themselves in a vast and empty hall, its floor covered with the small debris of hundreds of years of salvaging the ship. The doorways out of the hall opened to vast empty space, stripped of everything. Even in the hall, the walls showed signs of tubing, structural elements and piping ripped from the ship.
Dim light showed the party an alcove with markings on the floor and a broken console. Astrovel identified it as being a lift. Using his knowledge and his technological tools, he repaired the console. When he powered it up, two heavy repair drones appeared to break it again. They looked like levitating octopuses with tentacles tipped with tools before Obin smashed them to pieces.
Astrovel flipped a switch and the lift descended. Then suddenly, with a crash, a fully functional annihilator robot crashed into the middle of the lift and turned its chain gun onto Istovar. The party pounded away on the robot before Astrovel pulled out a wand and disintegrated it into dust.
At the bottom, the lift came to a stop in a long, poorly room. Three hallways ran off it at right angles and a monorail beam ran across the ceiling. Stairs rose to allow access to the monorail cars hanging from the beam.
Amelina and Eramus went to scout ahead. From the third hallway, they heard angry muttering and talking. Calling the others up, they turned into the hallway, passing a room that had been used as a makeshift camp. But the camp had been torn up with scattered bedrolls, smashed cases and the partially eaten bodies of Technic League members.
In the adjoining room, they found six ash giants, filthy and smeared with the remains of Goo-tubes, trying to rip apart two machines to get at something. The party ripped into them, finally killing them.
Going between the remains of the compressors or engines, they found themselves threatened by a woman with a laser gun. After assuring her that they weren’t from Oymzn, the former head of the Technic League and giving her the cigars, she relaxed.
She was Captain Silas and of 20, only 5 of her Technic League force had survived. She had been cut off from escaping by the annihilator robot and then her ash giants revolted. She had hoped to join forces with her former boss, a Colonel Kurtz, deeper in the ship but the ash giants trapped her.
After finding a new place to camp, the party took a short rest. Grigoro helped Istovar heal people up – including the Technic League people. Istovar called up Casandalee. The recording of an android’s memories, Casandalee was the only one that remembered things on the ship. She told how the ship’s computers and A.I. programming was Androffa’s top secret. To access the A.I., five prismatic cards had to be inserted into the security system at the same time.
The prismatic cards were kept in various parts of the ship – Engineering, Ship’s Security, Medical Bay, Astrogation Deck and Command Deck. At that point, Captain Silias claims that they recovered the Engineering prismatic card – but according to her records, Colonel Kurtz is supposed to have it.
Captain Silas points to the monorail. That was supposed to be their route to Colonel Kurtz. But now, her team just wants to leave Silver Mount.
Bidding the Technic League farewell, the party climbed the stairway to the monorail. Amelina fixed the broken console and they entered the car for the ride to ‘Habitat 1’, the last place that the Technic League heard from Kurtz.
Arriving at the ‘Habitat 1’ monorail station, the party found the station sadly fallen to decay and rot. The floor was covered with green slime and moss, the walls mildew stained and the exit doors sticking. Outside, they found themselves in an overgrown clearing that ended 50-60’ away in a river. There was a riverboat tied up at the pier.
There was a loud trampling sound and 3 lashunta riders charged at them, lances out. They shouted in elvan something about for the great glory of their god, Kurtz. Istovar cast slow on them, and suddenly they were forced to stop and poke at the party with their lances. Their mounts died first and then under the blows of Obin and Amelina, the three fanatics died.
Questioning one of the corpses, the party learned that Kurtz was holed up in a place called the Pumping Station at the end of the river defended by a few more lashunta fanatics.
Istovar claimed that he knew how to pilot a boat so everyone climbed on board for the trip downstream. The trip started out smoothly until the river narrowed. It was then that two froghemoths jumped onto the boat and attacked, engulfing Obin and Amelina. A mighty blow caused Amelina to be vomited forth but Obin had to cut his way free. The carcasses were pushed over the rail to float away.
A while later, the river widened. A clearing could be seen with a river pier and a village. About 50 villagers, young and old were gathered around the gates of the village while three lashunta were standing closer to the water. The three lashunta were attired in ritual gear and seemed to be acolytes of this supposed god, Kurtz.
Istovar cut the engines and let the river boat float quietly downstream while the party decided what to do.
They answered the knock. At the door stood Ashmael, the hand maiden to the Consort. She asked the party to attend the meeting upstairs at their earliest convenience.
Upstairs, in the former fest hall of the Black Sovereign, the party found the debris, trestles and benches of the Sovereign’s feasting pushed aside to be replaced by a large table surrounded by chairs looted from the Palace. At the head of the table sat Kul-Inkit, the consort. She was surrounded by several dogs including a few fat corgis. With the consort was Zernebeth, the blue-skinned new leader of the Technic League, Ghartone, the lieutenant trying to turn over a new leaf, Drak-Mol (the Mockery) who represented the city of Starfall, Barnaby Cutler, Erasmus’ uncle and Baern Musdaerg, Obin’s uncle.
According to reports, members and lieutenants of the former leader of the Technic League were still fighting in the city. Zernebeth’s and the Mockery’s forces were trying to root them out and destroy them.
Kul-Inkit and Zernebeth’s data diving people had been able to find information on Obin’s parents – according to computer files, they were taken up to Silver Mount by Gearsmen several days ago. Zernebeth advised them that Captain Silas ran the local Technic League outpost in Silver Mount and might have more information as to where Obin’s parents had been taken. She then gave the party a box of Old Werner’s Hand-Rolled Own, a foul smelling cigar that was Silas’ favorite.
Zernebeth warned them that the inside of the ship that made up Silver Mount was itself an inter-dimensional space and things like Leomand’s Tiny Hut would not work there. Nor would teleporting out or Word of Recall or other things like that. Kul-Inkit invited them to use the opportunity of shopping for supplies and such before they left to go up to Silver Mount.
After buying spells, rings, and a new magical mandolin for Eramus, the party set out for Silver Mount. Climbing the steep path, they found themselves on a dusty clearing facing the wall of the ship. There was an enormous cargo hatch, now cracked and standing partially open – they entered the ship through that.
Inside, the party found themselves in a vast and empty hall, its floor covered with the small debris of hundreds of years of salvaging the ship. The doorways out of the hall opened to vast empty space, stripped of everything. Even in the hall, the walls showed signs of tubing, structural elements and piping ripped from the ship.
Dim light showed the party an alcove with markings on the floor and a broken console. Astrovel identified it as being a lift. Using his knowledge and his technological tools, he repaired the console. When he powered it up, two heavy repair drones appeared to break it again. They looked like levitating octopuses with tentacles tipped with tools before Obin smashed them to pieces.
Astrovel flipped a switch and the lift descended. Then suddenly, with a crash, a fully functional annihilator robot crashed into the middle of the lift and turned its chain gun onto Istovar. The party pounded away on the robot before Astrovel pulled out a wand and disintegrated it into dust.
At the bottom, the lift came to a stop in a long, poorly room. Three hallways ran off it at right angles and a monorail beam ran across the ceiling. Stairs rose to allow access to the monorail cars hanging from the beam.
Amelina and Eramus went to scout ahead. From the third hallway, they heard angry muttering and talking. Calling the others up, they turned into the hallway, passing a room that had been used as a makeshift camp. But the camp had been torn up with scattered bedrolls, smashed cases and the partially eaten bodies of Technic League members.
In the adjoining room, they found six ash giants, filthy and smeared with the remains of Goo-tubes, trying to rip apart two machines to get at something. The party ripped into them, finally killing them.
Going between the remains of the compressors or engines, they found themselves threatened by a woman with a laser gun. After assuring her that they weren’t from Oymzn, the former head of the Technic League and giving her the cigars, she relaxed.
She was Captain Silas and of 20, only 5 of her Technic League force had survived. She had been cut off from escaping by the annihilator robot and then her ash giants revolted. She had hoped to join forces with her former boss, a Colonel Kurtz, deeper in the ship but the ash giants trapped her.
After finding a new place to camp, the party took a short rest. Grigoro helped Istovar heal people up – including the Technic League people. Istovar called up Casandalee. The recording of an android’s memories, Casandalee was the only one that remembered things on the ship. She told how the ship’s computers and A.I. programming was Androffa’s top secret. To access the A.I., five prismatic cards had to be inserted into the security system at the same time.
The prismatic cards were kept in various parts of the ship – Engineering, Ship’s Security, Medical Bay, Astrogation Deck and Command Deck. At that point, Captain Silias claims that they recovered the Engineering prismatic card – but according to her records, Colonel Kurtz is supposed to have it.
Captain Silas points to the monorail. That was supposed to be their route to Colonel Kurtz. But now, her team just wants to leave Silver Mount.
Bidding the Technic League farewell, the party climbed the stairway to the monorail. Amelina fixed the broken console and they entered the car for the ride to ‘Habitat 1’, the last place that the Technic League heard from Kurtz.
Arriving at the ‘Habitat 1’ monorail station, the party found the station sadly fallen to decay and rot. The floor was covered with green slime and moss, the walls mildew stained and the exit doors sticking. Outside, they found themselves in an overgrown clearing that ended 50-60’ away in a river. There was a riverboat tied up at the pier.
There was a loud trampling sound and 3 lashunta riders charged at them, lances out. They shouted in elvan something about for the great glory of their god, Kurtz. Istovar cast slow on them, and suddenly they were forced to stop and poke at the party with their lances. Their mounts died first and then under the blows of Obin and Amelina, the three fanatics died.
Questioning one of the corpses, the party learned that Kurtz was holed up in a place called the Pumping Station at the end of the river defended by a few more lashunta fanatics.
Istovar claimed that he knew how to pilot a boat so everyone climbed on board for the trip downstream. The trip started out smoothly until the river narrowed. It was then that two froghemoths jumped onto the boat and attacked, engulfing Obin and Amelina. A mighty blow caused Amelina to be vomited forth but Obin had to cut his way free. The carcasses were pushed over the rail to float away.
A while later, the river widened. A clearing could be seen with a river pier and a village. About 50 villagers, young and old were gathered around the gates of the village while three lashunta were standing closer to the water. The three lashunta were attired in ritual gear and seemed to be acolytes of this supposed god, Kurtz.
Istovar cut the engines and let the river boat float quietly downstream while the party decided what to do.