"In that case, I guess I'll go and grab some climbing gear. After that, I guess it will be time to get some shut eye before the night arrives," Ven said with a trying smile on his face, a mixture of emotions running through him as he tried to prepare himself to do this job.
“Sounds good. I’ll foot the bill, call it an investment. If this plays out, we’ll have way more than twenty -something gold.” Stumbles fishes around in a purse, and draws out a handful of coins. “Nicked this off of some high-up slimming it last week. Glad to see that it he nobles are paying us to steal from ‘em.”
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"Ignorance is bliss, and you look absolutely miserable."
Ven laughed for a moment, giving a bit of a nod as he takes a few coins. "That should be plenty. Do you want me to just crash here for the night or should I go find a room close by?" He asked, slipping the coins into his leather armor and securing them into one of his hidden pockets.
Ven nodded, gathering what he had left here before heading out for the time being. He quickly worked his way through his normal trading spots, trying to grab supplies of climbing gear, extra rope, and a grappling hook or two. Overall, he was making sure he was ready to scale the side of the rock face he'd be hanging from, while also having a way to catch himself if he was to start falling.
(So sorry! I'm finally alive again, though, and can continue, if you'd like.)
Ven doesn't have to look hard to find a vendor around the low dock selling some cheap, used climbing equipment. Mining parties use it fairly often, and it even finds some use within the Ark itself, around the more treacherous areas near the bottom. Down there, the structure of the Ark has crumbled in many places, leaving dangerous gaps. The vendor is more or less legitimate, a general equipment store by the name of Nick's Nacks, run by the titular Nikolai Daghaur, a genial gold dragonborn. Stumbles' gold is more than enough to pay for it.
Is there anything else Ven is doing before he returns to Stumbles and sets off?
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"Ignorance is bliss, and you look absolutely miserable."
Ven gets the climbing gear and decides to try & treat himself just a little bit by finding a more magical cleaner, seeing if they could deal with his armor stench before he would return to Stumbles, more of a smile on his face as he now felt cleansed of the revolting odor.
Stumbles is right back where she was before, though slumped over, half-dozing over the various papers. She perks up when Ven arrives, holding out a hand for the remaining change. "You've got what you need? Good, good, we can get started real soon. Just gotta get the balloon inflated. You mind giving me and pinch a hand with that?"
She stands, and begins working with Pinch to get the balloon in position, moving the canvas out of the way so that the fire can be lit. She motions for Ven to light the flame once the envelope is in position.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"Ignorance is bliss, and you look absolutely miserable."
Ven drops the bag off in her hand, smirking slightly as it seemed like somethings never changed. As he watched the contraption slowly get prepared, he looked on with a little bit of bewilderment. This thing was going to fly? Well, like Stumbles said, Specs designed it so it should do something. At the signal from Pitch & Stumbles, Ven would grab his flint & steel from his pockets, lighting the flame.
The flame is lit, and the envelope is positioned above the flame. A few minutes later, it is filled up, and begins to float, the hot air within overpowering the bonds of gravity. A few ropes connected to the ground keep it down, and Pinch guides it out to the hole in the wall. He climbs in, and extends a hand out to Ven.
"Ready to ride?"
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"Ignorance is bliss, and you look absolutely miserable."
Ven nods somewhat hesitantly, reaching out to take Pinch’s hand. “As ready as I’ll ever be,” Ven replies, taking a momentary look out the hole down to the ground below.
Pinch hauls Ven over the gap, and pats him on the back. "Good man." He then moves around him and reaches out with a long arm. He shoves, and the balloon moves away from the ground. Stumbles unties the rope holding everyone in place, and Pinch hauls it over the edge. The balloon drifts out, away from the Ark. Stumbles leans back and waves, a grin across her face as the balloon rises up.
Ven has rarely been a balloon before, if ever, and certainly not at night. There is nothing to see before the balloon, just bright stars and dark clouds. A large portion of the stars are blocked out before them, that being the temple's location. On the other hand, Flint is beautiful to view from afar. Thousands upon thousands of lights dot its surface, illuminating it in its entirety. The bustling marketplaces of the low dock, where Ven was just a minute ago. The high dock above, far more distant, but the Ark's fleet of balloons still visible, their beautifully decorated envelopes shining in the torchlight. Above, spires and domes covered in gold leaf glitter, and within the noblest nobles in this city of the elite are surely having one of their endless balls or other social functions.
On board, Pinch grins. "Soon enough, that'll be us up there. But for now... get cranking." He gestures to a hand crank linked to the propellor used to propel the balloon. "I'll steer, Specs gave me a quick crash course on how this thing works. That means you've gotta provide the manpower."
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"Ignorance is bliss, and you look absolutely miserable."
Ven raised an eyebrow at Pinch’s instructions, but somewhat sighed, muttering, “Why couldn’t Specs have come as well then?” He then got to work, trying to keep a steady rhythm while not losing his breath. At least the view was getting better. He remembered hearing stories of the upper districts, seeing paintings of it. However, the thought of being up there one day never crossed his mind. He allowed himself a moment to daydream and hope that this all might come true, as he continued to work the hand crank.
"Specs' busy with their 'real job.' Anyways, don't think Specs' done a day of real work in their life. Certainly don't look like it." Pinch chuckles goodheartedly. "Besides, don't think the balloon could handle another person. Where do you want me to drop you off?"
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"Ignorance is bliss, and you look absolutely miserable."
“Somewhere near the top. There are a number of flat surfaces that we could be able to safely land, and we can extinguish the balloon to use it as cover,” I called out between breaths, my body not the best at this kind of labor.
Pinch nods, and begins steering. "Lay off the crank for now, the momentum we've got should enough. Instead, turn out the fire so I can take us down." As Ven does so, Pinch guides the balloon down, touching lightly down on the top of the temple. "Hurry, now. The balloon will deflate if I keep the flame off too long, and if we wanna have a quick escape I don't want to waste time reinflating it. Good luck." One last pat on the back, and Pinch gestures over the side of the basket. "Go ahead and make us rich, will ya?"
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"Ignorance is bliss, and you look absolutely miserable."
Ven gives a nod, grabbing out the climbing gear and making sure it was properly in place before leaping to the roof below. He grabbed a hook from the gear and tied some rope around it, getting himself set to quickly rappel into the closest opening he could find.
Landing on the temple roof, he finds that it is soft, and each of his steps leave noticeable footprints. It is as if a layer of the roof has been rendered into something along the lines of dust or loose earth after all this time. He manages to reach the side of the roof and secures a hook rather easily in the loose material, pressing down until the stone becomes solid enough to hold his weight. He tests it a few times, leaning back to make sure that the hook holds, then begins to lower himself down. Here he reaches his first problem. The opening in the wall is very clearly in front of him, but beyond it... there's just darkness. Ven's darkvision tells him that there is no solid land beyond the narrow edge of the 'window.' Swinging through would be no issue, but if he wanted to land solidly he'd have to be careful with his force. Too much, and he could end up tumbling beyond.
Roll athletics if you want to attempt entry via the opening.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"Ignorance is bliss, and you look absolutely miserable."
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
I take a deep breath for a moment as I look inside, recognizing a bit why Stumbles thought I might be good for this. “One point to you, I suppose,” I mutter. I hold for a moment on my descent before starting to swing a bit. I got my momentum slowly building up just before I aimed for the hole, then let my grip on the rope loosen for me to start being flung towards the hole. I then start to contort my body, trying to fit into the hole while also preparing for either a graceful landing or grabbing back onto the rope once inside.
"In that case, I guess I'll go and grab some climbing gear. After that, I guess it will be time to get some shut eye before the night arrives," Ven said with a trying smile on his face, a mixture of emotions running through him as he tried to prepare himself to do this job.
“Sounds good. I’ll foot the bill, call it an investment. If this plays out, we’ll have way more than twenty -something gold.” Stumbles fishes around in a purse, and draws out a handful of coins. “Nicked this off of some high-up slimming it last week. Glad to see that it he nobles are paying us to steal from ‘em.”
"Ignorance is bliss, and you look absolutely miserable."
Ven laughed for a moment, giving a bit of a nod as he takes a few coins. "That should be plenty. Do you want me to just crash here for the night or should I go find a room close by?" He asked, slipping the coins into his leather armor and securing them into one of his hidden pockets.
“Do what you want. Just be back by sundown.”
"Ignorance is bliss, and you look absolutely miserable."
Ven nodded, gathering what he had left here before heading out for the time being. He quickly worked his way through his normal trading spots, trying to grab supplies of climbing gear, extra rope, and a grappling hook or two. Overall, he was making sure he was ready to scale the side of the rock face he'd be hanging from, while also having a way to catch himself if he was to start falling.
(So sorry! I'm finally alive again, though, and can continue, if you'd like.)
Ven doesn't have to look hard to find a vendor around the low dock selling some cheap, used climbing equipment. Mining parties use it fairly often, and it even finds some use within the Ark itself, around the more treacherous areas near the bottom. Down there, the structure of the Ark has crumbled in many places, leaving dangerous gaps. The vendor is more or less legitimate, a general equipment store by the name of Nick's Nacks, run by the titular Nikolai Daghaur, a genial gold dragonborn. Stumbles' gold is more than enough to pay for it.
Is there anything else Ven is doing before he returns to Stumbles and sets off?
"Ignorance is bliss, and you look absolutely miserable."
Ven gets the climbing gear and decides to try & treat himself just a little bit by finding a more magical cleaner, seeing if they could deal with his armor stench before he would return to Stumbles, more of a smile on his face as he now felt cleansed of the revolting odor.
(blech. Stuff came up again.)
Stumbles is right back where she was before, though slumped over, half-dozing over the various papers. She perks up when Ven arrives, holding out a hand for the remaining change. "You've got what you need? Good, good, we can get started real soon. Just gotta get the balloon inflated. You mind giving me and pinch a hand with that?"
She stands, and begins working with Pinch to get the balloon in position, moving the canvas out of the way so that the fire can be lit. She motions for Ven to light the flame once the envelope is in position.
"Ignorance is bliss, and you look absolutely miserable."
Ven drops the bag off in her hand, smirking slightly as it seemed like somethings never changed. As he watched the contraption slowly get prepared, he looked on with a little bit of bewilderment. This thing was going to fly? Well, like Stumbles said, Specs designed it so it should do something. At the signal from Pitch & Stumbles, Ven would grab his flint & steel from his pockets, lighting the flame.
The flame is lit, and the envelope is positioned above the flame. A few minutes later, it is filled up, and begins to float, the hot air within overpowering the bonds of gravity. A few ropes connected to the ground keep it down, and Pinch guides it out to the hole in the wall. He climbs in, and extends a hand out to Ven.
"Ready to ride?"
"Ignorance is bliss, and you look absolutely miserable."
Ven nods somewhat hesitantly, reaching out to take Pinch’s hand. “As ready as I’ll ever be,” Ven replies, taking a momentary look out the hole down to the ground below.
Pinch hauls Ven over the gap, and pats him on the back. "Good man." He then moves around him and reaches out with a long arm. He shoves, and the balloon moves away from the ground. Stumbles unties the rope holding everyone in place, and Pinch hauls it over the edge. The balloon drifts out, away from the Ark. Stumbles leans back and waves, a grin across her face as the balloon rises up.
Ven has rarely been a balloon before, if ever, and certainly not at night. There is nothing to see before the balloon, just bright stars and dark clouds. A large portion of the stars are blocked out before them, that being the temple's location. On the other hand, Flint is beautiful to view from afar. Thousands upon thousands of lights dot its surface, illuminating it in its entirety. The bustling marketplaces of the low dock, where Ven was just a minute ago. The high dock above, far more distant, but the Ark's fleet of balloons still visible, their beautifully decorated envelopes shining in the torchlight. Above, spires and domes covered in gold leaf glitter, and within the noblest nobles in this city of the elite are surely having one of their endless balls or other social functions.
On board, Pinch grins. "Soon enough, that'll be us up there. But for now... get cranking." He gestures to a hand crank linked to the propellor used to propel the balloon. "I'll steer, Specs gave me a quick crash course on how this thing works. That means you've gotta provide the manpower."
"Ignorance is bliss, and you look absolutely miserable."
Ven raised an eyebrow at Pinch’s instructions, but somewhat sighed, muttering, “Why couldn’t Specs have come as well then?” He then got to work, trying to keep a steady rhythm while not losing his breath. At least the view was getting better. He remembered hearing stories of the upper districts, seeing paintings of it. However, the thought of being up there one day never crossed his mind. He allowed himself a moment to daydream and hope that this all might come true, as he continued to work the hand crank.
"Specs' busy with their 'real job.' Anyways, don't think Specs' done a day of real work in their life. Certainly don't look like it." Pinch chuckles goodheartedly. "Besides, don't think the balloon could handle another person. Where do you want me to drop you off?"
"Ignorance is bliss, and you look absolutely miserable."
“Somewhere near the top. There are a number of flat surfaces that we could be able to safely land, and we can extinguish the balloon to use it as cover,” I called out between breaths, my body not the best at this kind of labor.
Pinch nods, and begins steering. "Lay off the crank for now, the momentum we've got should enough. Instead, turn out the fire so I can take us down." As Ven does so, Pinch guides the balloon down, touching lightly down on the top of the temple. "Hurry, now. The balloon will deflate if I keep the flame off too long, and if we wanna have a quick escape I don't want to waste time reinflating it. Good luck." One last pat on the back, and Pinch gestures over the side of the basket. "Go ahead and make us rich, will ya?"
"Ignorance is bliss, and you look absolutely miserable."
Ven gives a nod, grabbing out the climbing gear and making sure it was properly in place before leaping to the roof below. He grabbed a hook from the gear and tied some rope around it, getting himself set to quickly rappel into the closest opening he could find.
Landing on the temple roof, he finds that it is soft, and each of his steps leave noticeable footprints. It is as if a layer of the roof has been rendered into something along the lines of dust or loose earth after all this time. He manages to reach the side of the roof and secures a hook rather easily in the loose material, pressing down until the stone becomes solid enough to hold his weight. He tests it a few times, leaning back to make sure that the hook holds, then begins to lower himself down. Here he reaches his first problem. The opening in the wall is very clearly in front of him, but beyond it... there's just darkness. Ven's darkvision tells him that there is no solid land beyond the narrow edge of the 'window.' Swinging through would be no issue, but if he wanted to land solidly he'd have to be careful with his force. Too much, and he could end up tumbling beyond.
Roll athletics if you want to attempt entry via the opening.
"Ignorance is bliss, and you look absolutely miserable."
I take a deep breath for a moment as I look inside, recognizing a bit why Stumbles thought I might be good for this. “One point to you, I suppose,” I mutter. I hold for a moment on my descent before starting to swing a bit. I got my momentum slowly building up just before I aimed for the hole, then let my grip on the rope loosen for me to start being flung towards the hole. I then start to contort my body, trying to fit into the hole while also preparing for either a graceful landing or grabbing back onto the rope once inside.
Acrobatics: 18
(Investigation check, please)
"Ignorance is bliss, and you look absolutely miserable."