"I do, and I can give him an inspiring word or two. It's not like I can use it cross now anyways.. but this is the last time I can do something like it today." Her concentration on the spell on Shugo ends as she casts it again on Pixel, strumming her viol and humming, the magic settles on him. "Now, go be very strong."
Casting:Enhance Ability (Bull's Strength). Advantage on Strength checks.
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
When the villagers manage to overhear Alex's words about Cezars, which results in them further pummeling the man, Alexander turns to them and again says, "Now isn't the time for this. We need to focus on our survival. He'll get what he deserves, but he has to survive to see his punishment." He hopes that after everything these guards have seen, that they will be willing to side with them as witnesses.
Persuasion: (24)
He nods as Altairs talks, and also to Laine, "Yeah, I figured as much. I... was planning to speak to both Elmars and the Church... probably the latter first considering Elmars may or may not be present."
Then the bridge snaps, and he jolts around in surprise, only to bolt after the Laine to help catch the falling pieces. His wings sprout from his back, unfurling in a bright light that likely doesn't help the panicking spiders, but right now he doesn't have much of a choice but to roll with it. His ethereal wings make little to no noise as he darts towards bridge, not that it matters much anymore.
Gritting his teeth, he snatches up the falling bridge and strains against its weight. Worry about getting the others across later, for now, he just needs to save Maya.
Since there are four entities who are making a strength check and one-third of the rolls must pass the DC in order to succeed—three out of four entities must pass the DC, which is not in this case, since both Shugo and Alex fail the STR check. I'll allow Venet to refund her used spell slot and Bardic Inspiration.
By the way, since the party is split now. Maya and Alex (if he decides to fly down, along with anyone that might jump after Maya) should post in a spoiler, those who don't post normally.
The strength of four still isn't enough, and the bridge snaps into two pieces. Sending Maya falling into the depths below.
"NO!" The Owlin screeches, and she sits down on the ground, panting. After a moment to regain her bearings, she shakes her head and grabs Alex's hand. "Come on, you have wings, right? Let's go after her!" She looks to the boys who made it to the other side, "And you two, get your friends across the chasm to the other side first. I'll see you somewhere in the Underdark. Go!"
Before she can jump down, though, she looks at the party again. "I'm Jedwiga, by the way. You can call me Jed, or Hedwig, or whatever, introductions later, I'll see you on the other side." And with that, she jumps down the chasm and spreads her wings.
For Maya:
You fall and fall, and you just keep falling. The pressure and G-force built up so much from this sort of acceleration that your vision begins to go dark. And eventually, everything did go dark.
A while later, your eyes open, and you find yourself in the true Underdark.
Right now, you're in some sort of underground jungle or swamp. Trees here have leaves, but their colours are pale to the point of being close to white. Each tree bears glowing, yellow berries that provide a source of light too. There are giant glowing mushrooms here and there, and all of them come in a different shade of colour—some are blue, some are red, and there are even purple and magenta ones. The cave ceiling is so high up and no trees can even touch it.
There are all sorts of giant bugs living here, giant spiders, giant ants, giant bees, carrion crawlers, and cave fishers. There is one thing odd about all of these creatures compared to the actual Underdark in Sword Coast, though: they are very peaceful. These bugs can easily eat you, yet most of them just carry on with their day. In Torilian Underdark, you'd be shanked, stabbed, and grilled by its locals within a heartbeat, but Lancean Underdark is so... chill. Perhaps the sheer scale of the First and Second Planetary Wars changed the behaviours of these 'monsters' entirely, they no longer want to fight or kill the 'civilised,' even they have enough of war.
Eventually, you smell a spore, and in the corner of your eyes, you see a Myconid... person. They have the body of a humanoid, but the head of a mushroom, and their 'skin' is cyan and looks rubbery and fibre-y. Mushrooms technically don't have gender because they only use spores to reproduce.
The spore you smell reaches into your mind and activates, and for that moment, both you and the lone myconid can feel each other's thoughts. You can feel their confusion, fear, and amusement. "(You are... strange. What are you doing here so deep underground? Are you here to escape the bombs too?)" The voice says in your head, neither feminine nor masculine. They might be the first person you can actually communicate with without translation, after all, telepathy is beyond the mere concept of language... she might have to watch out, though, because they can hear everything she thinks.
A few seconds later, more myconids pop out from the bushes. Some of them are armed with a strange-looking spear: it's wooden and it has a metallic tube running on top of it, with a knife attached to its end. It has a trigger like crossbows do, but it doesn't have a string or an arrow attached to it. The wood on the 'spear' is engraved with a letter that says 'LR 6532-8'
They keep their strange weapons to themselves and don't point them at Maya.
The lone spider on the web jumps down with the rest of his friends, right after Jedwiga.
For Alex (and anyone else who jumps down with Jedwiga)
The Owlin spread her arms mid-air. "Alright, people. You should—ACK!" She's cut off when a lone giant spider who didn't jumped with the rest slams into everyone's body. It didn't hurt, but the momentum is enough to knock you off-balance into one of the many vents that leads to the ceiling of the Underdark.
It's a lot like riding a tubular slide at McDonald's, except this one goes forever and doesn't have chips and pieces of lettuce here and there. Jedwiga screams behind you, you aren't sure if she's terrified or having fun, because riding vents like this can be entertaining... under right circumstances, that is.
And eventually, you see a light at the end of the tunnel, and you pop out of a wall and slams face-first into a glowing red mushroom.
All of the tossing and turning makes you see stars, but you aren't hurt at all. As your vision returns to focus, that's when you see which part of the Underdark you end up at...
Here, gysers and hot springs dominate the landscape. Red and orange crystals grow from both the ground and the ceiling, glowing their respective colour. The ground has yellow stains of sulphur on it, as if someone just dropped a yellow candle wax on the ground, and waters here shine in all spectrums of colour as once—drinking it will be the fastest way to meet God for sure.
Firesnakes slithers on the ground, while smaller dinosaurs, giant striders, and fire elementals are relaxing near the hot springs, smaller phoenixes takes a bath in the spring the same way a regular bird would clean themselves in a puddle. None of the 'monsters' paid attention to the newcomers at all, they still roam around, and it's best for you to leave them alone too.
"Where the hell are we?" Jedwiga sits up, confused... She takes a while to process it all, then she sighs."Dang it... this... this wasn't supposed to happen. Who decides to use the only route where the bridge doesn't even work, anyway!? How are we supposed to go back now!"
She takes a deep breathe, trying to calm herself down. Then she turns to Alex, "Don't say anything, kid. I-It's my fault, if I'm stronger, that lady wouldn't plummet to who-knows-where right now... but there is one thing you should know, though."She stands up, "My nephew is an adventurer and a few days ago, he send me a letter saying he would be exploring the ruins in the Underdark. His friend wants to find the artefact and he wants to warm up first... he didn't tell me anything about where he'd be, but if we can find him, then maybe he can take us back to the villagers."
"By the way, in case we'll need to fight someone..." Jedwiga unlocks the shortsword on her belt, still in its sheath. "You can have my sword for now, young man, just remember to return it to me once we're done with this."She hands the sword to Alex.
"NO! NOOO!" Maigurs yells, reaching his hand to the chasm, "Come on, we have to do something, please!" He turns to the villagers (Who, at this point, just stares blankly in the distance after seeing one of the prisoners fell), pleading with them... but they can't do anything either. The chasm is too deep and the only Owlin in the entire village just swan-dives into the depths down below. They have planks and ropes, but they can't do much without proper support, it might fall down again
Kristiāns looks at the people who made it to the other side, "You... don't go anywhere yet, we need to find a proper way across. The spiders are gone now, so it should be much easier. Quick, think of something, anything."
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"The universe we observe has precisely the properties we should expect if there is, at bottom, no design, no purpose, no evil, no good, nothing but blind, pitiless indifference."
Pixel glances at Taliyah and nods, before zooming down after the fallen people, following them down the chute they fell into after the spider collided with them. Upon them landing Pixel will approach Alex and Jedwiga. "Is everything alright for you all? I can serve as a method communicating with those who didnt fall so long as nothing here disincorporates me, which would truly unfortunate."
Meanwhile Taliyah turns to the rest of the group after Pixel catches up with the group. "They appear to have landed in a part of the Underdark filled with various fire-based creatures such as phoenixes or fire elementals. So long as nothing happens to Pixel I should be able to pass messages to them."
"WE'RE NOT GONNA MAKE IT...!"No... please... please hang on... Okaa-san... *The combined strength wasn't enough and it was enough to make Renar fall back onto the cliffside as his mother plummets* "OKAA-SAN!" *He hangs near the edge as he screams for his mother whilst she plummets. This was also enough to send him in a state of shock as her remains rigid for 5 minutes*
"No... no... no..." *As Renar helplessly watches his mother plummet to her seeming death, he sinks to his knees with regret and stares as both Alex and the owlin dive to who knows where* What have I done... Why did I... was this why... you didn't want me to cross over? No... it's because you're so worried about me... that you can't even take care off... *He clenches his fists and buries his face in them for five seconds before rising up and wiping his face* Now what? What will the rest of the shifters say? How would they handle the news when they heard that Okaa-san died under my watch? What's gonna happen to her magical will? Will she pass it on to me? Or someone else? Will the Neverwinter Jungle remain vulnerable to the Cult of Dragons?! Can I even handle the responsibility of being the jungle's next ruler?! I just... *He continues holding in his anger as he chokes*
"F...Forget our weapons... they're not as important as... losing an... ancient companion... of ours. And remind me to slit his throat for this should the opportunity arise. But... for now, just..." *He does his best not to cry as he grits his teeth and looks away from Shugo, unable to contemplate on losing his mother so early* "...j-j-just... get everyone... to cross here f-f-first...find at least something that can help them... maybe ask... the... dragon for help... if... i-i-if we can..."
Aleksandteri lets out a horrified yell as the bridge slips from his grasp. Can he never do anything right? It feels like he's failing at everything he's supposed to be good at. Nevertheless, he doesn't even hesitate long enough for Jedwiga to finish her introduction, leaping down after Maya as fast as he can. He can't let anyone die on his watch. He can't. His etherial wings give him a good boost downwards, leaving behind a single glowing feather that dissipates as soon as it hits the rocks he'd been standing on.
Alex gasps as the wind is knocked out of him by the giant spider, leaving him with just enough air to wheeze, "No.... Maya..." His hand reaches downward, but his body is flung sideways, sending him reeling and into the strange tunnel along with Jedwiga. As they toss and twist around, all he can do is pray and hope that they survive--and if he doesn't, he hopes that the others at least do. Oh Lord how did this adventure go so wrong? All they'd come to do was investigate the ruins, and now look at them. Caught up in some mess with the law, an oathbreaker, a storm, and now separated in the under dark. Lord help them.
Then the breath is once more knocked out of him, and his wings puff out of existence on impact, shattering apart in an impressive shower of glowing white feathers. Then, he crumbles to the ground, wheezing. Once his vision clears and he staggers to his feet, he manages to take in the sight around him. This... this is not good. Not good at all. What is he supposed to do now? No, no time to panic. His parents warned him that becoming an adventurer would be no easy gig. He accepted that wholeheartedly. Now he just needs to figure out how to get himself and everyone, including Maya, out of this alive. Alive.
He jumps when Jedwiga starts talking, and opens his mouth to say something when she takes a breath, only for her to tell him not to say anything, so he shuts it again. He listens quietly to what she has to say, and nods slowly when she is done. He looks down at his hands, clenching them into fists and saying mostly to himself, "I should have been stronger too."
He blinks when she offers him her weapon, then nods grimly and accepts it. An arming sword is not his weapon of choice, but at least it is one he is familiar with. "Thank you."He buckles it onto his belt, all too aware of how much lighter it is than his former weapon. He doesn't doubt that he'll be missing both his longsword and his armor before this is all over, but no use in worrying about that now.
Then Pixel approaches them. Oh thank God, at least they won't be completely void of communication but... what about Maya? She's all by herself, unless someone else jumped down and managed to survive the fall... Shaking his head, he tells himself to focus before saying to Pixel, "I can't tell you how thankful I am that you are here. It will be a comfort to be able to communicate with Taliyah and the others. Is... everything okay up there? Did anyone else... jump?" Lord he hopes not. There's no way of knowing if they could survive the fall, but they would all be smart enough to realize that... wouldn't they? He swallows, then says, "I... I think the two of us are okay. But we are going to go find Jedwiga's nephew in hopes that he can help us find a way out of here."He want's to ask if the pixie happened to catch sight of Maya when he followed them, but can't bring himself to. After all, he pretty much already knows the answer. So, the only thing to do now is move forward. He just has to remember that no matter what happens, everything will work out in the end.
Suddenly, he realizes that he hasn't introduced himself, and he clears his throat awkwardly before saying, "I... My name is Aleksandteri. But, you can call me Alex." He places his fist over his heart, "I... wish we had met under better circumstances." He looks back up towards where they fell from, briefly wondering how difficult it would be to climb back up... or if it would be possible at all. Vaguely, he also hopes that this doesn't count as running away from the guards... he really doesn't want to have to deal with extra charges once they do manage to meet up with the rest of the company. But, seems how the guards seem like good folks, he hopes they'll understand completely his reasons for jumping after Maya.
"So... you wouldn't happen to have a general idea of where we are based on our previous location? ...I mean, how else will we find these ruins you mentioned?" He looks around, taking in the strange surroundings. His eyes come to rest on the 'natives' and, while his gut tells him that it is best to leave them alone, he can't help but ask, "You don't suppose there are any locals we could ask directions from... do you?" Then there is also the issue of water. How long will it take for them to find anyone or a way out? Considering the heat from the fire around them, running out of water could be a real danger really quickly. Fortunately, he had at least been left with his waterskin, "Uh... do you have any water for yourself?"He asks, intending to figure out rations if need be.
Shugo grits his teeth. He can feel his grip slipping. No no no! They can't let her fall, they have to hold on!
Then suddenly he's holding nothing.
Time seems to slow as he sees the bridge, and Maya, fall down into the dark abyss. Even Renar seems to move in slow motion as he falls to his knees. The elf is so shocked that he completely misses the shifter's murderous comment. He stares down into the cave. She just slipped through his fingers. He held that woman's life in his hands...and he just couldn't hold on. "I-I'm sure Alex and that Owl lady will catch her... Any moment they'll come carrying her back up. Eheheh." He laughs shakily, trying to deny the bitter truth. Who is he kidding. They'll never catch her. All things fall at equal speed after all. She'll hit the ground before they.... He grabs his head and shakes himself. She's gone, and that's that. She trusted them to protect her, to help her find her son, and they all failed. That's something they will just have to live with....not to mention they probably just witnessed the true end of an entire race. Ah great more guilt. He feels like the sky has fallen just to crush him under it's weight.
But he'll just have to live with it. He may have failed here, but he will not fail again. Today has truly been a tragedy, but he cannot let it get in the way of his ultimate goal. He will not forget it, but he will not let it block his path. Right now, the task at hand is to figure a way to get those villagers across this death trap. He barely hears Renar mention something about a dragon...oh right! The dragon! Lowering his hands, his head shoots up and he spins around.
And then he leaves to confront the dragon.
He quickly realizes that the bronze dragon has awoken. Well that's good. Now he doesn't have to awkwardly wake her up. Waltzing strait up to her, he clears his throat to try to get her attention. "Uh. Excuse me?"He starts trying to calm his shaky voice. "I hope I'm not intruding, but may I speak with you?"
As she feels the futile attempts of the three boys in helping her to hoist her to safety, Maya felt her grip on the rails run dry as she suddenly plummets to the depths of the endless abyss. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion, from her son screaming and trying to reach her to the bridge shattering against the cavern walls... the only thing she could do, other than to experience her life flashing before her eyes, is to cry, as she embraces the end of her meaningful journey throughout six centuries of both pain, turmoil, hope and happiness. She then closes her eyes again as she manages to flesh out one final thought before disappearing into the abyss...
When Maya wakes up though, she was half expecting to return to the realm where the other fox spirits awaited her untimely demise. But as her blindsight returns to her, she was surprised that... huh? What is this place? And... She's unnharmed? What? This isn't right... She gazes at her clawed hands before sitting upright to scan... this... odd-looking kind of a place. So she's not dead. Just... in pain... "Ow..." Her well endowed body felt bruised from the impact so she was unable to move for at least 10 minutes or so; She's just estimating. But... the thought of falling down and making everyone, especially her son worried... the reality dawned in on her. Now what's gonna happen? How is she going to meet up with the rest again? What's her next step? And... where is she?
She takes a moments to compose herself and sits upright, scanning the environment she somehow ended up in. This area seems like a jungle to her lone eyes. Wait... is this the Neverwinter Jungle? Did she fall through a portal and somehow ended up back where she started? "No!" She slaps herself as she removes her disguise for now. The Neverwinter Jungle she knows isn't located in a cave full of these... large creatures. Wait...
"Eh? Watashi wa... ima doko ni... iru no ka? (私は... 今どこに... いるのか, Where... am I?)" She stands up and whips around with her golden fox eyes open now that there's no one in her sight, especially her treasured son. Speaking of which, since this is a new area, would her son... no... She already found him, he already found her. It's no point asking a question that she had already answered herself... at least, until she hears something in her head and also a rustle behind her lithe figure and whips around. Dare ga iru ka?! (誰がいるか?, Who's there?!)She yelps in her head as she comes face to face with...
Eventually, you smell a spore, and in the corner of your eyes, you see a Myconid... person. They have the body of a humanoid, but the head of a mushroom, and their 'skin' is cyan and looks rubbery and fibre-y. Mushrooms technically don't have gender because they only use spores to reproduce.
The spore you smell reaches into your mind and activates, and for that moment, both you and the lone myconid can feel each other's thoughts. You can feel their confusion, fear, and amusement. "(You are... strange. What are you doing here so deep underground? Are you here to escape the bombs too?)" The voice says in your head, neither feminine nor masculine. They might be the first person you can actually communicate with without translation, after all, telepathy is beyond the mere concept of language... she might have to watch out, though, because they can hear everything she thinks.
A few seconds later, more myconids pop out from the bushes. Some of them are armed with a strange-looking spear: it's wooden and it has a metallic tube running on top of it, with a knife attached to its end. It has a trigger like crossbows do, but it doesn't have a string or an arrow attached to it. The wood on the 'spear' is engraved with a letter that says 'LR 6532-8'
They keep their strange weapons to themselves and don't point them at Maya.
"EYAHHH!"Maya instantly panics as she splits her tail into nine and wraps them all around her body in self defence upon noticing the army of... um... Myconid... people... coming out to meet her. She had never seen these live, faceless fungi before so her first instinct as a passive kitsune is to defend herself from danger, ironically enough. "Watashi o... kizutsukenaide kudasai! Gomen nasai! (私を傷つけないでください！ごめんなさい, Please... don't hurt me! I'm sorry!)" But then she hears them talking about bombs, something that immediatley sends her from a state of panic into one of confusion. What bombs are they talking about? She hasn't seen a single bomb dropped on her or any of her companions to this date. Although they don't seem hostile to her yet, she isn't one to drop her guard down just yet as she remains wrapped by her massive tails. "Etto... Nani? Bakudan? Anata wa nani ni tsuite... hanashite iru nodesu ka? (えっと…何？爆弾？あなたは何について... 話しているのですか?, Uh... what? Bombs? What are you... talking about?)"She's curious as to what they were referring to, but seeing that they were able to communicate with her via their heads... wait... she can understand them? Does that mean...? "Eh?! Omae... Watashi no itte iru koto ga wakarimasu ka?! (お前... 私の言っていることが分かりますか, You... do you understand what I'm saying?!)"
She points up above to the cavern ceiling, from where she fell. "Watashi wa ochita... ue kara... Watashi wa... Modoranakereba narimasen... (私は落ちた... 上から... 私は...戻らなければなりません... , I fell... from above... I need... to go back...)"
And then she notices the spear that one of them is holding. "Etto... LR... Roku, Go, San, Ni, Hachi... (えっと... LR... 六, 五, 三, 二, 八, It's the same thing except in Japanese)" She's left in a state of confusion after this. So there was a horde of creatures living in the depths of this underdark world, yet, they're not... aggressive? They want to nivnestigate who she is rather than attack her on sight? And they can speak? This is odd... Not that Maya has any secrets to hide underneath her thoughts except one thing. "Muimina shitsumon, shikashi... (意味のない質問しかし... , pointless question but...)"She stops mid-sentence as she figures out what to say next... Kono bansho wa... no... musuko yo... no... sumi masen... (この場所は... no... 息子... no... ごめんなさい, This place... my son... sorry...) She thinks in her thoughts as she experiences a temporary mindblock over this unusual place and the creatures surrounding her.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Wildland Shifters Pt 2 (Pt 1 with PyromaniIsDeadThankGod) Celci (The Lamb) - Non-Binary Changeling Sorcerer (Shadow Magic) Maya Kurosaki- Female Kitsune Cleric (Twilight Domain); Currently in Lancea Randy Wolftree - Male Human Artificer (Armourer); Currently in Crimson Sands of Time Shijiro Otsune- Male Kitsune Blood Hunter (Order Of The Lycan) Trojan Dseyller - Male Tortle Barbarian (Path of the Ancestral Guardian) Xenia Ironhide - Female Kobold Rogue (Soulknife)
The mushroom people release their spores again, and you feel more relaxed and at ease. It's their way of petting you on the back and assuring you.
"(Don't worry, you're safe with us now, my friend. You shouldn't go back, the surface world is dangerous, and the waters are poisoned by the ashes and dust the bombs left behind. Even the air itself is poisonous, we're sorry about your son, but if he is out there, he will not survive.)" Even though multiple myconids are releasing spores at once, you still hear a single but echo-ey androgynous voice in your head.
One of the myconids shares their memory with you, instead of speech, they project a picture to you through the power of psychic.
You see a lush forest with a small stream, birds are chirping in the sky, and deer are grazing in the meadow. Muphrid shines bright in the sky, its red companion, Saak, is just beside it to the right.
Then, the third sun shines on the horizon, a thousand times bigger and brighter than Muphrid and Saak. It is so bright that you're blinded by it, even though all of this isn't actually happening in reality.
When you regain your vision, that's when it dawns upon you.
The third sun died, leaving behind a fireball the size of a small city. The sheer heat it generates leaves behind a mushroom cloud and pushes regular clouds above it into a perfect circle. Soon later, the tree line in front of you shakes from the shockwave of the blast.
The vision ends, and you're back in the cave with the rest of the myconids.
"(That is what a single bomb does, and clearly, the government have more than one of them. They bombed every major city out there, and from it came ash and soot that blocked sunlight and created a winter where a drop of snow was so poisonous, that it killed anything it touched.)" You can feel fear in some of the myconids who receive the vision. Myconids can transfer memory through spores, and most mushroom-based species release their spore once they die. They might not be biologically immortal, but they can remember every single thing since the day they evolved to walk on two legs and use tools.
"(Today is 5th April -1C 4983 CY, almost seven thousand years ever since the bomb dropped. We lost our hope of finding a survivor after this long, yet you came... it is a miracle that you're still alive.)" The myconids move closer to 'stare' at the Kitsune's face.
Maybe somewhere in Perkwunos, hidden in a secret lab, there might still be some leftover bombs that the United States of Lancea government didn't use. If that doesn't delete the Cult of Dragons back in Toril from existence, then nothing else will.
Seeing that the kitsune seems to be curious about their weapon, the voice in your head explains. "(This is called a 'gun.' It needs bullets in order to function, something which we cannot find in the Underdark. We use it as an improvised spear instead of its intended function, which is a powerful, ranged weapon capable of penetrating any armour, scale, or flesh out there.)"
"So... you wouldn't happen to have a general idea of where we are based on our previous location? ...I mean, how else will we find these ruins you mentioned?" He looks around, taking in the strange surroundings. His eyes come to rest on the 'natives' and, while his gut tells him that it is best to leave them alone, he can't help but ask, "You don't suppose there are any locals we could ask directions from... do you?" Then there is also the issue of water. How long will it take for them to find anyone or a way out? Considering the heat from the fire around them, running out of water could be a real danger really quickly. Fortunately, he had at least been left with his waterskin, "Uh... do you have any water for yourself?"He asks, intending to figure out rations if need be.
"To be honest, I have no clue either. I'm just a hunter, hunting for animals to feed the village. I'm not an expert adventurer or anything like that." Jedwiga scratches her head, "But there is one thing I know about the Underdark, though—everything is much more linear than the surface. Everything is shaped like one giant room, with each room having a different biome than the other. Some of them can stretch for kilometres upon kilometres, some are tiny. Right now, we shouldn't wander too far from where we start, that way, our rescuers won't have to chase us everywhere."
On a mention of water, the Owlin pulls out a waterskin from her satchel. "As long as we find a fresh spring that isn't contaminated by sulphur, we should be alright." She digs through her satchel once again and pulls out a rye bread. "I have this too—"
Out of nowhere, a phoenix flies down and snatches Jedwiga's bread with her beak. The phoenix lands in front of you and swallows the bread right in front of you.
"NOOO!"Jedwiga screeches, punching the air."Give it back, now!"As if on command, the phoenix regurgitates her eaten bread right into the Owlin's face, just like how her parents used to do it when she was a hatchling.
"Bleugh! Not like this, you overgrown chicken!"Jedwiga shakes the residue off and sighs... "Great... our only source of food is now in that stupid bird's stomach. It isn't like we can eat her either since phoenixes can't die, you know?" The phoenix starts preening Jedwiga's feathers, which the owl ignores. Fire elements can control their temperature, which is why you can be close to her without burning to a crisp.
Of course, Pixel and Taliyah can hear and see all of this, it might be a good thing that Taliyah and Venet didn't end up in this kind of situation, though. Fire elementals are mortal enemies to water and ice elementals, if two of them even show their face here, the entire cave will turn against them.
Speaking of people, in the distance, you can see three firenewts approaching your direction, they're equipped with slings and obsidian spears. They don't seem to notice you're here... for now, at least.
OOC Note:
I'll post the part with dragons tomorrow, I'll go to sleep right now. You can respond to this post now, Maya and Alex.
"The universe we observe has precisely the properties we should expect if there is, at bottom, no design, no purpose, no evil, no good, nothing but blind, pitiless indifference."
The mushroom people release their spores again, and you feel more relaxed and at ease. It's their way of petting you on the back and assuring you.
"(Don't worry, you're safe with us now, my friend. You shouldn't go back, the surface world is dangerous, and the waters are poisoned by the ashes and dust the bombs left behind. Even the air itself is poisonous, we're sorry about your son, but if he is out there, he will not survive.)" Even though multiple myconids are releasing spores at once, you still hear a single but echo-ey androgynous voice in your head.
One of the myconids shares their memory with you, instead of speech, they project a picture to you through the power of psychic.
You see a lush forest with a small stream, birds are chirping in the sky, and deer are grazing in the meadow. Muphrid shines bright in the sky, its red companion, Saak, is just beside it to the right.
Then, the third sun shines on the horizon, a thousand times bigger and brighter than Muphrid and Saak. It is so bright that you're blinded by it, even though all of this isn't actually happening in reality.
When you regain your vision, that's when it dawns upon you.
The third sun died, leaving behind a fireball the size of a small city. The sheer heat it generates leaves behind a mushroom cloud and pushes regular clouds above it into a perfect circle. Soon later, the tree line in front of you shakes from the shockwave of the blast.
The vision ends, and you're back in the cave with the rest of the myconids.
"(That is what a single bomb does, and clearly, the government have more than one of them. They bombed every major city out there, and from it came ash and soot that blocked sunlight and created a winter where a drop of snow was so poisonous, that it killed anything it touched.)" You can feel fear in some of the myconids who receive the vision. Myconids can transfer memory through spores, and most mushroom-based species release their spore once they die. They might not be biologically immortal, but they can remember every single thing since the day they evolved to walk on two legs and use tools.
"(Today is 5th April -1C 4983 CY, almost seven thousand years ever since the bomb dropped. We lost our hope of finding a survivor after this long, yet you came... it is a miracle that you're still alive.)" The myconids move closer to 'stare' at the Kitsune's face.
Maybe somewhere in Perkwunos, hidden in a secret lab, there might still be some leftover bombs that the United States of Lancea government didn't use. If that doesn't delete the Cult of Dragons back in Toril from existence, then nothing else will.
Seeing that the kitsune seems to be curious about their weapon, the voice in your head explains. "(This is called a 'gun.' It needs bullets in order to function, something which we cannot find in the Underdark. We use it as an improvised spear instead of its intended function, which is a powerful, ranged weapon capable of penetrating any armour, scale, or flesh out there.)"
Maya receives the nasty vision inside her head. The Sword Coast and Japan have never experienced something like this before, so to receive something like is both scary and confusing... to the eyes of someone who's not even from Lancea herself. Eh?! Nante kotoda... Naze sore o miseta no desu ka? Rikai dekimasen... (なんてことだ... なぜそれを見せたのですか?! 理解できません, What the... Why did you show me that?! I don't get it...) She is utterly confused as to why she was shown this; There hasn't been a single sun out in the distance that has been boiling bright to decimate every single living being, let alone her son, now that she knows. In fact if it did, she wouldn't have been taking charge of everything in the Sword Coast, specifically, the formation of the platoons that could tear down the cult of dragon armies attacking various villages plus the Neverwinter Jungle itself.
"Shikashi... Modoranakereba! Soko ni wa hitobito ga imasu... Kōzui kara nigeyou to shite imasu! (しかし... 戻らなければ! そこには人々がいます... 洪水から逃げようとしています!, But... I have to go back! There are people up there... trying to escape from a flood!)" Her tails still remain wrapped around her lithe body as the Myocnid folk come even closer to stare. "Karera wa mina ikite ite, hinansho o mitsukeru no ni hisshidesu! Soshite watashi wa karera o tasukeru koto ni natte ita nodesu! Taifū ga karera no inochi o ubau osoregāru! (彼らは皆生きていて, 避難所を見つけるのに必死です! そして私は彼らを助けることになっていたのです! 台風が彼らの命を奪う恐れがある!, They're all alive and are struggling to find shelter! And I was in charge of leading them to safety! The typhoon outside would have taken their lives!)" But then her fox ears twitch as one of them points out the date as '5th April.' Uh... are they behind scehdule or something? If she recalls correctly this world is currently five or six days ahead... "Etto... Kyō wa yon tsuki Ju-nichi ka Juni-nichida to omotte imashita ka? Sukunakutomo…-jō no hito-tachi wa sō ittemashita… (えっと…今日は4月10日か12日だと思っていますか? Uh... I thought today was April 10th or 12th? At least...that's what the people above said...)"Also, after clarifying that they were actually carrying guns, it was something that the kitsune herself understood, since she did live in an age where guns were common, but also, it made her panic even more, seeing that she had been hunted by something like this when she was a true fox. "Īe! Watashi o utanaide kudasai! Ano hito-tachi ga shinanai yō ni, watashi wa koko kara denakereba narimasen! いいえ！私を撃たないでください！あの人たちが死なないように、私はここから出なければなりません!, No! Please don't shoot me! I have to get out of here so those people won't die!)"
Wildland Shifters Pt 2 (Pt 1 with PyromaniIsDeadThankGod) Celci (The Lamb) - Non-Binary Changeling Sorcerer (Shadow Magic) Maya Kurosaki- Female Kitsune Cleric (Twilight Domain); Currently in Lancea Randy Wolftree - Male Human Artificer (Armourer); Currently in Crimson Sands of Time Shijiro Otsune- Male Kitsune Blood Hunter (Order Of The Lycan) Trojan Dseyller - Male Tortle Barbarian (Path of the Ancestral Guardian) Xenia Ironhide - Female Kobold Rogue (Soulknife)
"I see..." Alex says. So they really were quite lost. Wait... rescuers? Does she think someone from up above is going to come find them? Is there even a safe way back down? "What if..."His thought is interrupted when the phoenix swipes Jedwiga's bread. In any other situation, he probably would have laughed it off, even now the situation is slightly funny. Still, that doesn't change the fact that there is now that much less food for the two of them then they had before. At least the Phoenix doesn't seem aggressive.
"I have some rations, but only a day's worth. Still, it's better than nothing," he pointedly doesn't pull it out for fear of the phoenix taking that too.
"Uh... that bird seems to like you. Maybe it would be willing to help us?" It was a real shame that he doesn't have the ability to speak to animals.
"If not, well..."he turns to Pixel. "Do you think you could lead us back through the hole we fell through? If we could get back up the way we came down, we might not even have to worry about wandering aimlessly and getting further separated. ...personally I couldn't see anything on the way down."
The bronze dragon in the cave stirs awake. She lets out a big, fat yawn and looks at Shugo. "What do you need?" She peers out of the window and gasps, she grabs her medals and quickly rushes to the entrance, and the cave rumbles with each step she takes.
At this point, the villagers and anyone on the other side would see a Bronze dragon stepping into view. Adult bronze dragon, to be specific, about as large as a house, not counting her wings.
Seeing the two veteran badges on her chest, the guards stand up and salute, along with the villagers. It's a custom to salute any veterans out there, no matter which side of the war they're on.
She points her talon at Cezars, "It's been exactly 4,993 years, 11 months, and 38 days, but you're still here... I thought the Pavlovskis family were all but gone to the passage of time."
Maigurs shakily answers, "Ma'am... uh... he tried to kick my friend into the chasm—"
"Silence!" The dragon gestures toward her mouth, "Ever since the war ended... the Second Planetary War, I met your great-grandfather from 62 generations ago. He saved me and my crew's life. I know he isn't here anymore and you probably can't remember him, but I just want to do something to repay my debts—I want to save your life again, that will make him proud."
Cezars doesn't respond, because he is unconscious.
Maigurs tilts his head, "Context?"
"That day, I was on a siege mission, dropping stones on a castle and enemy facilities. Then... I was ambushed by Republican wyvern riders. Arrows and spells rain down on me and my crew, and they got my tail archer. A ballista crew from the ground shot a bolt which grazed my left wing, that was when we knew we weren't going to make it." She raises her wing, showing a large scar that runs from the tip to the base of the wing. Both Planetary Wars were a conflict between two sides: the Republicans (A name which refers to the United States of Lancea's 'democratic' government) and the Coalition (Which is anyone else that opposed the United States of Lancea's government)—the Republicans were the 'bad' guys and the Coalition were the 'good' guys.
"Then, I saw him, Aleksis Pavlovskis, an ace, riding a black gryphon flying towards me. He could easily finish the job, I'm on the Coalition side and he's supposed to eliminate me... yet, he didn't. He flew side-by-side with me, blocking me from being targeted by ballista and arcane towers. At that time, I didn't know what he wanted to do with me, so I turned my head towards him, readying my electric breath. He looked at me and departed with a salute." The villagers listen keenly to the story, some are even taking notes.
"We arrived back to our base, safe and sound, and I couldn't be more thankful to him for that. After the war ended, I searched everywhere for him, and eventually, I met a Tortle named Paulis who helped me find Aleksis once again. By the time we found him, though, he was very old, I became friends with him and stayed by his side until he died two years later." The dragon looks down, most of you have no idea how to read her expression, except for Taliyah—the bronze dragon is both sad and nostalgic at the same time, judging from the shift in her scales and the movement of her eyes.
"I felt like I didn't do enough to thank him, if he saved my life, I should do the same for him too." She swishes her tail, "I know what you want—you want to cross the chasm. I'm powerful enough to knock a large stone which should be stable enough for all of you to cross... but if you want me to do that, you'll have to give me Aleksis' grandson first." She points at Cezars again.
(Note: Any social checks Taliyah make against the dragon (Such as Performance, Persuasion, Deception) have an advantage, because dragons in Lancea see draconic races as cute and harmless, the same way humans do with babies or small animals.)
For Maya:
It is still the 5th of April in the above world, you all arrived in Perkwunos on 2nd April and it's been three days since. A lot happened in such a short span of time, and it does really feel like an entire week has passed (Even though it actually isn't).
The myconids answer her first question, ("Some of you haven't seen the initial explosion yet, it was so powerful that those who were far away from the blast got poisoned by whatever was inside. Rumour said that the government used uranium and plutonium to make these bombs instead of black powder or TNT, we aren't entirely sure how bombs like this got so powerful. But we don't need an answer for that, it is a weapon of mass destruction, capable of bringing the end of the world as we know it.")
When Maya mentions typhoons and survivors, you can sense the confusion among the myconids. The spore in the air is thick in both anticipation and confusion.
"(What do you mean 'typhoon?' Has the world outside returned back to normal? Is the Great Planetary War over?)" They question, they said Great Planetary War, not First Planetary War—maybe these mushroom people escaped from the bombs you saw earlier during the First Planetary War and lost their track of time. Without knowledge from the surface, it's obvious that they will think the war never end.
Though... how will they react once they realise the war they think will end all wars has a sequel?
For Alex:
The hole you fell to looks too steep and too narrow for anything larger than Pixel to fly through. Climbing through it might take ages, it simply isn't worth the time.
"No, screw this bird, she thinks I'm her hatchling. For Shepherd's sake, I have family and kids! I'm not a hatchling anymore!"She pushes the phoenix's beak away.
The phoenix gets startled as you hear footsteps coming closer to you, she hides behind you two as three firenewts approach your location, they walk towards you, pointing spears at their target. These firenewt look like smaller lizardfolk, except their skin is bright orange and see-through. You can see their 'blood' vessels within their bodies.
“ᐊᓇᑲ, ᐸᑲᓭ, ᓚᐃ, ᐃᒪ ᑕ!”(Anaka, bakase, la’i, ima ta) (You there, birdie, come with us, now!) The firenewts in the centre says in Charan, you have no idea what they're talking about, but it sounds exactly like the language Kristians used earlier back in the tavern. Judging by his tone, though, he seems... angry about something.
"Uhh... hello?" Jedwiga awkwardly waves, the centre firenewt isn't having any of it and grabs her by her wrist. The left Firenewt also grabs Alex's hand too.
“ᑯᔔ?" (Koshu?) (What about that bug?) The right firenewt points at Pixel.
“ᐊᓭ ᑲᐅ ᑕᓐᑌ, ᔑᐴ ᒪᐃ ᐳᑯ.” (Ase ka’o tante, shipu ma’i poko) (Leave him alone, Chief didn’t say anything that there will be bugs on this mission) And with that, they lead the two to where the came from earlier. Alex can try to break their grip, though, it's not like they squeeze you that hard or anything. But again, they don't seem to be hostile either, they didn't try to stab you immediately, so that's a 'good' sign.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"The universe we observe has precisely the properties we should expect if there is, at bottom, no design, no purpose, no evil, no good, nothing but blind, pitiless indifference."
Pixel, having been distracted momentarily by the phoenix landing so closely, quickly follows after Jedwiga and Alex. "My apologies. So far, no one's jumped down after you three, besides myself, however, the dragon across the gorge is offering to make a way across for the rest of the group, IF we hand over that fiery fiend Cezar, for his ancestor saved her during the Second Planetary War. Taliyah is currently internally panicking and trying to figure out a diplomatic solution to this mess."
Meanwhile, Taliyah walks closer to the edge of the gorge and bows. "Hello Great One. It is an honor to meet such an experienced and accomplished individual as yourself." Taliyah turns towards Cezar and the rest of the group. "We travel with your friend's descendant because his valor and chivalry unfortunately did not seem to be passed far enough down the family tree to reach Cezar, for he has committed a variety of harsh crimes on the surface, including acts such as robbing the innocent, breaking his paladin's oath, and plotting to throw away his own griffon partner for a creature like a nightmare or crime against our kind, a dracolich. From what I've heard, he's done even more acts of a similar nature, but that is only what I've personally witnessed." Taliyah takes a deep breath, and turns to face her remaining party members. "What do you all think. Should we hand Cezar over to someone who will most certainly be able to set him on the right track and help him start acting like a paladin should, in exchange for her help in crossing this gap?"
*Renar lets out a fox-like yelp as the dragon suddenly rushes out of the cave to meet him and the rest of the people who have yet to cross as he scampers to the left side of the other end of the cave* Holy hell... an actual bronze dragon?! Everyone in the Sword Coast would love to meet her if they could. I mean... except for Xenia and Tenebris maybe. I've sen them react negatively even to the good dragons before, so I'm not sure how well they would take when they see this... war veteran? Is that what I think she is? If so then she must be a legendary fighter of some sort. Woah!
She points her talon at Cezars, "It's been exactly 4,993 years, 11 months, and 38 days, but you're still here... I thought the Pavlovskis family were all but gone to the passage of time."
Maigurs shakily answers, "Ma'am... uh... he tried to kick my friend into the chasm—"
"Silence!" The dragon gestures toward her mouth, "Ever since the war ended... the Second Planetary War, I met your great-grandfather from 62 generations ago. He saved me and my crew's life. I know he isn't here anymore and you probably can't remember him, but I just want to do something to repay my debts—I want to save your life again, that will make him proud."
"That day, I was on a siege mission, dropping stones on a castle and enemy facilities. Then... I was ambushed by Republican wyvern riders. Arrows and spells rain down on me and my crew, and they got my tail archer. A ballista crew from the ground shot a bolt which grazed my left wing, that was when we knew we weren't going to make it." She raises her wing, showing a large scar that runs from the tip to the base of the wing. Both Planetary Wars were a conflict between two sides: the Republicans (A name which refers to the United States of Lancea's 'democratic' government) and the Coalition (Which is anyone else that opposed the United States of Lancea's government)—the Republicans were the 'bad' guys and the Coalition were the 'good' guys.
"Then, I saw him, Aleksis Pavlovskis, an ace, riding a black gryphon flying towards me. He could easily finish the job, I'm on the Coalition side and he's supposed to eliminate me... yet, he didn't. He flew side-by-side with me, blocking me from being targeted by ballista and arcane towers. At that time, I didn't know what he wanted to do with me, so I turned my head towards him, readying my electric breath. He looked at me and departed with a salute." The villagers listen keenly to the story, some are even taking notes.
"We arrived back to our base, safe and sound, and I couldn't be more thankful to him for that. After the war ended, I searched everywhere for him, and eventually, I met a Tortle named Paulis who helped me find Aleksis once again. By the time we found him, though, he was very old, I became friends with him and stayed by his side until he died two years later." The dragon looks down, most of you have no idea how to read her expression, except for Taliyah—the bronze dragon is both sad and nostalgic at the same time, judging from the shift in her scales and the movement of her eyes.
"I felt like I didn't do enough to thank him, if he saved my life, I should do the same for him too." She swishes her tail, "I know what you want—you want to cross the chasm. I'm powerful enough to knock a large stone which should be stable enough for all of you to cross... but if you want me to do that, you'll have to give me Aleksis' grandson first." She points at Cezars again.
Huh? She got saved... *He whips his head to Cezars* By Stupid Rixi's grandfather?! In the midst of a war that has long ended?! What?! I don't get it... if his ancestors were so kind despite being on the opposite side of the dragon, why the hell is this baka being the complete opposite of what she's saying?! *He suddenly stops shedding tears as he whips out his notebook to jot down some notes* Four thousand years since the last war eh? And his last name is uh... Pav... Pavolo... I don't know how to spell it but it definitely doesn't sound native for my taste.*He scribbles more notes* So in the war... there was the 'Republics' and the 'Coalitions'. Both fought for each other in both wars... at least... that's what I saw based on the medals the dragon has. But why is she taking his side?! Right now the Stupid Rixi I know is nothing but a person full of rats, and schemers and snakes, slithering in the dark! Gah! *He goes back to cribbling more notes* Speaking of which, she knows Paulis too huh? I guess we could come back and talk to her once we all get to safety... But there were Two Planetary wars within this world... hmm... Is there going to be a third at the rate things are going? Or should I count the war against the Cult of Dragons the third one? I honestly don't know and I right now I don't want to elaborate...
Wait... *His fox ears twitch* Wolfy's great grandfather... saved her?! Watashi wa nani o kiite iru nodesu ka?! (私は何を聞いているのですか?! , What am I even hearing?!) I need to ask him some stuff later... And yikes, that's a nasty scar for someone huge.
Taliyah takes a deep breath, and turns to face her remaining party members. "What do you all think. Should we hand Cezar over to someone who will most certainly be able to set him on the right track and help him start acting like a paladin should, in exchange for her help in crossing this gap?"
Why are you asking me?! I've got nothing to do with this idiot. If this was the actual Rixi I would have taken full responsibility for this alongside Okaa-san... should she still be alive... *Renar gives off a scowl at Taliyah after hearing that* "I suggest you ask Alex through your tiny guy before you make you final decision; I'm not like him who knows all of this religious stuff. and to be honest, after hearing that he tried to mow down several citizens in the past alongside us instead of helping them, I don't care what fate he suffers for the atrocities, as long as he doesn't cause any more trouble for us six should he cross our path ever again. That's all I'll say."
Maya is left in disbelief. So the country she teleported to is still recovering or in the midst of a war that started in the past?! Was that why they've sought refuge down in these mysterious chasms?! Musuko (息子)... No! She gasps in her head. If a war is actually still going on then he might be lead into serious trouble... alongside the others... oh yeah. She's uh... having some serious translation issues too when they start explaining the bombs. What's Plutonium? Uranium? She has definitely heard of TNT before but those... thingies? Dang it... she had been separated from her only translator and now she's been given facts and details that she can't even comprehend as an ancient fox spirit. But... to actually hear bring the world to an end... wait... Tiamato?! Sore ga karera no koto o sashite iru nodeshou ka?! Subete no sekainoowari?! (ティアマト?! それが彼らのことを指しているのでしょうか?! Is that what they're referring to?! As in the end of all worlds?!) She gasps in her head, unaware that she's misinterpreting what they're saying; She thinks the bombs are related to Tiamat of some sort (even thought they literally aren't). If they're saying that the world is coming to an end... could it mean, that the dragon she's fighting in the Sword Coast, Tiamat, is going to bring ruin to this place if she and the shifters fail to tear her down?! This is bad... she needs to get out of here fast to warn the others... But how?
"(What do you mean 'typhoon?' Has the world outside returned back to normal? Is the Great Planetary War over?)" They question, they said Great Planetary War, not First Planetary War—maybe these mushroom people escaped from the bombs you saw earlier during the First Planetary War and lost their track of time. Without knowledge from the surface, it's obvious that they will think the war never end.
Though... how will they react once they realise the war they think will end all wars has a sequel?
Matte... EH?! Anata-tachi wa sensō no saichū ni ita nodesu ka?! (待って...え?!あなた達は戦争の最途中にいるのですか?!, Wait... EH?! these guys were hiding from a war?!)She thinks as she shakes her head. Then again, since they live underground and have no connections to the outside world whatsoever, it would kind of make sense that they have no idea what's going on at the moment. "Ima wa sensō nante nai yo! Kenka wa dame! Taifu dake. Hitobito wa hinan shiyou to shite imasu. Karera ga oborenai yō ni. (今は戦争なんてないよ!ケンカはダメ! 台風だけ. 人々は避難しようとしています。彼らが溺れないように, There's no war now! Only typhoon. People are trying to evacuate. So that they don't drown.)" She waves her hands in front of her fluffy tails to convey her innocence. "Watashi ga mita yuiitsu no tatakai wa,-jō ni iru hito-tachi o machibuse shiyou to shite ita on'nanokodeshita … watashitachi ga… to iu ka ano hito-tachi ga toraeta dareka o kyūshutsu suru tame dake ni. Watashi ga shiranai uchi ni kare ga warui koto o shita to kikimashita. (私が見た唯一の戦いは、上にいる人たちを待ち伏せしようとしていた女の子でした…私たちが…というかあの人たちが捕らえた誰かを救出するためだけに。私が知らないうちに彼が悪いことをしたと聞きました, The only fighting I saw was some girl trying to ambush those people above... just to rescue someone who we... or rather, those guys, captured. I heard he did some bad things that I wasn't aware of.)"
They've been talking about a Great Planetary War? What even is that? Is that something that's about to unfold in the future? Whilst she and her son are literal guests in this world?! "Etto… nani? Jitsuwa kochira no shusshinde wanainode, totemo komatteimasu… Soreto, dōkutsu no jōsō-kai ni ikeru tsūro wa aru nodeshou ka? (えっと…何？実はこちらの出身ではないので、とても困っています, Uh... what? I'm not actually from here so I'm very confused... Also is there a passage I can follow to head to the upper floors of the cave?)"
Wildland Shifters Pt 2 (Pt 1 with PyromaniIsDeadThankGod) Celci (The Lamb) - Non-Binary Changeling Sorcerer (Shadow Magic) Maya Kurosaki- Female Kitsune Cleric (Twilight Domain); Currently in Lancea Randy Wolftree - Male Human Artificer (Armourer); Currently in Crimson Sands of Time Shijiro Otsune- Male Kitsune Blood Hunter (Order Of The Lycan) Trojan Dseyller - Male Tortle Barbarian (Path of the Ancestral Guardian) Xenia Ironhide - Female Kobold Rogue (Soulknife)
The hole you fell to looks too steep and too narrow for anything larger than Pixel to fly through. Climbing through it might take ages, it simply isn't worth the time.
"No, screw this bird, she thinks I'm her hatchling. For Shepherd's sake, I have family and kids! I'm not a hatchling anymore!"She pushes the phoenix's beak away.
The phoenix gets startled as you hear footsteps coming closer to you, she hides behind you two as three firenewts approach your location, they walk towards you, pointing spears at their target. These firenewt look like smaller lizardfolk, except their skin is bright orange and see-through. You can see their 'blood' vessels within their bodies.
“ᐊᓇᑲ, ᐸᑲᓭ, ᓚᐃ, ᐃᒪ ᑕ!”(Anaka, bakase, la’i, ima ta) (You there, birdie, come with us, now!) The firenewts in the centre says in Charan, you have no idea what they're talking about, but it sounds exactly like the language Kristians used earlier back in the tavern. Judging by his tone, though, he seems... angry about something.
"Uhh... hello?" Jedwiga awkwardly waves, the centre firenewt isn't having any of it and grabs her by her wrist. The left Firenewt also grabs Alex's hand too.
“ᑯᔔ?" (Koshu?) (What about that bug?) The right firenewt points at Pixel.
“ᐊᓭ ᑲᐅ ᑕᓐᑌ, ᔑᐴ ᒪᐃ ᐳᑯ.” (Ase ka’o tante, shipu ma’i poko) (Leave him alone, Chief didn’t say anything that there will be bugs on this mission) And with that, they lead the two to where the came from earlier. Alex can try to break their grip, though, it's not like they squeeze you that hard or anything. But again, they don't seem to be hostile either, they didn't try to stab you immediately, so that's a 'good' sign.
Alex hesitates, giving a bit of a start when the firenewt grabs his hand. He remembers Kristians saying something about these creatures, but at the moment it seems to be slipping his mind. He detects anger in their voices, but can't decide if they are angry at him and Jedwiga or at something completely different? Right now, he wishes more than anything that he knew of some way to comprehend languages.
He eyes the newts, for the moment letting them lead him on, "Uh... sorry for intruding, if that's what this is about. And... sorry I can't understand you, but could you please try to help us understand what you want?"
Insight: 19 (edited, original roll was 4)
He looks to Jedwiga, "Should we.... go with them? Or..." He would really rather not get into a fight if they can help it, but he also doesn't want to risk getting taken too far from their starting point.
He looks to Pixel, "Could you make some sort of marker somewhere? That way if anyone follows us they know where we went?" Unless he detects some sort of strong hostility, he's willing to see where this goes. Who knows, maybe these newts are just trying to be helpful. And God knows they could use some help right now.
Shugo is a bit surprised when the massive beast rushes past him and then seems to be fixed on Cezars. So what if his great grandfather or whatever saved her life. That fool is a bloody jerk and deserved to rot in prison. He sighs, and makes his way back over to Renar and the broken bridge. At least the dragon is willing to help them.
"I would like to know what you want to do with that jerk." Shugo addresses the dragon, "How do you intend to help him? Because I can tell you right now, healing him and setting him free will not be helping him and it will not be honoring his ancestors." He thrusts a finger at Cezars, "Just within the short time I've met that man, he's done nothing to bring honor to anyone in his family. If anything, he's been soiling his family name. Beating old women, attacking innocent civilians, breaking his oath as a paladin, and even attempting murder. Do those things sound like something this Aleksis person would be proud of? I severely doubt it, and if you intend to release him back into our midst, I can guarantee he'll be back to spitting on his ancestor's graves."He turns to face the dragon. "I don't really have a problem giving him to you, but I would ask that you not allow him to go on as he has. This man is nothing like your savior, and knowing that if you let him go then you will not be honoring his ancestor's either. I don't know much about it, but according to my paladin friend, he has some sort of evil energy inside of him. So, if you want to help him, help him restore his families honor and fight whatever darkness is possessing him...and keep him from harming anyone else."
Persuasion: 19
Then he shrugs. "That's my say anyways. I can't make the decision for everyone. Especially not Alex." He glances down the chasm and grimaces. "Our paladin was planning to have that hothead stand before the church for being an oathbreaker."
Pixel looks at Alex with a slight frown. "I shall try to leave markers, however, I'm not certain I'm suited to such a task. All though she's quite gifted at conversing with other people, Lady Taliyah isn't the most perceptive, hence my prescense travelling along side her. I seek out and point out what she may have missed, and she clears a path when I can't sneak my way past something."He then looks around for a particularly unique object in th nearby area, something he can use as a reference point for Taliyah if she and the others end up down here.
The spore from the myconids stopped for a moment before they all burst into a storm of spore clouds. The mushroom people jump and dance, the air is thick with the literal essence of happiness, and they pretty much ignore the rest of your thoughts.
"(The war is over? The war is over! We shall follow you, Kitsune, and we shall celebrate together on the surface!)" All of the myconids break their circle formation and line up behind you. One of them tosses you a black slab of lightweight metal with black glasses on its front and a button on its side, right now, it's displaying an abstract diagram of the Underdark.
It looks like some kind of advanced illusion magic, but you don't sense any magical aura coming from the tablet at all. The square is shaped differently, it must be relative to how large each biome is, but again, there are no instructions on how to read or even a blip on where you are, you'll have to figure that out by yourself—the text is written in Lancean, it's in Romantic script, thankfully.
From what you know, you fell down on Route 700 at Vierines, it's the line at the bottom of the map, and it seems that the villagers and the rest of the part that remained there must pass Piagailoe, a necropolis. The description of all of these rooms is very vague, but from what you know, a necropolis is a large graveyard, which means Piagailoe will be filled with undead, vampires, and creatures of the night.
The cave you're in right now is waterlogged in most places, and it looks like a jungle, so you must be in Olimarau. That room has an arrow pointing down to Route G2 too, but why would you want to go deeper when you can't even find your party?
There is no reason to stay here, so you begin walking in a random direction, hopefully finding a cave wall, and then you can just follow it until you see a hole.
All the while you walk, the myconids release their spore at any creature they see. They don't direct their spore at you, so you don't know what they're saying, but after they're done, the animals they 'talk' with begin following you too. Soon enough, you have an entire army behind your back: two groups of bullywugs riding a giant frog flanks the right and left wing, the myconids are at the front centre, and giant snakes and drakes are at your rear.
A few hours of walking later, you arrive at a wall, and there are two tunnels leading to the other room: the one on the right has a dim red light coming out of it, and you can feel heatwaves and the smell of sulphur inside, the one on the left has purple crystal growing on the ceiling. According to the 'map,' you might eventually have to come back to the lush cave again if your friends want to continue on to Menkalde, the town where Paulis lives. Or you can just travel on the surface after the rain stops... or you can try to find the entrance to Route G2 and see if it leads anywhere else, the possibilities are limitless.
One thing, though, if you want to travel to Paulis through the Underdark, you'll have to pass through a 'glitched' cave. It's a weird effect, indeed, the colours and patterns keep switching back and forth, and you have a bad feeling about this.
For Alex:
Insight failed.
"If they want to eat us, then they would do so now... just follow them, they're probably curious about us," Jedwiga says.
There are various stones and crystals both on the ground and the ceiling, Pixel can probably use a stone and scratch the crystals in order to mark the direction. Or he can build a cairn by stacking smaller stones or crystals together in the shape of a tower. In Perkwunos, that's an unmarked graveyard, but in other regions like greater Sehul or Heryomen, it's a waypoint. They'll probably understand it in this context.
The firenewt leads you to their camps. It's beside a large, steamy, hot lake, the huts are constructed with hardened clay, and the walls are made out of jagged stones. There are stables too, which house a bunch of giant striders, the mount of firenewt culture. There is a metal hut... thing at the centre, which stands out from the rest of the building in the camp, or any building you've ever seen in your life for that matter. There is a metallic tube sticking out at the front, and the base is made out of loose metal stripes. There is a letter on the metal hut, which says 'A7V.'
A firenewt squats on top of the metal hut, she wears a necklace filled with precious stones. From what you see, other firenewts don't wear anything at all, not even clothing on that matter, so this one must be the leader.
"Underdark not a place for tourists like you, what you doing here?" She asks, her grammar is a bit off, but you can understand her as clear as day.
After Alex answers the question, she snaps her claws, and one of the firenewt walks into a hut and comes back with a box. You recognise it immediately, it's the same box that Altairs dropped into the chasm, looks like it ended up on this layer of the cave too.
"This yours?" She says, jumping down beside the crate. She pries the lid open and picks up one of the weapons in this crate; your longsword. "Mmm, nice. Cobalt-Steel alloy. Is better than obsidian." She smirks.
She snaps her claws again, and the firenewts who escorted you earlier form a circle around you. "In Underdark, finders keepers. Have to fight to get what we want, no barter, surface-dwellers soft." She points 'her' longsword at Alex, "You want box back, fight me. I hold back, you go all out. We heal you once we are done."
"ᐸᔫ! ᐸᔫ! ᐸᔫ!" (Payu! Payu! Payu!) (Fight! Fight! Fight!)" The other firenewts around you begin chanting, you don't need proficiency in Charan to know that they're hyping this up. The phoenix from earlier lands on top of the metal hut, watching the fight too. Several giant striders also join the circle, along with a few salamanders and fire snakes.
"Hey, Alex." Jedwiga whispers to the Aasimar, "Uhh... do you want me to take your place?"
"No!" The firenewt leader snaps back at the Owlin, "Want to fight with him, not you, Birdie." She makes a 'come on' gesture, "Your move, boy."
Since this is a good old-fashioned duel, you know for certain that the other firenewts will not try to jump in. Duelling is t a universal thing among every living Lancean out there, long before laws were invented, this was the only way to solve disputes or get something from other groups of people. These people who live in the Underdark continue to live in their primitive ways because they never knew how far the surface world has advanced.
OOC Note: I've talked about duelling rules earlier, but here's a reminder: you don't need to roll for an initiative, just roll for attack, spells, or other abilities like a normal combat. You all start in a melee range with the contestant unless stated otherwise. In this case, Alex goes first, and Ishshi goes after Alex.
Ishshi (Firenewt leader)
(Note: This is what A7V looks like. IRL, it's the first and only German tank produced in WW1. Only 20 of them were built, and there is only one surviving example—it was captured by Australian soldiers and right now, it's sitting at Queensland Museum, Brisbane. I have the honour of actually seeing it in person, but I didn't take pictures of it, so here's the one I found on Google.)
Taliyah persuasion check failed.
Shugo persuasion check failed.
Her gritty war veteran persona breaks immediately when she sees Taliyah, a cute little dragon-ling, who's just a walking cuteness overload. "Awww... hey, little buddy! Pspspspsps." She makes a high-pitched squeal, "You're so smart and cute! And your scales are so shiny too! I really want to—" Then, the bronze dragon remembers what she's supposed to be doing, she clears her throat and gets back on topic.
Shugo is a bit surprised when the massive beast rushes past him and then seems to be fixed on Cezars. So what if his great grandfather or whatever saved her life. That fool is a bloody jerk and deserved to rot in prison. He sighs, and makes his way back over to Renar and the broken bridge. At least the dragon is willing to help them.
"I would like to know what you want to do with that jerk." Shugo addresses the dragon, "How do you intend to help him? Because I can tell you right now, healing him and setting him free will not be helping him and it will not be honoring his ancestors." He thrusts a finger at Cezars, "Just within the short time I've met that man, he's done nothing to bring honor to anyone in his family. If anything, he's been soiling his family name. Beating old women, attacking innocent civilians, breaking his oath as a paladin, and even attempting murder. Do those things sound like something this Aleksis person would be proud of? I severely doubt it, and if you intend to release him back into our midst, I can guarantee he'll be back to spitting on his ancestor's graves."He turns to face the dragon. "I don't really have a problem giving him to you, but I would ask that you not allow him to go on as he has. This man is nothing like your savior, and knowing that if you let him go then you will not be honoring his ancestor's either. I don't know much about it, but according to my paladin friend, he has some sort of evil energy inside of him. So, if you want to help him, help him restore his families honor and fight whatever darkness is possessing him...and keep him from harming anyone else."
"You know what they say: what goes in the dragon's den stays in the dragon's den." She reaches across the chasm, pets Taliyah on the head with the blunt side of her talon, and then grabs Cezars. She places his unconscious body inside her den. "Aleksis loves his family more than anything else, and he would do anything his kids want. Whatever Cezars wants, I'll give it to him, and nothing will stand in my way for that! What he did might be bad, but seeing him rot in prison is worse—especially for Aleksis if he's watching all of this from Heaven above." She scoffs, "It isn't like you will understand it anyway, you don't know his ancestors as well as I do, I bet you haven't even met his family yet."
"But as I promised."The dragon rears up, tears a chunk of the chasm wall, and places it down on an empty space below, pieces of rock rain down for a moment, before stopping. The new 'bridge' is strong enough to support everyone's weight, so... mission accomplished.
"Go on now, take a good tour of the Underdark... by the way, the next cave you'll go to might be a little problematic, watch your back." With that, she turns back to her den, along with Cezars inside.
"Problematic?" Laine tilts her head.
"Oh... I see what she meant."
An hour or two after the encounter with the dragon, you and the villagers walk down a passage and end up in the first room of the Underdark, it's under... and dark.
You stand at an entrance to a city made out of stone... except the entire city is just one long road with buildings on both sides, all of them filled with undead of all sorts—vampires roam the streets, skeleton horses drive a carriage with skeletons controlling it, zombies mindlessly walk around, bumping into a wall or another skeleton. It's very dim in here because this city has no street lights at all.
If there is no lich nearby, undeads usually roam around in an idle state, doing nothing but wander aimlessly, since their brains were decomposed a long, long time ago. Some undeads carry on the task they were given during their lifetime. You can see some zombies and skeletons wearing safety hats and placing cut stones to build a house, that's one of the examples, these undeads were construction workers before, and even in the 'afterlife', they still cannot escape their 9 to 5 job.
The villagers remembered what Kristain instructed them to do: never stay in the dark. They pull out their lanterns, torches, and all kinds of light sources. Laine passes a few torches to you too, "Don't try to fight any of them, guys. If you do, it could trigger their natural response and the entire city... thing will be against us and we'll risk getting civilians hurt. Did they really build everything inside here?"
In front of you, you can see six skeletons 'protestors' blocking the street—three of them look like normal humanoid skeletons, the fourth skeleton has a fox skull and a tailbone, the fifth has a rat skull and is much shorter than other skeletons, and the sixth one has elongated skull with six eye sockets. The last three are Kitsune, ratfolk (AKA Ysoki), and Goloma respectively—three races that were wiped out during the Second Planetary War. All six skeletons hold a protest sign that says 'Why are you killing us?' 'Stop genocide now!' 'Disunited States of Lancea—Revolution now!' among other things.
The reason why they died is obvious: they protested, the United States of Lancea government didn't like it, and they made them 'disappear.'
At this point, the crowd of villagers following behind you stop in their tracks, because these skeleton protestors are still bound to their duties in the past: to block a road and protest.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"The universe we observe has precisely the properties we should expect if there is, at bottom, no design, no purpose, no evil, no good, nothing but blind, pitiless indifference."
The spore from the myconids stopped for a moment before they all burst into a storm of spore clouds. The mushroom people jump and dance, the air is thick with the literal essence of happiness, and they pretty much ignore the rest of your thoughts.
"(The war is over? The war is over! We shall follow you, Kitsune, and we shall celebrate together on the surface!)" All of the myconids break their circle formation and line up behind you. One of them tosses you a black slab of lightweight metal with black glasses on its front and a button on its side, right now, it's displaying an abstract diagram of the Underdark.
Whilst Maya is technically right that the war they tried to hide from is over, the chaos itself isn't yet. And when they said they want to go and celebrate on the open world again, Maya instantly raises and flails her clawed hands. "Ah! Dame dame dame! Ima soto ni detara sugu ni oborete shimaimasu yo! Onaka made mizu ga agatte kimashita! Taifū tte ōame no kotoda to iu koto o shiranai nodesu ka? (ダメダメダメ! 今外に出たらすぐに溺れてしまいますよ！お腹まで水が上がってきました！台風って大雨のことだということを知らないのですか?!, No no no! If you go outside right now, you will drown! The water is at my stomach level! Don't you know that a typhoon means very heavy rain?!)"She attempts to clarify again as she rises and reforms her tails into a single, fluffy bundle, seeing that they didn't fully get her word previously. As she does so, she notices the strange projection that the myconids gave her. If anything though, the only reaction she could ever produce from this was nothing but even more confusion. "N...Nani?! Kore wa kitsune no tengoku no nandesuka? Kore wa dōkutsu-mō ka nanikadeshou ka? Kyōi reberu to wa dōiu imidesu ka? (何...?! これはキツネの天国の何ですか? これは洞窟網か何かでしょうか? 脅威レベルとはどういう意味ですか?, What?! What in the fox heavens is this?! Is this a cave network or something? What is this threat level?)" She wonders in utter disbelief. Is she really that far behind on this kind of knowledge? Has civilsation become more and more advanced before she knows it? And if so, how far behind is she? How much would she have to ask her son to help her understand this?!
She is a little curious about the glitched picture though as she gestures to it. "Eh...? Naze korega... Mezurashī nodeshou ka? (なぜこれが...珍しいのでしょうか? , Why does this look so... unusual?)" Oh well... either way, she needs to stop wasting time; it's time to get going. And during this time, she notices the live fungi follow her every movement; Deja vu maybe? Whenever Maya herself was present at a shrine the people who revered her as a fox spirit would follow her to receive her good fortune and will.
"Sigh... Wakatta... Anata ga shuchō surunara... Shikashi oboete oite kudasai, watashi wa koko o deru mae ni, musuko o fukumu watashitoisshoni ita hitobito dake o sagashitai nodesu. (わかった...あなたが主張するなら...しかし覚えておいてください、私はここを出る前に、息子を含む私と一緒にいた人々だけを探したいのです, Okay...if you insist...but remember, before I leave here, I only want to find the people who were with me, including my son.)"She pauses for a moment to smile, thankful that they're not ruthless monsters seeking to hunt her just for her mystical powers. "Sore igai wa, mamakitsune ga anata no mendō o mite kureru, yakusoku shimasu! (それ以外は、ママキツネがあなたの面倒を見てくれる、約束します! , Other than that, Mama Fox will take care of you, I promise!)"
There is no reason to stay here, so you begin walking in a random direction, hopefully finding a cave wall, and then you can just follow it until you see a hole.
All the while you walk, the myconids release their spore at any creature they see. They don't direct their spore at you, so you don't know what they're saying, but after they're done, the animals they 'talk' with begin following you too. Soon enough, you have an entire army behind your back: two groups of bullywugs riding a giant frog flanks the right and left wing, the myconids are at the front centre, and giant snakes and drakes are at your rear.
A few hours of walking later, you arrive at a wall, and there are two tunnels leading to the other room: the one on the right has a dim red light coming out of it, and you can feel heatwaves and the smell of sulphur inside, the one on the left has purple crystal growing on the ceiling. According to the 'map,' you might eventually have to come back to the lush cave again if your friends want to continue on to Menkalde, the town where Paulis lives. Or you can just travel on the surface after the rain stops... or you can try to find the entrance to Route G2 and see if it leads anywhere else, the possibilities are limitless.
One thing, though, if you want to travel to Paulis through the Underdark, you'll have to pass through a 'glitched' cave. It's a weird effect, indeed, the colours and patterns keep switching back and forth, and you have a bad feeling about this.
Whilst her sense of direction can be considered the worst in the party, at least she had the guidance of those cute, little fungi seem to be harnessing a giant army for her, which, for the kitsune, seems rather unnecessary considering that she's not looking to try and start a major fight anytime soon. "Uh... Nanika riyū ga aru nodesu ka... Karera wa watashitachi o oikakete iru nodesu ka? Chotto kowain desuga… (何か理由があるのですか...彼らは私たちを追いかけているのですか？ちょっと怖いんですが… , Is there a reason... why you want them to follow me? I'm a little intimidated...)" Right now she's only looking for guidance to help her reunite with the group including her only child and nothing else. When she arrives at the split paths though, she's caught off guard by the nasty scent of sulphur coming from the left passage and covers her nose and mouth whilst she gags. But... whilst she's very tempted to lead them into the purple, amethyst cave, she has this feeling... that she might find someone familiar in the magma-like one. She isn't sure which one to pick
She then turns to the fungi plus everyone else that they've recruited. "Minasan wa mōsho ni tae raremasu ka? Sōdeareba, zen'in o ichido ni hidarigawa ni tsurete kuru no wa kenmeide wa nai to omoimasu. (Can you guys tolerate extreme heat? If so then I don't think it's wise to bring you all in the left side all at once.)" She speaks to them. "Hidarigawa no dōkutsu ni ikou ka to omotta ndesuga, sorenara minasan wa ushironi ite kudasai. (左側の洞窟に行こうかと思ったんですが、それなら皆さんは後ろにいてください. , I was thinking baout going into the cave on the left but if that's the case, then everyone else needs to stay behind...)" She clears her throat. "Tadashi… watashi no musuko ga mada koko ni ita koro no yō ni, watashitoisshoni kitai yūkan'na hito ga ichi-ri demo irunara betsudesuga. (ただし…私の息子がまだここにいた頃のように、私と一緒に来たい勇敢な人が一人でもいるなら別ですが。Unless... if there's one brave person who wants to come with me, like my son did when he was still here.) Demo, moshi yokattara, kawarini issho ni tadashī dōkutsu ni mukau koto mo dekimasu. Dochira ga konomidesu ka? (でも、もしよかったら、代わりに一緒に正しい洞窟に向かうこともできます。どちらが好みですか?, If you guys prefer though we can head into the right cave together instead. Which one would you prefer?)" Right now she heavily relies on their guidance and knowledge of these unfamiliar passageways to help her direct them and herself to safety.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Wildland Shifters Pt 2 (Pt 1 with PyromaniIsDeadThankGod) Celci (The Lamb) - Non-Binary Changeling Sorcerer (Shadow Magic) Maya Kurosaki- Female Kitsune Cleric (Twilight Domain); Currently in Lancea Randy Wolftree - Male Human Artificer (Armourer); Currently in Crimson Sands of Time Shijiro Otsune- Male Kitsune Blood Hunter (Order Of The Lycan) Trojan Dseyller - Male Tortle Barbarian (Path of the Ancestral Guardian) Xenia Ironhide - Female Kobold Rogue (Soulknife)
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"I do, and I can give him an inspiring word or two. It's not like I can use it cross now anyways.. but this is the last time I can do something like it today." Her concentration on the spell on Shugo ends as she casts it again on Pixel, strumming her viol and humming, the magic settles on him. "Now, go be very strong."
Casting: Enhance Ability (Bull's Strength). Advantage on Strength checks.
Giving Bardic: 1d6
When the villagers manage to overhear Alex's words about Cezars, which results in them further pummeling the man, Alexander turns to them and again says, "Now isn't the time for this. We need to focus on our survival. He'll get what he deserves, but he has to survive to see his punishment." He hopes that after everything these guards have seen, that they will be willing to side with them as witnesses.
Persuasion: (24)
He nods as Altairs talks, and also to Laine, "Yeah, I figured as much. I... was planning to speak to both Elmars and the Church... probably the latter first considering Elmars may or may not be present."
Then the bridge snaps, and he jolts around in surprise, only to bolt after the Laine to help catch the falling pieces. His wings sprout from his back, unfurling in a bright light that likely doesn't help the panicking spiders, but right now he doesn't have much of a choice but to roll with it. His ethereal wings make little to no noise as he darts towards bridge, not that it matters much anymore.
Gritting his teeth, he snatches up the falling bridge and strains against its weight. Worry about getting the others across later, for now, he just needs to save Maya.
Strength: 18
Note:
Since there are four entities who are making a strength check and one-third of the rolls must pass the DC in order to succeed—three out of four entities must pass the DC, which is not in this case, since both Shugo and Alex fail the STR check. I'll allow Venet to refund her used spell slot and Bardic Inspiration.
By the way, since the party is split now. Maya and Alex (if he decides to fly down, along with anyone that might jump after Maya) should post in a spoiler, those who don't post normally.
The strength of four still isn't enough, and the bridge snaps into two pieces. Sending Maya falling into the depths below.
"NO!" The Owlin screeches, and she sits down on the ground, panting. After a moment to regain her bearings, she shakes her head and grabs Alex's hand. "Come on, you have wings, right? Let's go after her!" She looks to the boys who made it to the other side, "And you two, get your friends across the chasm to the other side first. I'll see you somewhere in the Underdark. Go!"
Before she can jump down, though, she looks at the party again. "I'm Jedwiga, by the way. You can call me Jed, or Hedwig, or whatever, introductions later, I'll see you on the other side." And with that, she jumps down the chasm and spreads her wings.
For Maya:
You fall and fall, and you just keep falling. The pressure and G-force built up so much from this sort of acceleration that your vision begins to go dark. And eventually, everything did go dark.
A while later, your eyes open, and you find yourself in the true Underdark.
Right now, you're in some sort of underground jungle or swamp. Trees here have leaves, but their colours are pale to the point of being close to white. Each tree bears glowing, yellow berries that provide a source of light too. There are giant glowing mushrooms here and there, and all of them come in a different shade of colour—some are blue, some are red, and there are even purple and magenta ones. The cave ceiling is so high up and no trees can even touch it.
There are all sorts of giant bugs living here, giant spiders, giant ants, giant bees, carrion crawlers, and cave fishers. There is one thing odd about all of these creatures compared to the actual Underdark in Sword Coast, though: they are very peaceful. These bugs can easily eat you, yet most of them just carry on with their day. In Torilian Underdark, you'd be shanked, stabbed, and grilled by its locals within a heartbeat, but Lancean Underdark is so... chill. Perhaps the sheer scale of the First and Second Planetary Wars changed the behaviours of these 'monsters' entirely, they no longer want to fight or kill the 'civilised,' even they have enough of war.
Eventually, you smell a spore, and in the corner of your eyes, you see a Myconid... person. They have the body of a humanoid, but the head of a mushroom, and their 'skin' is cyan and looks rubbery and fibre-y. Mushrooms technically don't have gender because they only use spores to reproduce.
The spore you smell reaches into your mind and activates, and for that moment, both you and the lone myconid can feel each other's thoughts. You can feel their confusion, fear, and amusement. "(You are... strange. What are you doing here so deep underground? Are you here to escape the bombs too?)" The voice says in your head, neither feminine nor masculine. They might be the first person you can actually communicate with without translation, after all, telepathy is beyond the mere concept of language... she might have to watch out, though, because they can hear everything she thinks.
A few seconds later, more myconids pop out from the bushes. Some of them are armed with a strange-looking spear: it's wooden and it has a metallic tube running on top of it, with a knife attached to its end. It has a trigger like crossbows do, but it doesn't have a string or an arrow attached to it. The wood on the 'spear' is engraved with a letter that says 'LR 6532-8'
They keep their strange weapons to themselves and don't point them at Maya.
The lone spider on the web jumps down with the rest of his friends, right after Jedwiga.
For Alex (and anyone else who jumps down with Jedwiga)
The Owlin spread her arms mid-air. "Alright, people. You should—ACK!" She's cut off when a lone giant spider who didn't jumped with the rest slams into everyone's body. It didn't hurt, but the momentum is enough to knock you off-balance into one of the many vents that leads to the ceiling of the Underdark.
It's a lot like riding a tubular slide at McDonald's, except this one goes forever and doesn't have chips and pieces of lettuce here and there. Jedwiga screams behind you, you aren't sure if she's terrified or having fun, because riding vents like this can be entertaining... under right circumstances, that is.
And eventually, you see a light at the end of the tunnel, and you pop out of a wall and slams face-first into a glowing red mushroom.
All of the tossing and turning makes you see stars, but you aren't hurt at all. As your vision returns to focus, that's when you see which part of the Underdark you end up at...
Here, gysers and hot springs dominate the landscape. Red and orange crystals grow from both the ground and the ceiling, glowing their respective colour. The ground has yellow stains of sulphur on it, as if someone just dropped a yellow candle wax on the ground, and waters here shine in all spectrums of colour as once—drinking it will be the fastest way to meet God for sure.
Firesnakes slithers on the ground, while smaller dinosaurs, giant striders, and fire elementals are relaxing near the hot springs, smaller phoenixes takes a bath in the spring the same way a regular bird would clean themselves in a puddle. None of the 'monsters' paid attention to the newcomers at all, they still roam around, and it's best for you to leave them alone too.
"Where the hell are we?" Jedwiga sits up, confused... She takes a while to process it all, then she sighs. "Dang it... this... this wasn't supposed to happen. Who decides to use the only route where the bridge doesn't even work, anyway!? How are we supposed to go back now!"
She takes a deep breathe, trying to calm herself down. Then she turns to Alex, "Don't say anything, kid. I-It's my fault, if I'm stronger, that lady wouldn't plummet to who-knows-where right now... but there is one thing you should know, though." She stands up, "My nephew is an adventurer and a few days ago, he send me a letter saying he would be exploring the ruins in the Underdark. His friend wants to find the artefact and he wants to warm up first... he didn't tell me anything about where he'd be, but if we can find him, then maybe he can take us back to the villagers."
"By the way, in case we'll need to fight someone..." Jedwiga unlocks the shortsword on her belt, still in its sheath. "You can have my sword for now, young man, just remember to return it to me once we're done with this." She hands the sword to Alex.
"NO! NOOO!" Maigurs yells, reaching his hand to the chasm, "Come on, we have to do something, please!" He turns to the villagers (Who, at this point, just stares blankly in the distance after seeing one of the prisoners fell), pleading with them... but they can't do anything either. The chasm is too deep and the only Owlin in the entire village just swan-dives into the depths down below. They have planks and ropes, but they can't do much without proper support, it might fall down again
Kristiāns looks at the people who made it to the other side, "You... don't go anywhere yet, we need to find a proper way across. The spiders are gone now, so it should be much easier. Quick, think of something, anything."
"The universe we observe has precisely the properties we should expect if there is, at bottom, no design, no purpose, no evil, no good, nothing but blind, pitiless indifference."
—Richard Dawkins
DM—Stories From The End of The World: Episode I
Pixel glances at Taliyah and nods, before zooming down after the fallen people, following them down the chute they fell into after the spider collided with them. Upon them landing Pixel will approach Alex and Jedwiga. "Is everything alright for you all? I can serve as a method communicating with those who didnt fall so long as nothing here disincorporates me, which would truly unfortunate."
Meanwhile Taliyah turns to the rest of the group after Pixel catches up with the group. "They appear to have landed in a part of the Underdark filled with various fire-based creatures such as phoenixes or fire elementals. So long as nothing happens to Pixel I should be able to pass messages to them."
"WE'RE NOT GONNA MAKE IT...!" No... please... please hang on... Okaa-san... *The combined strength wasn't enough and it was enough to make Renar fall back onto the cliffside as his mother plummets* "OKAA-SAN!" *He hangs near the edge as he screams for his mother whilst she plummets. This was also enough to send him in a state of shock as her remains rigid for 5 minutes*
"No... no... no..." *As Renar helplessly watches his mother plummet to her seeming death, he sinks to his knees with regret and stares as both Alex and the owlin dive to who knows where* What have I done... Why did I... was this why... you didn't want me to cross over? No... it's because you're so worried about me... that you can't even take care off... *He clenches his fists and buries his face in them for five seconds before rising up and wiping his face* Now what? What will the rest of the shifters say? How would they handle the news when they heard that Okaa-san died under my watch? What's gonna happen to her magical will? Will she pass it on to me? Or someone else? Will the Neverwinter Jungle remain vulnerable to the Cult of Dragons?! Can I even handle the responsibility of being the jungle's next ruler?! I just... *He continues holding in his anger as he chokes*
"F...Forget our weapons... they're not as important as... losing an... ancient companion... of ours. And remind me to slit his throat for this should the opportunity arise. But... for now, just..." *He does his best not to cry as he grits his teeth and looks away from Shugo, unable to contemplate on losing his mother so early* "...j-j-just... get everyone... to cross here f-f-first...find at least something that can help them... maybe ask... the... dragon for help... if... i-i-if we can..."
The Wildland Shifters
Daisy Ethalena - Female Wood Elf Ranger (Monster Slayer)
Ethan Wolftree - Male Simic Hybrid Warlock (The Hexblade)
Mira Laurits - Female Harengon Sorcerer (Clockwork Soul); Lancea
Raiden Kurosaki - Male Kitsune Wizard (Bladesinger); Lancea
Rixian Nishinoya - Male Fire Genasi Paladin (Oath of Vengeance)
Tenebris Amaro - Male Dark Elf Druid (Circle of Stars)
Yurime Hanasaki - Female Kumiho Bard (College Of Creation)
Aleksandteri lets out a horrified yell as the bridge slips from his grasp. Can he never do anything right? It feels like he's failing at everything he's supposed to be good at. Nevertheless, he doesn't even hesitate long enough for Jedwiga to finish her introduction, leaping down after Maya as fast as he can. He can't let anyone die on his watch. He can't. His etherial wings give him a good boost downwards, leaving behind a single glowing feather that dissipates as soon as it hits the rocks he'd been standing on.
Alex gasps as the wind is knocked out of him by the giant spider, leaving him with just enough air to wheeze, "No.... Maya..." His hand reaches downward, but his body is flung sideways, sending him reeling and into the strange tunnel along with Jedwiga. As they toss and twist around, all he can do is pray and hope that they survive--and if he doesn't, he hopes that the others at least do. Oh Lord how did this adventure go so wrong? All they'd come to do was investigate the ruins, and now look at them. Caught up in some mess with the law, an oathbreaker, a storm, and now separated in the under dark. Lord help them.
Then the breath is once more knocked out of him, and his wings puff out of existence on impact, shattering apart in an impressive shower of glowing white feathers. Then, he crumbles to the ground, wheezing. Once his vision clears and he staggers to his feet, he manages to take in the sight around him. This... this is not good. Not good at all. What is he supposed to do now? No, no time to panic. His parents warned him that becoming an adventurer would be no easy gig. He accepted that wholeheartedly. Now he just needs to figure out how to get himself and everyone, including Maya, out of this alive. Alive.
He jumps when Jedwiga starts talking, and opens his mouth to say something when she takes a breath, only for her to tell him not to say anything, so he shuts it again. He listens quietly to what she has to say, and nods slowly when she is done. He looks down at his hands, clenching them into fists and saying mostly to himself, "I should have been stronger too."
He blinks when she offers him her weapon, then nods grimly and accepts it. An arming sword is not his weapon of choice, but at least it is one he is familiar with. "Thank you." He buckles it onto his belt, all too aware of how much lighter it is than his former weapon. He doesn't doubt that he'll be missing both his longsword and his armor before this is all over, but no use in worrying about that now.
Then Pixel approaches them. Oh thank God, at least they won't be completely void of communication but... what about Maya? She's all by herself, unless someone else jumped down and managed to survive the fall... Shaking his head, he tells himself to focus before saying to Pixel, "I can't tell you how thankful I am that you are here. It will be a comfort to be able to communicate with Taliyah and the others. Is... everything okay up there? Did anyone else... jump?" Lord he hopes not. There's no way of knowing if they could survive the fall, but they would all be smart enough to realize that... wouldn't they? He swallows, then says, "I... I think the two of us are okay. But we are going to go find Jedwiga's nephew in hopes that he can help us find a way out of here." He want's to ask if the pixie happened to catch sight of Maya when he followed them, but can't bring himself to. After all, he pretty much already knows the answer. So, the only thing to do now is move forward. He just has to remember that no matter what happens, everything will work out in the end.
Suddenly, he realizes that he hasn't introduced himself, and he clears his throat awkwardly before saying, "I... My name is Aleksandteri. But, you can call me Alex." He places his fist over his heart, "I... wish we had met under better circumstances." He looks back up towards where they fell from, briefly wondering how difficult it would be to climb back up... or if it would be possible at all. Vaguely, he also hopes that this doesn't count as running away from the guards... he really doesn't want to have to deal with extra charges once they do manage to meet up with the rest of the company. But, seems how the guards seem like good folks, he hopes they'll understand completely his reasons for jumping after Maya.
"So... you wouldn't happen to have a general idea of where we are based on our previous location? ...I mean, how else will we find these ruins you mentioned?" He looks around, taking in the strange surroundings. His eyes come to rest on the 'natives' and, while his gut tells him that it is best to leave them alone, he can't help but ask, "You don't suppose there are any locals we could ask directions from... do you?" Then there is also the issue of water. How long will it take for them to find anyone or a way out? Considering the heat from the fire around them, running out of water could be a real danger really quickly. Fortunately, he had at least been left with his waterskin, "Uh... do you have any water for yourself?" He asks, intending to figure out rations if need be.
Shugo grits his teeth. He can feel his grip slipping. No no no! They can't let her fall, they have to hold on!
Then suddenly he's holding nothing.
Time seems to slow as he sees the bridge, and Maya, fall down into the dark abyss. Even Renar seems to move in slow motion as he falls to his knees. The elf is so shocked that he completely misses the shifter's murderous comment. He stares down into the cave. She just slipped through his fingers. He held that woman's life in his hands...and he just couldn't hold on. "I-I'm sure Alex and that Owl lady will catch her... Any moment they'll come carrying her back up. Eheheh." He laughs shakily, trying to deny the bitter truth. Who is he kidding. They'll never catch her. All things fall at equal speed after all. She'll hit the ground before they.... He grabs his head and shakes himself. She's gone, and that's that. She trusted them to protect her, to help her find her son, and they all failed. That's something they will just have to live with....not to mention they probably just witnessed the true end of an entire race. Ah great more guilt. He feels like the sky has fallen just to crush him under it's weight.
But he'll just have to live with it. He may have failed here, but he will not fail again. Today has truly been a tragedy, but he cannot let it get in the way of his ultimate goal. He will not forget it, but he will not let it block his path. Right now, the task at hand is to figure a way to get those villagers across this death trap. He barely hears Renar mention something about a dragon...oh right! The dragon! Lowering his hands, his head shoots up and he spins around.
And then he leaves to confront the dragon.
He quickly realizes that the bronze dragon has awoken. Well that's good. Now he doesn't have to awkwardly wake her up. Waltzing strait up to her, he clears his throat to try to get her attention. "Uh. Excuse me?" He starts trying to calm his shaky voice. "I hope I'm not intruding, but may I speak with you?"
As she feels the futile attempts of the three boys in helping her to hoist her to safety, Maya felt her grip on the rails run dry as she suddenly plummets to the depths of the endless abyss. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion, from her son screaming and trying to reach her to the bridge shattering against the cavern walls... the only thing she could do, other than to experience her life flashing before her eyes, is to cry, as she embraces the end of her meaningful journey throughout six centuries of both pain, turmoil, hope and happiness. She then closes her eyes again as she manages to flesh out one final thought before disappearing into the abyss...
Raiden, musuko yo... Kohana, musume yo... S... sumi masen... (雷電, 息子 よ... 小花, 娘 よ...すみません... Raiden my son... Kohana my daughter... I'm sorry...)
When Maya wakes up though, she was half expecting to return to the realm where the other fox spirits awaited her untimely demise. But as her blindsight returns to her, she was surprised that... huh? What is this place? And... She's unnharmed? What? This isn't right... She gazes at her clawed hands before sitting upright to scan... this... odd-looking kind of a place. So she's not dead. Just... in pain... "Ow..." Her well endowed body felt bruised from the impact so she was unable to move for at least 10 minutes or so; She's just estimating. But... the thought of falling down and making everyone, especially her son worried... the reality dawned in on her. Now what's gonna happen? How is she going to meet up with the rest again? What's her next step? And... where is she?
She takes a moments to compose herself and sits upright, scanning the environment she somehow ended up in. This area seems like a jungle to her lone eyes. Wait... is this the Neverwinter Jungle? Did she fall through a portal and somehow ended up back where she started? "No!" She slaps herself as she removes her disguise for now. The Neverwinter Jungle she knows isn't located in a cave full of these... large creatures. Wait...
"Eh? Watashi wa... ima doko ni... iru no ka? (私は... 今どこに... いるのか, Where... am I?)" She stands up and whips around with her golden fox eyes open now that there's no one in her sight, especially her treasured son. Speaking of which, since this is a new area, would her son... no... She already found him, he already found her. It's no point asking a question that she had already answered herself... at least, until she hears something in her head and also a rustle behind her lithe figure and whips around. Dare ga iru ka?! (誰がいるか?, Who's there?!) She yelps in her head as she comes face to face with...
"EYAHHH!" Maya instantly panics as she splits her tail into nine and wraps them all around her body in self defence upon noticing the army of... um... Myconid... people... coming out to meet her. She had never seen these live, faceless fungi before so her first instinct as a passive kitsune is to defend herself from danger, ironically enough. "Watashi o... kizutsukenaide kudasai! Gomen nasai! (私を傷つけないでください！ごめんなさい, Please... don't hurt me! I'm sorry!)" But then she hears them talking about bombs, something that immediatley sends her from a state of panic into one of confusion. What bombs are they talking about? She hasn't seen a single bomb dropped on her or any of her companions to this date. Although they don't seem hostile to her yet, she isn't one to drop her guard down just yet as she remains wrapped by her massive tails. "Etto... Nani? Bakudan? Anata wa nani ni tsuite... hanashite iru nodesu ka? (えっと…何？爆弾？あなたは何について... 話しているのですか?, Uh... what? Bombs? What are you... talking about?)" She's curious as to what they were referring to, but seeing that they were able to communicate with her via their heads... wait... she can understand them? Does that mean...? "Eh?! Omae... Watashi no itte iru koto ga wakarimasu ka?! (お前... 私の言っていることが分かりますか, You... do you understand what I'm saying?!)"
She points up above to the cavern ceiling, from where she fell. "Watashi wa ochita... ue kara... Watashi wa... Modoranakereba narimasen... (私は落ちた... 上から... 私は...戻らなければなりません... , I fell... from above... I need... to go back...)"
And then she notices the spear that one of them is holding. "Etto... LR... Roku, Go, San, Ni, Hachi... (えっと... LR... 六, 五, 三, 二, 八, It's the same thing except in Japanese)" She's left in a state of confusion after this. So there was a horde of creatures living in the depths of this underdark world, yet, they're not... aggressive? They want to nivnestigate who she is rather than attack her on sight? And they can speak? This is odd... Not that Maya has any secrets to hide underneath her thoughts except one thing. "Muimina shitsumon, shikashi... (意味のない質問しかし... , pointless question but...)" She stops mid-sentence as she figures out what to say next... Kono bansho wa... no... musuko yo... no... sumi masen... (この場所は... no... 息子... no... ごめんなさい, This place... my son... sorry...) She thinks in her thoughts as she experiences a temporary mindblock over this unusual place and the creatures surrounding her.
Wildland Shifters Pt 2 (Pt 1 with PyromaniIsDeadThankGod)
Celci (The Lamb) - Non-Binary Changeling Sorcerer (Shadow Magic)
Maya Kurosaki - Female Kitsune Cleric (Twilight Domain); Currently in Lancea
Randy Wolftree - Male Human Artificer (Armourer); Currently in Crimson Sands of Time
Shijiro Otsune - Male Kitsune Blood Hunter (Order Of The Lycan)
Trojan Dseyller - Male Tortle Barbarian (Path of the Ancestral Guardian)
Xenia Ironhide - Female Kobold Rogue (Soulknife)
For Maya:
The mushroom people release their spores again, and you feel more relaxed and at ease. It's their way of petting you on the back and assuring you.
"(Don't worry, you're safe with us now, my friend. You shouldn't go back, the surface world is dangerous, and the waters are poisoned by the ashes and dust the bombs left behind. Even the air itself is poisonous, we're sorry about your son, but if he is out there, he will not survive.)" Even though multiple myconids are releasing spores at once, you still hear a single but echo-ey androgynous voice in your head.
One of the myconids shares their memory with you, instead of speech, they project a picture to you through the power of psychic.
You see a lush forest with a small stream, birds are chirping in the sky, and deer are grazing in the meadow. Muphrid shines bright in the sky, its red companion, Saak, is just beside it to the right.
Then, the third sun shines on the horizon, a thousand times bigger and brighter than Muphrid and Saak. It is so bright that you're blinded by it, even though all of this isn't actually happening in reality.
When you regain your vision, that's when it dawns upon you.
The third sun died, leaving behind a fireball the size of a small city. The sheer heat it generates leaves behind a mushroom cloud and pushes regular clouds above it into a perfect circle. Soon later, the tree line in front of you shakes from the shockwave of the blast.
The vision ends, and you're back in the cave with the rest of the myconids.
"(That is what a single bomb does, and clearly, the government have more than one of them. They bombed every major city out there, and from it came ash and soot that blocked sunlight and created a winter where a drop of snow was so poisonous, that it killed anything it touched.)" You can feel fear in some of the myconids who receive the vision. Myconids can transfer memory through spores, and most mushroom-based species release their spore once they die. They might not be biologically immortal, but they can remember every single thing since the day they evolved to walk on two legs and use tools.
"(Today is 5th April -1C 4983 CY, almost seven thousand years ever since the bomb dropped. We lost our hope of finding a survivor after this long, yet you came... it is a miracle that you're still alive.)" The myconids move closer to 'stare' at the Kitsune's face.
Maybe somewhere in Perkwunos, hidden in a secret lab, there might still be some leftover bombs that the United States of Lancea government didn't use. If that doesn't delete the Cult of Dragons back in Toril from existence, then nothing else will.
Seeing that the kitsune seems to be curious about their weapon, the voice in your head explains. "(This is called a 'gun.' It needs bullets in order to function, something which we cannot find in the Underdark. We use it as an improvised spear instead of its intended function, which is a powerful, ranged weapon capable of penetrating any armour, scale, or flesh out there.)"
For Alex:
"To be honest, I have no clue either. I'm just a hunter, hunting for animals to feed the village. I'm not an expert adventurer or anything like that." Jedwiga scratches her head, "But there is one thing I know about the Underdark, though—everything is much more linear than the surface. Everything is shaped like one giant room, with each room having a different biome than the other. Some of them can stretch for kilometres upon kilometres, some are tiny. Right now, we shouldn't wander too far from where we start, that way, our rescuers won't have to chase us everywhere."
On a mention of water, the Owlin pulls out a waterskin from her satchel. "As long as we find a fresh spring that isn't contaminated by sulphur, we should be alright." She digs through her satchel once again and pulls out a rye bread. "I have this too—"
Out of nowhere, a phoenix flies down and snatches Jedwiga's bread with her beak. The phoenix lands in front of you and swallows the bread right in front of you.
"NOOO!" Jedwiga screeches, punching the air. "Give it back, now!" As if on command, the phoenix regurgitates her eaten bread right into the Owlin's face, just like how her parents used to do it when she was a hatchling.
"Bleugh! Not like this, you overgrown chicken!" Jedwiga shakes the residue off and sighs... "Great... our only source of food is now in that stupid bird's stomach. It isn't like we can eat her either since phoenixes can't die, you know?" The phoenix starts preening Jedwiga's feathers, which the owl ignores. Fire elements can control their temperature, which is why you can be close to her without burning to a crisp.
Of course, Pixel and Taliyah can hear and see all of this, it might be a good thing that Taliyah and Venet didn't end up in this kind of situation, though. Fire elementals are mortal enemies to water and ice elementals, if two of them even show their face here, the entire cave will turn against them.
Speaking of people, in the distance, you can see three firenewts approaching your direction, they're equipped with slings and obsidian spears. They don't seem to notice you're here... for now, at least.
OOC Note:
I'll post the part with dragons tomorrow, I'll go to sleep right now. You can respond to this post now, Maya and Alex.
"The universe we observe has precisely the properties we should expect if there is, at bottom, no design, no purpose, no evil, no good, nothing but blind, pitiless indifference."
—Richard Dawkins
DM—Stories From The End of The World: Episode I
Maya receives the nasty vision inside her head. The Sword Coast and Japan have never experienced something like this before, so to receive something like is both scary and confusing... to the eyes of someone who's not even from Lancea herself. Eh?! Nante kotoda... Naze sore o miseta no desu ka? Rikai dekimasen... (なんてことだ... なぜそれを見せたのですか?! 理解できません, What the... Why did you show me that?! I don't get it...) She is utterly confused as to why she was shown this; There hasn't been a single sun out in the distance that has been boiling bright to decimate every single living being, let alone her son, now that she knows. In fact if it did, she wouldn't have been taking charge of everything in the Sword Coast, specifically, the formation of the platoons that could tear down the cult of dragon armies attacking various villages plus the Neverwinter Jungle itself.
"Shikashi... Modoranakereba! Soko ni wa hitobito ga imasu... Kōzui kara nigeyou to shite imasu! (しかし... 戻らなければ! そこには人々がいます... 洪水から逃げようとしています!, But... I have to go back! There are people up there... trying to escape from a flood!)" Her tails still remain wrapped around her lithe body as the Myocnid folk come even closer to stare. "Karera wa mina ikite ite, hinansho o mitsukeru no ni hisshidesu! Soshite watashi wa karera o tasukeru koto ni natte ita nodesu! Taifū ga karera no inochi o ubau osoregāru! (彼らは皆生きていて, 避難所を見つけるのに必死です! そして私は彼らを助けることになっていたのです! 台風が彼らの命を奪う恐れがある!, They're all alive and are struggling to find shelter! And I was in charge of leading them to safety! The typhoon outside would have taken their lives!)" But then her fox ears twitch as one of them points out the date as '5th April.' Uh... are they behind scehdule or something? If she recalls correctly this world is currently five or six days ahead... "Etto... Kyō wa yon tsuki Ju-nichi ka Juni-nichida to omotte imashita ka? Sukunakutomo…-jō no hito-tachi wa sō ittemashita… (えっと…今日は4月10日か12日だと思っていますか? Uh... I thought today was April 10th or 12th? At least...that's what the people above said...)" Also, after clarifying that they were actually carrying guns, it was something that the kitsune herself understood, since she did live in an age where guns were common, but also, it made her panic even more, seeing that she had been hunted by something like this when she was a true fox. "Īe! Watashi o utanaide kudasai! Ano hito-tachi ga shinanai yō ni, watashi wa koko kara denakereba narimasen! いいえ！私を撃たないでください！あの人たちが死なないように、私はここから出なければなりません!, No! Please don't shoot me! I have to get out of here so those people won't die!)"
Wildland Shifters Pt 2 (Pt 1 with PyromaniIsDeadThankGod)
Celci (The Lamb) - Non-Binary Changeling Sorcerer (Shadow Magic)
Maya Kurosaki - Female Kitsune Cleric (Twilight Domain); Currently in Lancea
Randy Wolftree - Male Human Artificer (Armourer); Currently in Crimson Sands of Time
Shijiro Otsune - Male Kitsune Blood Hunter (Order Of The Lycan)
Trojan Dseyller - Male Tortle Barbarian (Path of the Ancestral Guardian)
Xenia Ironhide - Female Kobold Rogue (Soulknife)
"I see..." Alex says. So they really were quite lost. Wait... rescuers? Does she think someone from up above is going to come find them? Is there even a safe way back down? "What if..." His thought is interrupted when the phoenix swipes Jedwiga's bread. In any other situation, he probably would have laughed it off, even now the situation is slightly funny. Still, that doesn't change the fact that there is now that much less food for the two of them then they had before. At least the Phoenix doesn't seem aggressive.
"I have some rations, but only a day's worth. Still, it's better than nothing," he pointedly doesn't pull it out for fear of the phoenix taking that too.
"Uh... that bird seems to like you. Maybe it would be willing to help us?" It was a real shame that he doesn't have the ability to speak to animals.
"If not, well..." he turns to Pixel. "Do you think you could lead us back through the hole we fell through? If we could get back up the way we came down, we might not even have to worry about wandering aimlessly and getting further separated. ...personally I couldn't see anything on the way down."
The bronze dragon in the cave stirs awake. She lets out a big, fat yawn and looks at Shugo. "What do you need?" She peers out of the window and gasps, she grabs her medals and quickly rushes to the entrance, and the cave rumbles with each step she takes.
At this point, the villagers and anyone on the other side would see a Bronze dragon stepping into view. Adult bronze dragon, to be specific, about as large as a house, not counting her wings.
Seeing the two veteran badges on her chest, the guards stand up and salute, along with the villagers. It's a custom to salute any veterans out there, no matter which side of the war they're on.
She points her talon at Cezars, "It's been exactly 4,993 years, 11 months, and 38 days, but you're still here... I thought the Pavlovskis family were all but gone to the passage of time."
Maigurs shakily answers, "Ma'am... uh... he tried to kick my friend into the chasm—"
"Silence!" The dragon gestures toward her mouth, "Ever since the war ended... the Second Planetary War, I met your great-grandfather from 62 generations ago. He saved me and my crew's life. I know he isn't here anymore and you probably can't remember him, but I just want to do something to repay my debts—I want to save your life again, that will make him proud."
Cezars doesn't respond, because he is unconscious.
Maigurs tilts his head, "Context?"
"That day, I was on a siege mission, dropping stones on a castle and enemy facilities. Then... I was ambushed by Republican wyvern riders. Arrows and spells rain down on me and my crew, and they got my tail archer. A ballista crew from the ground shot a bolt which grazed my left wing, that was when we knew we weren't going to make it." She raises her wing, showing a large scar that runs from the tip to the base of the wing. Both Planetary Wars were a conflict between two sides: the Republicans (A name which refers to the United States of Lancea's 'democratic' government) and the Coalition (Which is anyone else that opposed the United States of Lancea's government)—the Republicans were the 'bad' guys and the Coalition were the 'good' guys.
"Then, I saw him, Aleksis Pavlovskis, an ace, riding a black gryphon flying towards me. He could easily finish the job, I'm on the Coalition side and he's supposed to eliminate me... yet, he didn't. He flew side-by-side with me, blocking me from being targeted by ballista and arcane towers. At that time, I didn't know what he wanted to do with me, so I turned my head towards him, readying my electric breath. He looked at me and departed with a salute." The villagers listen keenly to the story, some are even taking notes.
"We arrived back to our base, safe and sound, and I couldn't be more thankful to him for that. After the war ended, I searched everywhere for him, and eventually, I met a Tortle named Paulis who helped me find Aleksis once again. By the time we found him, though, he was very old, I became friends with him and stayed by his side until he died two years later." The dragon looks down, most of you have no idea how to read her expression, except for Taliyah—the bronze dragon is both sad and nostalgic at the same time, judging from the shift in her scales and the movement of her eyes.
"I felt like I didn't do enough to thank him, if he saved my life, I should do the same for him too." She swishes her tail, "I know what you want—you want to cross the chasm. I'm powerful enough to knock a large stone which should be stable enough for all of you to cross... but if you want me to do that, you'll have to give me Aleksis' grandson first." She points at Cezars again.
(Note: Any social checks Taliyah make against the dragon (Such as Performance, Persuasion, Deception) have an advantage, because dragons in Lancea see draconic races as cute and harmless, the same way humans do with babies or small animals.)
For Maya:
It is still the 5th of April in the above world, you all arrived in Perkwunos on 2nd April and it's been three days since. A lot happened in such a short span of time, and it does really feel like an entire week has passed (Even though it actually isn't).
The myconids answer her first question, ("Some of you haven't seen the initial explosion yet, it was so powerful that those who were far away from the blast got poisoned by whatever was inside. Rumour said that the government used uranium and plutonium to make these bombs instead of black powder or TNT, we aren't entirely sure how bombs like this got so powerful. But we don't need an answer for that, it is a weapon of mass destruction, capable of bringing the end of the world as we know it.")
When Maya mentions typhoons and survivors, you can sense the confusion among the myconids. The spore in the air is thick in both anticipation and confusion.
"(What do you mean 'typhoon?' Has the world outside returned back to normal? Is the Great Planetary War over?)" They question, they said Great Planetary War, not First Planetary War—maybe these mushroom people escaped from the bombs you saw earlier during the First Planetary War and lost their track of time. Without knowledge from the surface, it's obvious that they will think the war never end.
Though... how will they react once they realise the war they think will end all wars has a sequel?
For Alex:
The hole you fell to looks too steep and too narrow for anything larger than Pixel to fly through. Climbing through it might take ages, it simply isn't worth the time.
"No, screw this bird, she thinks I'm her hatchling. For Shepherd's sake, I have family and kids! I'm not a hatchling anymore!" She pushes the phoenix's beak away.
The phoenix gets startled as you hear footsteps coming closer to you, she hides behind you two as three firenewts approach your location, they walk towards you, pointing spears at their target. These firenewt look like smaller lizardfolk, except their skin is bright orange and see-through. You can see their 'blood' vessels within their bodies.
“ᐊᓇᑲ, ᐸᑲᓭ, ᓚᐃ, ᐃᒪ ᑕ!” (Anaka, bakase, la’i, ima ta) (You there, birdie, come with us, now!) The firenewts in the centre says in Charan, you have no idea what they're talking about, but it sounds exactly like the language Kristians used earlier back in the tavern. Judging by his tone, though, he seems... angry about something.
"Uhh... hello?" Jedwiga awkwardly waves, the centre firenewt isn't having any of it and grabs her by her wrist. The left Firenewt also grabs Alex's hand too.
“ᑯᔔ?" (Koshu?) (What about that bug?) The right firenewt points at Pixel.
“ᐊᓭ ᑲᐅ ᑕᓐᑌ, ᔑᐴ ᒪᐃ ᐳᑯ.” (Ase ka’o tante, shipu ma’i poko) (Leave him alone, Chief didn’t say anything that there will be bugs on this mission) And with that, they lead the two to where the came from earlier. Alex can try to break their grip, though, it's not like they squeeze you that hard or anything. But again, they don't seem to be hostile either, they didn't try to stab you immediately, so that's a 'good' sign.
"The universe we observe has precisely the properties we should expect if there is, at bottom, no design, no purpose, no evil, no good, nothing but blind, pitiless indifference."
—Richard Dawkins
DM—Stories From The End of The World: Episode I
Pixel, having been distracted momentarily by the phoenix landing so closely, quickly follows after Jedwiga and Alex. "My apologies. So far, no one's jumped down after you three, besides myself, however, the dragon across the gorge is offering to make a way across for the rest of the group, IF we hand over that fiery fiend Cezar, for his ancestor saved her during the Second Planetary War. Taliyah is currently internally panicking and trying to figure out a diplomatic solution to this mess."
Meanwhile, Taliyah walks closer to the edge of the gorge and bows. "Hello Great One. It is an honor to meet such an experienced and accomplished individual as yourself." Taliyah turns towards Cezar and the rest of the group. "We travel with your friend's descendant because his valor and chivalry unfortunately did not seem to be passed far enough down the family tree to reach Cezar, for he has committed a variety of harsh crimes on the surface, including acts such as robbing the innocent, breaking his paladin's oath, and plotting to throw away his own griffon partner for a creature like a nightmare or crime against our kind, a dracolich. From what I've heard, he's done even more acts of a similar nature, but that is only what I've personally witnessed." Taliyah takes a deep breath, and turns to face her remaining party members. "What do you all think. Should we hand Cezar over to someone who will most certainly be able to set him on the right track and help him start acting like a paladin should, in exchange for her help in crossing this gap?"
Persuasion: 12
*Renar lets out a fox-like yelp as the dragon suddenly rushes out of the cave to meet him and the rest of the people who have yet to cross as he scampers to the left side of the other end of the cave* Holy hell... an actual bronze dragon?! Everyone in the Sword Coast would love to meet her if they could. I mean... except for Xenia and Tenebris maybe. I've sen them react negatively even to the good dragons before, so I'm not sure how well they would take when they see this... war veteran? Is that what I think she is? If so then she must be a legendary fighter of some sort. Woah!
Huh? She got saved... *He whips his head to Cezars* By Stupid Rixi's grandfather?! In the midst of a war that has long ended?! What?! I don't get it... if his ancestors were so kind despite being on the opposite side of the dragon, why the hell is this baka being the complete opposite of what she's saying?! *He suddenly stops shedding tears as he whips out his notebook to jot down some notes* Four thousand years since the last war eh? And his last name is uh... Pav... Pavolo... I don't know how to spell it but it definitely doesn't sound native for my taste.*He scribbles more notes* So in the war... there was the 'Republics' and the 'Coalitions'. Both fought for each other in both wars... at least... that's what I saw based on the medals the dragon has. But why is she taking his side?! Right now the Stupid Rixi I know is nothing but a person full of rats, and schemers and snakes, slithering in the dark! Gah! *He goes back to cribbling more notes* Speaking of which, she knows Paulis too huh? I guess we could come back and talk to her once we all get to safety... But there were Two Planetary wars within this world... hmm... Is there going to be a third at the rate things are going? Or should I count the war against the Cult of Dragons the third one? I honestly don't know and I right now I don't want to elaborate...
Wait... *His fox ears twitch* Wolfy's great grandfather... saved her?! Watashi wa nani o kiite iru nodesu ka?! (私は何を聞いているのですか?! , What am I even hearing?!) I need to ask him some stuff later... And yikes, that's a nasty scar for someone huge.
Why are you asking me?! I've got nothing to do with this idiot. If this was the actual Rixi I would have taken full responsibility for this alongside Okaa-san... should she still be alive... *Renar gives off a scowl at Taliyah after hearing that* "I suggest you ask Alex through your tiny guy before you make you final decision; I'm not like him who knows all of this religious stuff. and to be honest, after hearing that he tried to mow down several citizens in the past alongside us instead of helping them, I don't care what fate he suffers for the atrocities, as long as he doesn't cause any more trouble for us six should he cross our path ever again. That's all I'll say."
The Wildland Shifters
Daisy Ethalena - Female Wood Elf Ranger (Monster Slayer)
Ethan Wolftree - Male Simic Hybrid Warlock (The Hexblade)
Mira Laurits - Female Harengon Sorcerer (Clockwork Soul); Lancea
Raiden Kurosaki - Male Kitsune Wizard (Bladesinger); Lancea
Rixian Nishinoya - Male Fire Genasi Paladin (Oath of Vengeance)
Tenebris Amaro - Male Dark Elf Druid (Circle of Stars)
Yurime Hanasaki - Female Kumiho Bard (College Of Creation)
Maya is left in disbelief. So the country she teleported to is still recovering or in the midst of a war that started in the past?! Was that why they've sought refuge down in these mysterious chasms?! Musuko (息子)... No! She gasps in her head. If a war is actually still going on then he might be lead into serious trouble... alongside the others... oh yeah. She's uh... having some serious translation issues too when they start explaining the bombs. What's Plutonium? Uranium? She has definitely heard of TNT before but those... thingies? Dang it... she had been separated from her only translator and now she's been given facts and details that she can't even comprehend as an ancient fox spirit. But... to actually hear bring the world to an end... wait... Tiamato?! Sore ga karera no koto o sashite iru nodeshou ka?! Subete no sekainoowari?! (ティアマト?! それが彼らのことを指しているのでしょうか?! Is that what they're referring to?! As in the end of all worlds?!) She gasps in her head, unaware that she's misinterpreting what they're saying; She thinks the bombs are related to Tiamat of some sort (even thought they literally aren't). If they're saying that the world is coming to an end... could it mean, that the dragon she's fighting in the Sword Coast, Tiamat, is going to bring ruin to this place if she and the shifters fail to tear her down?! This is bad... she needs to get out of here fast to warn the others... But how?
Matte... EH?! Anata-tachi wa sensō no saichū ni ita nodesu ka?! (待って...え?!あなた達は戦争の最途中にいるのですか?!, Wait... EH?! these guys were hiding from a war?!) She thinks as she shakes her head. Then again, since they live underground and have no connections to the outside world whatsoever, it would kind of make sense that they have no idea what's going on at the moment. "Ima wa sensō nante nai yo! Kenka wa dame! Taifu dake. Hitobito wa hinan shiyou to shite imasu. Karera ga oborenai yō ni. (今は戦争なんてないよ!ケンカはダメ! 台風だけ. 人々は避難しようとしています。彼らが溺れないように, There's no war now! Only typhoon. People are trying to evacuate. So that they don't drown.)" She waves her hands in front of her fluffy tails to convey her innocence. "Watashi ga mita yuiitsu no tatakai wa,-jō ni iru hito-tachi o machibuse shiyou to shite ita on'nanokodeshita … watashitachi ga… to iu ka ano hito-tachi ga toraeta dareka o kyūshutsu suru tame dake ni. Watashi ga shiranai uchi ni kare ga warui koto o shita to kikimashita. (私が見た唯一の戦いは、上にいる人たちを待ち伏せしようとしていた女の子でした…私たちが…というかあの人たちが捕らえた誰かを救出するためだけに。私が知らないうちに彼が悪いことをしたと聞きました, The only fighting I saw was some girl trying to ambush those people above... just to rescue someone who we... or rather, those guys, captured. I heard he did some bad things that I wasn't aware of.)"
They've been talking about a Great Planetary War? What even is that? Is that something that's about to unfold in the future? Whilst she and her son are literal guests in this world?! "Etto… nani? Jitsuwa kochira no shusshinde wanainode, totemo komatteimasu… Soreto, dōkutsu no jōsō-kai ni ikeru tsūro wa aru nodeshou ka? (えっと…何？実はこちらの出身ではないので、とても困っています, Uh... what? I'm not actually from here so I'm very confused... Also is there a passage I can follow to head to the upper floors of the cave?)"
Wildland Shifters Pt 2 (Pt 1 with PyromaniIsDeadThankGod)
Celci (The Lamb) - Non-Binary Changeling Sorcerer (Shadow Magic)
Maya Kurosaki - Female Kitsune Cleric (Twilight Domain); Currently in Lancea
Randy Wolftree - Male Human Artificer (Armourer); Currently in Crimson Sands of Time
Shijiro Otsune - Male Kitsune Blood Hunter (Order Of The Lycan)
Trojan Dseyller - Male Tortle Barbarian (Path of the Ancestral Guardian)
Xenia Ironhide - Female Kobold Rogue (Soulknife)
Alex hesitates, giving a bit of a start when the firenewt grabs his hand. He remembers Kristians saying something about these creatures, but at the moment it seems to be slipping his mind. He detects anger in their voices, but can't decide if they are angry at him and Jedwiga or at something completely different? Right now, he wishes more than anything that he knew of some way to comprehend languages.
He eyes the newts, for the moment letting them lead him on, "Uh... sorry for intruding, if that's what this is about. And... sorry I can't understand you, but could you please try to help us understand what you want?"
Insight: 19 (edited, original roll was 4)
He looks to Jedwiga, "Should we.... go with them? Or..." He would really rather not get into a fight if they can help it, but he also doesn't want to risk getting taken too far from their starting point.
He looks to Pixel, "Could you make some sort of marker somewhere? That way if anyone follows us they know where we went?" Unless he detects some sort of strong hostility, he's willing to see where this goes. Who knows, maybe these newts are just trying to be helpful. And God knows they could use some help right now.
Shugo is a bit surprised when the massive beast rushes past him and then seems to be fixed on Cezars. So what if his great grandfather or whatever saved her life. That fool is a bloody jerk and deserved to rot in prison. He sighs, and makes his way back over to Renar and the broken bridge. At least the dragon is willing to help them.
"I would like to know what you want to do with that jerk." Shugo addresses the dragon, "How do you intend to help him? Because I can tell you right now, healing him and setting him free will not be helping him and it will not be honoring his ancestors." He thrusts a finger at Cezars, "Just within the short time I've met that man, he's done nothing to bring honor to anyone in his family. If anything, he's been soiling his family name. Beating old women, attacking innocent civilians, breaking his oath as a paladin, and even attempting murder. Do those things sound like something this Aleksis person would be proud of? I severely doubt it, and if you intend to release him back into our midst, I can guarantee he'll be back to spitting on his ancestor's graves." He turns to face the dragon. "I don't really have a problem giving him to you, but I would ask that you not allow him to go on as he has. This man is nothing like your savior, and knowing that if you let him go then you will not be honoring his ancestor's either. I don't know much about it, but according to my paladin friend, he has some sort of evil energy inside of him. So, if you want to help him, help him restore his families honor and fight whatever darkness is possessing him...and keep him from harming anyone else."
Persuasion: 19
Then he shrugs. "That's my say anyways. I can't make the decision for everyone. Especially not Alex." He glances down the chasm and grimaces. "Our paladin was planning to have that hothead stand before the church for being an oathbreaker."
Pixel looks at Alex with a slight frown. "I shall try to leave markers, however, I'm not certain I'm suited to such a task. All though she's quite gifted at conversing with other people, Lady Taliyah isn't the most perceptive, hence my prescense travelling along side her. I seek out and point out what she may have missed, and she clears a path when I can't sneak my way past something." He then looks around for a particularly unique object in th nearby area, something he can use as a reference point for Taliyah if she and the others end up down here.
Perception: 10
For Maya:
The spore from the myconids stopped for a moment before they all burst into a storm of spore clouds. The mushroom people jump and dance, the air is thick with the literal essence of happiness, and they pretty much ignore the rest of your thoughts.
"(The war is over? The war is over! We shall follow you, Kitsune, and we shall celebrate together on the surface!)" All of the myconids break their circle formation and line up behind you. One of them tosses you a black slab of lightweight metal with black glasses on its front and a button on its side, right now, it's displaying an abstract diagram of the Underdark.
It looks like some kind of advanced illusion magic, but you don't sense any magical aura coming from the tablet at all. The square is shaped differently, it must be relative to how large each biome is, but again, there are no instructions on how to read or even a blip on where you are, you'll have to figure that out by yourself—the text is written in Lancean, it's in Romantic script, thankfully.
From what you know, you fell down on Route 700 at Vierines, it's the line at the bottom of the map, and it seems that the villagers and the rest of the part that remained there must pass Piagailoe, a necropolis. The description of all of these rooms is very vague, but from what you know, a necropolis is a large graveyard, which means Piagailoe will be filled with undead, vampires, and creatures of the night.
The cave you're in right now is waterlogged in most places, and it looks like a jungle, so you must be in Olimarau. That room has an arrow pointing down to Route G2 too, but why would you want to go deeper when you can't even find your party?
There is no reason to stay here, so you begin walking in a random direction, hopefully finding a cave wall, and then you can just follow it until you see a hole.
All the while you walk, the myconids release their spore at any creature they see. They don't direct their spore at you, so you don't know what they're saying, but after they're done, the animals they 'talk' with begin following you too. Soon enough, you have an entire army behind your back: two groups of bullywugs riding a giant frog flanks the right and left wing, the myconids are at the front centre, and giant snakes and drakes are at your rear.
A few hours of walking later, you arrive at a wall, and there are two tunnels leading to the other room: the one on the right has a dim red light coming out of it, and you can feel heatwaves and the smell of sulphur inside, the one on the left has purple crystal growing on the ceiling. According to the 'map,' you might eventually have to come back to the lush cave again if your friends want to continue on to Menkalde, the town where Paulis lives. Or you can just travel on the surface after the rain stops... or you can try to find the entrance to Route G2 and see if it leads anywhere else, the possibilities are limitless.
One thing, though, if you want to travel to Paulis through the Underdark, you'll have to pass through a 'glitched' cave. It's a weird effect, indeed, the colours and patterns keep switching back and forth, and you have a bad feeling about this.
For Alex:
Insight failed.
"If they want to eat us, then they would do so now... just follow them, they're probably curious about us," Jedwiga says.
There are various stones and crystals both on the ground and the ceiling, Pixel can probably use a stone and scratch the crystals in order to mark the direction. Or he can build a cairn by stacking smaller stones or crystals together in the shape of a tower. In Perkwunos, that's an unmarked graveyard, but in other regions like greater Sehul or Heryomen, it's a waypoint. They'll probably understand it in this context.
The firenewt leads you to their camps. It's beside a large, steamy, hot lake, the huts are constructed with hardened clay, and the walls are made out of jagged stones. There are stables too, which house a bunch of giant striders, the mount of firenewt culture. There is a metal hut... thing at the centre, which stands out from the rest of the building in the camp, or any building you've ever seen in your life for that matter. There is a metallic tube sticking out at the front, and the base is made out of loose metal stripes. There is a letter on the metal hut, which says 'A7V.'
A firenewt squats on top of the metal hut, she wears a necklace filled with precious stones. From what you see, other firenewts don't wear anything at all, not even clothing on that matter, so this one must be the leader.
"Underdark not a place for tourists like you, what you doing here?" She asks, her grammar is a bit off, but you can understand her as clear as day.
After Alex answers the question, she snaps her claws, and one of the firenewt walks into a hut and comes back with a box. You recognise it immediately, it's the same box that Altairs dropped into the chasm, looks like it ended up on this layer of the cave too.
"This yours?" She says, jumping down beside the crate. She pries the lid open and picks up one of the weapons in this crate; your longsword. "Mmm, nice. Cobalt-Steel alloy. Is better than obsidian." She smirks.
She snaps her claws again, and the firenewts who escorted you earlier form a circle around you. "In Underdark, finders keepers. Have to fight to get what we want, no barter, surface-dwellers soft." She points 'her' longsword at Alex, "You want box back, fight me. I hold back, you go all out. We heal you once we are done."
"ᐸᔫ! ᐸᔫ! ᐸᔫ!" (Payu! Payu! Payu!) (Fight! Fight! Fight!)" The other firenewts around you begin chanting, you don't need proficiency in Charan to know that they're hyping this up. The phoenix from earlier lands on top of the metal hut, watching the fight too. Several giant striders also join the circle, along with a few salamanders and fire snakes.
"Hey, Alex." Jedwiga whispers to the Aasimar, "Uhh... do you want me to take your place?"
"No!" The firenewt leader snaps back at the Owlin, "Want to fight with him, not you, Birdie." She makes a 'come on' gesture, "Your move, boy."
Since this is a good old-fashioned duel, you know for certain that the other firenewts will not try to jump in. Duelling is t a universal thing among every living Lancean out there, long before laws were invented, this was the only way to solve disputes or get something from other groups of people. These people who live in the Underdark continue to live in their primitive ways because they never knew how far the surface world has advanced.
OOC Note: I've talked about duelling rules earlier, but here's a reminder: you don't need to roll for an initiative, just roll for attack, spells, or other abilities like a normal combat. You all start in a melee range with the contestant unless stated otherwise. In this case, Alex goes first, and Ishshi goes after Alex.
Ishshi (Firenewt leader)
(Note: This is what A7V looks like. IRL, it's the first and only German tank produced in WW1. Only 20 of them were built, and there is only one surviving example—it was captured by Australian soldiers and right now, it's sitting at Queensland Museum, Brisbane. I have the honour of actually seeing it in person, but I didn't take pictures of it, so here's the one I found on Google.)
Taliyah persuasion check failed.
Shugo persuasion check failed.
Her gritty war veteran persona breaks immediately when she sees Taliyah, a cute little dragon-ling, who's just a walking cuteness overload. "Awww... hey, little buddy! Pspspspsps." She makes a high-pitched squeal, "You're so smart and cute! And your scales are so shiny too! I really want to—" Then, the bronze dragon remembers what she's supposed to be doing, she clears her throat and gets back on topic.
"You know what they say: what goes in the dragon's den stays in the dragon's den." She reaches across the chasm, pets Taliyah on the head with the blunt side of her talon, and then grabs Cezars. She places his unconscious body inside her den. "Aleksis loves his family more than anything else, and he would do anything his kids want. Whatever Cezars wants, I'll give it to him, and nothing will stand in my way for that! What he did might be bad, but seeing him rot in prison is worse—especially for Aleksis if he's watching all of this from Heaven above." She scoffs, "It isn't like you will understand it anyway, you don't know his ancestors as well as I do, I bet you haven't even met his family yet."
"But as I promised." The dragon rears up, tears a chunk of the chasm wall, and places it down on an empty space below, pieces of rock rain down for a moment, before stopping. The new 'bridge' is strong enough to support everyone's weight, so... mission accomplished.
"Go on now, take a good tour of the Underdark... by the way, the next cave you'll go to might be a little problematic, watch your back." With that, she turns back to her den, along with Cezars inside.
"Problematic?" Laine tilts her head.
"Oh... I see what she meant."
An hour or two after the encounter with the dragon, you and the villagers walk down a passage and end up in the first room of the Underdark, it's under... and dark.
You stand at an entrance to a city made out of stone... except the entire city is just one long road with buildings on both sides, all of them filled with undead of all sorts—vampires roam the streets, skeleton horses drive a carriage with skeletons controlling it, zombies mindlessly walk around, bumping into a wall or another skeleton. It's very dim in here because this city has no street lights at all.
If there is no lich nearby, undeads usually roam around in an idle state, doing nothing but wander aimlessly, since their brains were decomposed a long, long time ago. Some undeads carry on the task they were given during their lifetime. You can see some zombies and skeletons wearing safety hats and placing cut stones to build a house, that's one of the examples, these undeads were construction workers before, and even in the 'afterlife', they still cannot escape their 9 to 5 job.
The villagers remembered what Kristain instructed them to do: never stay in the dark. They pull out their lanterns, torches, and all kinds of light sources. Laine passes a few torches to you too, "Don't try to fight any of them, guys. If you do, it could trigger their natural response and the entire city... thing will be against us and we'll risk getting civilians hurt. Did they really build everything inside here?"
In front of you, you can see six skeletons 'protestors' blocking the street—three of them look like normal humanoid skeletons, the fourth skeleton has a fox skull and a tailbone, the fifth has a rat skull and is much shorter than other skeletons, and the sixth one has elongated skull with six eye sockets. The last three are Kitsune, ratfolk (AKA Ysoki), and Goloma respectively—three races that were wiped out during the Second Planetary War. All six skeletons hold a protest sign that says 'Why are you killing us?' 'Stop genocide now!' 'Disunited States of Lancea—Revolution now!' among other things.
The reason why they died is obvious: they protested, the United States of Lancea government didn't like it, and they made them 'disappear.'
At this point, the crowd of villagers following behind you stop in their tracks, because these skeleton protestors are still bound to their duties in the past: to block a road and protest.
"The universe we observe has precisely the properties we should expect if there is, at bottom, no design, no purpose, no evil, no good, nothing but blind, pitiless indifference."
—Richard Dawkins
DM—Stories From The End of The World: Episode I
Whilst Maya is technically right that the war they tried to hide from is over, the chaos itself isn't yet. And when they said they want to go and celebrate on the open world again, Maya instantly raises and flails her clawed hands. "Ah! Dame dame dame! Ima soto ni detara sugu ni oborete shimaimasu yo! Onaka made mizu ga agatte kimashita! Taifū tte ōame no kotoda to iu koto o shiranai nodesu ka? (ダメダメダメ! 今外に出たらすぐに溺れてしまいますよ！お腹まで水が上がってきました！台風って大雨のことだということを知らないのですか?!, No no no! If you go outside right now, you will drown! The water is at my stomach level! Don't you know that a typhoon means very heavy rain?!)" She attempts to clarify again as she rises and reforms her tails into a single, fluffy bundle, seeing that they didn't fully get her word previously. As she does so, she notices the strange projection that the myconids gave her. If anything though, the only reaction she could ever produce from this was nothing but even more confusion. "N...Nani?! Kore wa kitsune no tengoku no nandesuka? Kore wa dōkutsu-mō ka nanikadeshou ka? Kyōi reberu to wa dōiu imidesu ka? (何...?! これはキツネの天国の何ですか? これは洞窟網か何かでしょうか? 脅威レベルとはどういう意味ですか?, What?! What in the fox heavens is this?! Is this a cave network or something? What is this threat level?)" She wonders in utter disbelief. Is she really that far behind on this kind of knowledge? Has civilsation become more and more advanced before she knows it? And if so, how far behind is she? How much would she have to ask her son to help her understand this?!
She is a little curious about the glitched picture though as she gestures to it. "Eh...? Naze korega... Mezurashī nodeshou ka? (なぜこれが...珍しいのでしょうか? , Why does this look so... unusual?)" Oh well... either way, she needs to stop wasting time; it's time to get going. And during this time, she notices the live fungi follow her every movement; Deja vu maybe? Whenever Maya herself was present at a shrine the people who revered her as a fox spirit would follow her to receive her good fortune and will.
"Sigh... Wakatta... Anata ga shuchō surunara... Shikashi oboete oite kudasai, watashi wa koko o deru mae ni, musuko o fukumu watashitoisshoni ita hitobito dake o sagashitai nodesu. (わかった...あなたが主張するなら...しかし覚えておいてください、私はここを出る前に、息子を含む私と一緒にいた人々だけを探したいのです, Okay...if you insist...but remember, before I leave here, I only want to find the people who were with me, including my son.)" She pauses for a moment to smile, thankful that they're not ruthless monsters seeking to hunt her just for her mystical powers. "Sore igai wa, mamakitsune ga anata no mendō o mite kureru, yakusoku shimasu! (それ以外は、ママキツネがあなたの面倒を見てくれる、約束します! , Other than that, Mama Fox will take care of you, I promise!)"
Whilst her sense of direction can be considered the worst in the party, at least she had the guidance of those cute, little fungi seem to be harnessing a giant army for her, which, for the kitsune, seems rather unnecessary considering that she's not looking to try and start a major fight anytime soon. "Uh... Nanika riyū ga aru nodesu ka... Karera wa watashitachi o oikakete iru nodesu ka? Chotto kowain desuga… (何か理由があるのですか...彼らは私たちを追いかけているのですか？ちょっと怖いんですが… , Is there a reason... why you want them to follow me? I'm a little intimidated...)" Right now she's only looking for guidance to help her reunite with the group including her only child and nothing else. When she arrives at the split paths though, she's caught off guard by the nasty scent of sulphur coming from the left passage and covers her nose and mouth whilst she gags. But... whilst she's very tempted to lead them into the purple, amethyst cave, she has this feeling... that she might find someone familiar in the magma-like one. She isn't sure which one to pick
She then turns to the fungi plus everyone else that they've recruited. "Minasan wa mōsho ni tae raremasu ka? Sōdeareba, zen'in o ichido ni hidarigawa ni tsurete kuru no wa kenmeide wa nai to omoimasu. (Can you guys tolerate extreme heat? If so then I don't think it's wise to bring you all in the left side all at once.)" She speaks to them. "Hidarigawa no dōkutsu ni ikou ka to omotta ndesuga, sorenara minasan wa ushironi ite kudasai. (左側の洞窟に行こうかと思ったんですが、それなら皆さんは後ろにいてください. , I was thinking baout going into the cave on the left but if that's the case, then everyone else needs to stay behind...)" She clears her throat. "Tadashi… watashi no musuko ga mada koko ni ita koro no yō ni, watashitoisshoni kitai yūkan'na hito ga ichi-ri demo irunara betsudesuga. (ただし…私の息子がまだここにいた頃のように、私と一緒に来たい勇敢な人が一人でもいるなら別ですが。Unless... if there's one brave person who wants to come with me, like my son did when he was still here.) Demo, moshi yokattara, kawarini issho ni tadashī dōkutsu ni mukau koto mo dekimasu. Dochira ga konomidesu ka? (でも、もしよかったら、代わりに一緒に正しい洞窟に向かうこともできます。どちらが好みですか?, If you guys prefer though we can head into the right cave together instead. Which one would you prefer?)" Right now she heavily relies on their guidance and knowledge of these unfamiliar passageways to help her direct them and herself to safety.
Wildland Shifters Pt 2 (Pt 1 with PyromaniIsDeadThankGod)
Celci (The Lamb) - Non-Binary Changeling Sorcerer (Shadow Magic)
Maya Kurosaki - Female Kitsune Cleric (Twilight Domain); Currently in Lancea
Randy Wolftree - Male Human Artificer (Armourer); Currently in Crimson Sands of Time
Shijiro Otsune - Male Kitsune Blood Hunter (Order Of The Lycan)
Trojan Dseyller - Male Tortle Barbarian (Path of the Ancestral Guardian)
Xenia Ironhide - Female Kobold Rogue (Soulknife)