Blinking against the spray of water as they made their way back through outside to the front of the keep, Nym tried her best to wring out her long white hair and excess clothing, glad that none had gotten into her boots at least. Eyeing the fifteen foot gaps between the bridge, the drow sighed and replied, "I've only the same as well." Pulling out a similar bundle of rope from her pack. "Your grappling hook would certainly come in handy though." Glancing between the two options the woman said, "I don't know about the rest of you but I think I might be able to make the jump. I'd need a good running start though. If I could make the jump and jump with one end of a rope and hold it, someone else could try and jump holding that end and having a new end of another rope attached to them, that way if they fall, I could try and pull them up?" She glanced between the Pie Pals and Fivin to see what they thought.
(( GM: Does it look like there would be enough room between where the bridge is out to get a running start to make the jump? ))
As you survey the stairs and broken bridges of the Sky's Ascend, you can see a gleam in Chrys's eye as she scopes out the cliffs and the texture of the rock and tries to spot places that could be used for hand and footholds on the cliff in the areas around the broken bridges. She's clearly in her element here, and knowing her level of comfort and knowledge of stonework, and her sheer athletic ability, it's obvious to you that she is the most capable person in your group to try and climb around the gaps or jump across. To her, it looks like either of those tasks would present a challenge of average difficulty: nothing exceptionally hard, but certainly not a walk in the park either.
At any rate, you can see that the Sky's Ascend, climbs a total of about 200 feet up the cliff face, with the first of the broken bridges being about 30 feet up the stairs. Consulting Fivin, while he is dismayed to see the damage done to the stairs, he continues to hold the opinion that this is the best and safest way up to the top of the butte.
"Of course, we should hope that the dragon does not decide to descend upon us while we're climbing these stairs... that would be most unpleasant!"
"What about getting the kids back down? That would be hard even if we partially rebuild the rope bridges. I'm fresh out of my bag of tricks -- I wish I had more ideas or spells that could help here,"Lumen says, looking to the others.
Fivin answers Lumen's question, "I grant, that it will not be an easy task, but if it were, we would not have needed to ask the help of brave and capable adventures like yourselves in our moment of desperation. That being said, I have to place my faith and confidence in you that you will be able to succeed in rescuing Lia's children, because if you cannot do this, then no one will, and Faen and Syllin will either suffer a devastating fate at the mercy of Duskbringer, or else starve to death inside an empty keep."
Lumen
Throughout your brief conversation with Fivin, starting in the hidden stairs behind the waterfall, you get a feeling that he's hiding something, although you cannot discern what it might be. His urgency and obvious knowledge of the keep seems real, as does his genuine care for the children, but your gut tells you that there's something he's not being entirely forthcoming with you.
Lumen turns to Fivin. "You are placing your faith and confidence in us to do this. For us to do the same in you, I think you owe us the full story. I hate narrative loose ends. Before we try this next-to-impossible task, what should we know? And if you think there's something we shouldn't know, tell us anyway. So we can rescue the children."
Fivin responds with surprise and answers, his eyes wild with anxiety and fear.
"Master bard, I don't know what there is to say. We have told you everything. When our warriors had returned from their successful, but costly attempt to drive off the Red Claw orcs who had invaded our forest, we were beset by the sudden appearance of this vile dragon who now makes our home her own. In the ensuing battle to defend our keep, our numbers were decimated, with only Aelar, Lia, her two children and myself to survive the deadly attack. You saw Lia's condition they were in back at the druid's tree, she was barely alive with such great injuries. It is by the grace of Senanine Moombow that she lived."
"We have asked you to help rescue her children from a certain and horrible fate if they cannot be taken away from the threat of Duskbringer, and here we are now. I agree with you, it is a next-to-impossible task... I always knew that it would be, but we must try. You must use what skills you have to reach the keep, and this is the only way up. I only pray that we can make it in before the dragon notices our presence. I cannot imagine that she will take kindly to us."
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
A stricken grimace overtook Nym's expression as Lumen mentioned the difficulty it would pose in bringing the children back in the same manner they planned to enter. "I hadn't thought of that..."She admitted, biting her lip and left palm gripping the pommel of her sword tightly, wracking her brain uselessly for a solution. Picking up on the bard's semi-confrontational tone, Nym glanced between them before facing Fivin fully. "You said that you all had nothing to do but hope that we succeeded but if that were the case, why did you follow us all this way? Forgive me if I seem rude but you seem the least battle ready out of the three we had met so if there's something else you can do to help us help Faen and Syllin."
GM:
The one thing that Nym's mind is jumping to currently is that he's here to "end the children's suffering" if we aren't able to rescue them, is he giving off those kind of vibes? Insight: 6
"I did not follow you, which is evidenced by the fact that I arrived here before you did. I merely returned to my home, as I had always intended on doing so. I gave you a couple of days head start, then set off, figuring that things would have been resolved by the time I arrived. If not, then I felt I could be of help, since I know the keep and since I was the last one to see the two children alive. Aelar and Lia are no doubt a few days at most behind me. As Aelar told you, they planned to rest further until Lia was recovered enough for the journey, then they would make their way back here with hope that you had saved the children and either killed the dragon, or driven it away."
"And you are right, my dear. Being the chronicler of our people, I am no warrior. I am indeed the least battle ready of us all, but as I said, I know the keep, and the children know me. If we encounter them, then I would be able to convince them that you are to be trusted."
"However, I can understand that I could possibly be a liability here, so if you feel that it would not be safe for me to accompany you up the Sky's Ascend and into the keep, then I will retreat and hide while I wait for Aelar and Lia. If you still have Lia's pendant, then that should be enough to convince them."
"It is your decision."
Nym
No, from everything you see and hear from Fivin, you get the sense that he genuinely cares for the safety of the children and is very determined and hopeful to see them rescued and brought to safety.
"Oh no," Chrys chortles, noting Lumen's questioning of the elf. "You're comin' wit' us, friend. Fer all yer talk 'bout knowin' the Keep, feels like we're gon need ya right there by us where we kin keep an eye on ya. After all, if ya ain't no warrior, stands ta reason ya just coulda come with us ta get us here faster. Ya did arrive here "'fore us" as ye said. Mayhap we were delayed by takin' care o' the rest o' that Red Claw threat fer yer clan, seein' as how they wanted ta join forces with Duskbringer here afore we punched a hole in their plans."
She crosses her arms and gives Fivin an intimidating state. "'Course, how I see it, ya weren't expectin' us ta deal with them orcs fer ya. Only with the dragon. An' I ain't thinkin' ya rushed out here fer the kiddos' sake, much as ye may like 'em. Ye said yerself, ye were expectin' us ta be here an' done, or dead. So I'm thinkin' ye came jere ta find or get somethin', 'fore the rest o' yer clan returned. Somethin' ye don't want the rest o' ye clan ta know 'bout."
She stares at Fivin, hard. "We be challengin' a mad black dragon an' a will o' tha wisp here on account o' yer folk. Would help me ta believe ye ain't got greed in yer heart motivatin' ye out here if ye were ta level with us. But right now, that high an' mighty attitude ye takin' ain't helpin' nobody here."
Fivin is visibly taken aback by Chrys's surprisingly blunt confrontation. He cowers a little bit, recoiling slightly with his body before responding.
"I assure you, there is no greed in my heart here and I mean to intent to cause confusion or ill will with you. This keep and my surviving companions is all I have. They are my life, as they have always been. I only serve Sehanine and those brave warriors who would fight bravely for our cause to protect this place and our people who inhabit it. With so many of our tribe dead, having been slayed by the Red Claws and the vile dragon Duskbringer, Faen and Syllin are our only future now. And the only reason I did not accompany you directly was to stay behind and make sure that Lia was ok."
"As for the Red Claws... I had every notion that you may have encountered them on your journey here, for they are the reason why we are in this terrible predicament. Had our numbers now beed reduced by their fight with the orcs, perhaps we would have been better prepared to defend our keep from the dragon. We will never know, but what is certain is what is right in front of us now... a menacing wyrm whose very presence threatens the life of Lia's two children... if they are indeed still alive."
"Either way, I will come with you. As I said, I am glad to be of any help that I can."
You get the sense that Fivin is very much intimidated by you, but your gut tells you that his sense of desperation and concern for the children and his people is genuine, as his fear for the dragon. His story makes sense, based on what you heard from Aelar; who did tell you that they would plan to wait a few more days until Lia was more fully recovered before making the journey back to Ravensglade. You feel that there's not reason to doubt what he's telling you right now.
Nodding at the new information that Lia and Aelar were already on their way to them, Nym commented, "Hopefully we won't manage to miss them on the return trip."Knowing that was rather optimistic of her to say. Humming at his offer to help convince the children they were allies, she replied, "I assumed that the pendants and dragon would be enough but your presence likely wouldn-"Eyebrows rose at Chrys' quick and rather vehement reply. At first she thought it was a bit...much. But upon listening to the dwarf's words, Nym couldn't help but glance at Fivin for his reaction.
Personally satisfied with the other elf's answer, the cleric eyed between the two before (quietly) patting them both on the shoulders, drawing them into a very awkward half hug for a heartbeat or two before letting go. "Well. Eilistraee be praised that that's settled. Fivin. You know these children. I've no doubt that both paths would be treacherous to both of them but which do you think they'd be able to handle better? Because I'd think it might be wise for us to take that path to know what we'll encounter when exiting."
"Faen and Syllin are capable youngsters, so I think that if we're able to make safe passage up the Sky's Ascend and somehow rig safe passage across the broken bridges, they will be able to follow us down. However, I would fear to do that if I knew the dragon was sill lurking around. It would be a disaster if she descended upon us while we were trying to make our getaway. I think the safest course of action would be to locate the children first, to make sure they're safe, and then find and kill Duskbringer. Once she is gone, we'll have the time to safely bring the children down."
"Of course, if you are indeed able to kill the dragon, then it might be a moot point, as there will be no need to rush them out of the keep. We can all wait inside with them until Aelar and Lia return."
Fivin answers. "Master bard, I apologize if I have misspoken. In no way do I think it will be easy to kill this dragon, for I have seen its destruction firsthand as it slaughtered most of my kin. My point, is that its mere presence here at the keep complicates the entire operation of trying to save the two children. There are dangers on either side, but the wyrm clearly presents the biggest one and it would be best for everyone if it were gone.”
”Now shall we try to make it up there now? I am old, but I still have some spring in my step. If you can rig up some kind of safe passage across those five gaps, then I can make it up there with you and we can look for them.”
"Perhaps the Gods will take pity and entice Duskbringer away, though I shall not hold my breath." Inhaling deeply she held it while looking at the ramshackle bridge and then her companions before letting it out. "Perhaps we could weave and knot our ropes together to mesh a sort of net? Though one person would have to jump across to either hold it or secure it and then the last person would as well considering we would have to do that five times...."
((I feel like there's a simple solution probably staring us in the face that we're tiredly missing xD ))
“No one has any tricks up their sleeves do they? Otherwise yes this is going to be a lot of rope work. Any stores of equipment down here you know about Fivin? Fishing hut? Guardhouse?”
"Climbin' cross them ravines ain't gon be as hard work as takin' down Duskbringer,"Chrys says simply. "Long as we're supportin' each other, I don't think it'll be unmanagable."
(I think the answer is to just do it, as Nike would tell us XD)
(Lumen has no rope in his inventory for some reason, not sure if it was lost or he never had it. So hopefully we have something to work with, otherwise it'll get dicey. How far apart are the gaps? Lumen can long jump 16 feet, with a 10 foot running start. With a rope in one hand, he should be able to at least cross some of them.)
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Blinking against the spray of water as they made their way back through outside to the front of the keep, Nym tried her best to wring out her long white hair and excess clothing, glad that none had gotten into her boots at least. Eyeing the fifteen foot gaps between the bridge, the drow sighed and replied, "I've only the same as well." Pulling out a similar bundle of rope from her pack. "Your grappling hook would certainly come in handy though." Glancing between the two options the woman said, "I don't know about the rest of you but I think I might be able to make the jump. I'd need a good running start though. If I could make the jump and jump with one end of a rope and hold it, someone else could try and jump holding that end and having a new end of another rope attached to them, that way if they fall, I could try and pull them up?" She glanced between the Pie Pals and Fivin to see what they thought.
(( GM: Does it look like there would be enough room between where the bridge is out to get a running start to make the jump? ))
Nym Durnodel - Aspiring Heroes of Faerûn // Danica Amastacia - Red Dead Annihilation
As you survey the stairs and broken bridges of the Sky's Ascend, you can see a gleam in Chrys's eye as she scopes out the cliffs and the texture of the rock and tries to spot places that could be used for hand and footholds on the cliff in the areas around the broken bridges. She's clearly in her element here, and knowing her level of comfort and knowledge of stonework, and her sheer athletic ability, it's obvious to you that she is the most capable person in your group to try and climb around the gaps or jump across. To her, it looks like either of those tasks would present a challenge of average difficulty: nothing exceptionally hard, but certainly not a walk in the park either.
At any rate, you can see that the Sky's Ascend, climbs a total of about 200 feet up the cliff face, with the first of the broken bridges being about 30 feet up the stairs. Consulting Fivin, while he is dismayed to see the damage done to the stairs, he continues to hold the opinion that this is the best and safest way up to the top of the butte.
"Of course, we should hope that the dragon does not decide to descend upon us while we're climbing these stairs... that would be most unpleasant!"
Lumen insight: 19
"What about getting the kids back down? That would be hard even if we partially rebuild the rope bridges. I'm fresh out of my bag of tricks -- I wish I had more ideas or spells that could help here," Lumen says, looking to the others.
Fivin answers Lumen's question, "I grant, that it will not be an easy task, but if it were, we would not have needed to ask the help of brave and capable adventures like yourselves in our moment of desperation. That being said, I have to place my faith and confidence in you that you will be able to succeed in rescuing Lia's children, because if you cannot do this, then no one will, and Faen and Syllin will either suffer a devastating fate at the mercy of Duskbringer, or else starve to death inside an empty keep."
Lumen
Throughout your brief conversation with Fivin, starting in the hidden stairs behind the waterfall, you get a feeling that he's hiding something, although you cannot discern what it might be. His urgency and obvious knowledge of the keep seems real, as does his genuine care for the children, but your gut tells you that there's something he's not being entirely forthcoming with you.
Lumen turns to Fivin. "You are placing your faith and confidence in us to do this. For us to do the same in you, I think you owe us the full story. I hate narrative loose ends. Before we try this next-to-impossible task, what should we know? And if you think there's something we shouldn't know, tell us anyway. So we can rescue the children."
Fivin responds with surprise and answers, his eyes wild with anxiety and fear.
"Master bard, I don't know what there is to say. We have told you everything. When our warriors had returned from their successful, but costly attempt to drive off the Red Claw orcs who had invaded our forest, we were beset by the sudden appearance of this vile dragon who now makes our home her own. In the ensuing battle to defend our keep, our numbers were decimated, with only Aelar, Lia, her two children and myself to survive the deadly attack. You saw Lia's condition they were in back at the druid's tree, she was barely alive with such great injuries. It is by the grace of Senanine Moombow that she lived."
"We have asked you to help rescue her children from a certain and horrible fate if they cannot be taken away from the threat of Duskbringer, and here we are now. I agree with you, it is a next-to-impossible task... I always knew that it would be, but we must try. You must use what skills you have to reach the keep, and this is the only way up. I only pray that we can make it in before the dragon notices our presence. I cannot imagine that she will take kindly to us."
A stricken grimace overtook Nym's expression as Lumen mentioned the difficulty it would pose in bringing the children back in the same manner they planned to enter. "I hadn't thought of that..." She admitted, biting her lip and left palm gripping the pommel of her sword tightly, wracking her brain uselessly for a solution. Picking up on the bard's semi-confrontational tone, Nym glanced between them before facing Fivin fully. "You said that you all had nothing to do but hope that we succeeded but if that were the case, why did you follow us all this way? Forgive me if I seem rude but you seem the least battle ready out of the three we had met so if there's something else you can do to help us help Faen and Syllin."
GM:
The one thing that Nym's mind is jumping to currently is that he's here to "end the children's suffering" if we aren't able to rescue them, is he giving off those kind of vibes? Insight: 6
Nym Durnodel - Aspiring Heroes of Faerûn // Danica Amastacia - Red Dead Annihilation
Turning to Nym, Fivin answers her.
"I did not follow you, which is evidenced by the fact that I arrived here before you did. I merely returned to my home, as I had always intended on doing so. I gave you a couple of days head start, then set off, figuring that things would have been resolved by the time I arrived. If not, then I felt I could be of help, since I know the keep and since I was the last one to see the two children alive. Aelar and Lia are no doubt a few days at most behind me. As Aelar told you, they planned to rest further until Lia was recovered enough for the journey, then they would make their way back here with hope that you had saved the children and either killed the dragon, or driven it away."
"And you are right, my dear. Being the chronicler of our people, I am no warrior. I am indeed the least battle ready of us all, but as I said, I know the keep, and the children know me. If we encounter them, then I would be able to convince them that you are to be trusted."
"However, I can understand that I could possibly be a liability here, so if you feel that it would not be safe for me to accompany you up the Sky's Ascend and into the keep, then I will retreat and hide while I wait for Aelar and Lia. If you still have Lia's pendant, then that should be enough to convince them."
"It is your decision."
Nym
No, from everything you see and hear from Fivin, you get the sense that he genuinely cares for the safety of the children and is very determined and hopeful to see them rescued and brought to safety.
"Oh no," Chrys chortles, noting Lumen's questioning of the elf. "You're comin' wit' us, friend. Fer all yer talk 'bout knowin' the Keep, feels like we're gon need ya right there by us where we kin keep an eye on ya. After all, if ya ain't no warrior, stands ta reason ya just coulda come with us ta get us here faster. Ya did arrive here "'fore us" as ye said. Mayhap we were delayed by takin' care o' the rest o' that Red Claw threat fer yer clan, seein' as how they wanted ta join forces with Duskbringer here afore we punched a hole in their plans."
She crosses her arms and gives Fivin an intimidating state. "'Course, how I see it, ya weren't expectin' us ta deal with them orcs fer ya. Only with the dragon. An' I ain't thinkin' ya rushed out here fer the kiddos' sake, much as ye may like 'em. Ye said yerself, ye were expectin' us ta be here an' done, or dead. So I'm thinkin' ye came jere ta find or get somethin', 'fore the rest o' yer clan returned. Somethin' ye don't want the rest o' ye clan ta know 'bout."
She stares at Fivin, hard. "We be challengin' a mad black dragon an' a will o' tha wisp here on account o' yer folk. Would help me ta believe ye ain't got greed in yer heart motivatin' ye out here if ye were ta level with us. But right now, that high an' mighty attitude ye takin' ain't helpin' nobody here."
Intimidation: 21
Fivin is visibly taken aback by Chrys's surprisingly blunt confrontation. He cowers a little bit, recoiling slightly with his body before responding.
"I assure you, there is no greed in my heart here and I mean to intent to cause confusion or ill will with you. This keep and my surviving companions is all I have. They are my life, as they have always been. I only serve Sehanine and those brave warriors who would fight bravely for our cause to protect this place and our people who inhabit it. With so many of our tribe dead, having been slayed by the Red Claws and the vile dragon Duskbringer, Faen and Syllin are our only future now. And the only reason I did not accompany you directly was to stay behind and make sure that Lia was ok."
"As for the Red Claws... I had every notion that you may have encountered them on your journey here, for they are the reason why we are in this terrible predicament. Had our numbers now beed reduced by their fight with the orcs, perhaps we would have been better prepared to defend our keep from the dragon. We will never know, but what is certain is what is right in front of us now... a menacing wyrm whose very presence threatens the life of Lia's two children... if they are indeed still alive."
"Either way, I will come with you. As I said, I am glad to be of any help that I can."
Chrys follows up on Fivin's statement with some close scrutiny: Insight 23
Chrys
You get the sense that Fivin is very much intimidated by you, but your gut tells you that his sense of desperation and concern for the children and his people is genuine, as his fear for the dragon. His story makes sense, based on what you heard from Aelar; who did tell you that they would plan to wait a few more days until Lia was more fully recovered before making the journey back to Ravensglade. You feel that there's not reason to doubt what he's telling you right now.
Nodding at the new information that Lia and Aelar were already on their way to them, Nym commented, "Hopefully we won't manage to miss them on the return trip." Knowing that was rather optimistic of her to say. Humming at his offer to help convince the children they were allies, she replied, "I assumed that the pendants and dragon would be enough but your presence likely wouldn-" Eyebrows rose at Chrys' quick and rather vehement reply. At first she thought it was a bit...much. But upon listening to the dwarf's words, Nym couldn't help but glance at Fivin for his reaction.
Personally satisfied with the other elf's answer, the cleric eyed between the two before (quietly) patting them both on the shoulders, drawing them into a very awkward half hug for a heartbeat or two before letting go. "Well. Eilistraee be praised that that's settled. Fivin. You know these children. I've no doubt that both paths would be treacherous to both of them but which do you think they'd be able to handle better? Because I'd think it might be wise for us to take that path to know what we'll encounter when exiting."
Nym Durnodel - Aspiring Heroes of Faerûn // Danica Amastacia - Red Dead Annihilation
Fivin answers Nym.
"Faen and Syllin are capable youngsters, so I think that if we're able to make safe passage up the Sky's Ascend and somehow rig safe passage across the broken bridges, they will be able to follow us down. However, I would fear to do that if I knew the dragon was sill lurking around. It would be a disaster if she descended upon us while we were trying to make our getaway. I think the safest course of action would be to locate the children first, to make sure they're safe, and then find and kill Duskbringer. Once she is gone, we'll have the time to safely bring the children down."
"Of course, if you are indeed able to kill the dragon, then it might be a moot point, as there will be no need to rush them out of the keep. We can all wait inside with them until Aelar and Lia return."
“Why does everyone think it will be so easy to kill a dragon?” Lumen says.
Fivin answers. "Master bard, I apologize if I have misspoken. In no way do I think it will be easy to kill this dragon, for I have seen its destruction firsthand as it slaughtered most of my kin. My point, is that its mere presence here at the keep complicates the entire operation of trying to save the two children. There are dangers on either side, but the wyrm clearly presents the biggest one and it would be best for everyone if it were gone.”
”Now shall we try to make it up there now? I am old, but I still have some spring in my step. If you can rig up some kind of safe passage across those five gaps, then I can make it up there with you and we can look for them.”
"Perhaps the Gods will take pity and entice Duskbringer away, though I shall not hold my breath." Inhaling deeply she held it while looking at the ramshackle bridge and then her companions before letting it out. "Perhaps we could weave and knot our ropes together to mesh a sort of net? Though one person would have to jump across to either hold it or secure it and then the last person would as well considering we would have to do that five times...."
((I feel like there's a simple solution probably staring us in the face that we're tiredly missing xD ))
Nym Durnodel - Aspiring Heroes of Faerûn // Danica Amastacia - Red Dead Annihilation
“No one has any tricks up their sleeves do they? Otherwise yes this is going to be a lot of rope work. Any stores of equipment down here you know about Fivin? Fishing hut? Guardhouse?”
"Climbin' cross them ravines ain't gon be as hard work as takin' down Duskbringer," Chrys says simply. "Long as we're supportin' each other, I don't think it'll be unmanagable."
(I think the answer is to just do it, as Nike would tell us XD)
(Lumen has no rope in his inventory for some reason, not sure if it was lost or he never had it. So hopefully we have something to work with, otherwise it'll get dicey. How far apart are the gaps? Lumen can long jump 16 feet, with a 10 foot running start. With a rope in one hand, he should be able to at least cross some of them.)