Nae awakes with a start, small tears blushing her cheeks “wha- why am I crying...?” She feels her arm and shakes it a bit trying to get feeling back. “What has already been answered....” Nae looks out the widow when she hears the thunder “Well you’re off to a great start Nae now how about you go find Noldeme... mayhaps she will know something...” Nae will grab her stuff and head out. If the butterfly is still hanging around she will stuff it into her bag so I’d does not get wet.

Greenport:

Noldeme wakes up holding her head. The headache she was feeling was strong but only momentary, the memory of that dream very clear on her head. She sits at the edge of the bed for a few minutes, replaying the dream in her mind, until she decides to shake it off, walking down the stairs to the tavern. 

Temple of Allycs:

I lightly put my hand on his shoulder, “Were any of them friends? I’m so sorry. Maybe it wasn’t right to bring you back here. I didn’t think.” 

“What did you find?”

Investigation: 23 

As we continue to talk, I grab hold of the object with Rattles and we lift together.

athletics: 4 

Orina and Jogs | Outer Cordivae / Rabbit Warren Dungeon

"You know, this might be some kind of magic machine," Orina says, sniffing at the aperture.  "The oily smell is coming from here.  I don't really think it's a commode," she adds on, "mostly because I don't see anywhere to sit!"

To GrrGrrFrr, she says: "We're not really sure Hainsley is really a hare.  He seems to be a creature of pure magic somehow... like a hare that was transformed to be something more than he is, or a sky-creature of some sort who was cursed and lost his memories of his previous life.  Hainsley said the first thing he remembered was waking up in a field and seeing stars, so we don't really know.  Maybe the answer is in this dungeon?"

When Hainsley floats over, Orina claps her hands excitedly.  "You can fly!  Maybe you're a fey-hare!  I wonder if --"

Her thoughts cut off as they hear the crank of Jogs pushing down on a handle.  Orina turns around, eyes wide.  "Uhh... what just happened?" she asks, glancing between Jogs, the handle still in her hands, and the doorways in the walls.

Dungeon: Trial of ???:

Orina & Jogs(Bunny Battalion):  As Jogs pulls on the handle, the disk it is attached to spins clockwise, and quite smoothly, with only a very quite cranking noise.  You notice that the aperture has gotten smaller, it seems it is made from overlapping plates, and spinning the leftmost wheel clockwise moved the leftmost plate inward.

"Curious.  Very Curious." Grr says about the events going on.  "Hare later, dungeon now.  Spin more."

Resolve -> Corvidae:  ((Got it, Dordis is not in range))

Dordis: The bolt slams into the demon, but it's grip on Zacharias does not give. Al has a look of horror on his face as the Demon sinks it's teeth into Zacharais.  Al leaps off his pony, pulls a hefty looking metal cane from his hat, and puts a solid drive into the Demon. Attack: 25 Damage: 12

With a thwack, he slams the demon off of Zacharias.  200 XP.  Al falls to his knees over Zacharias.

Rafon's Run Settlement:

Ulrich: He sits down, and takes a breath " ..Dane, is my name. It was just the one, but that was enough."  ((The Archbishop needs to contact you first, you'll need to find some way to contact the archbishop or hope that she contacts you out of the blue.))

The Tower - Level 1 - Stairway to Revelation  -> Level 2:

Xamodas: Onward and upward, eventually, the stairwell goes back into the walls of the tower.  after walking for about another hour, you reach flat ground.  The stairwell ends, there is a dark hallway ahead of you.  You feel after this long, you can face anything.  Xamodas went up a level! and Xamodas leveled up! Xamodas is now level 2, and on level 2.

Blackport - > Corvidae:

Leshanna:  "Well, that certainly is a description.  You know, in the right hands, a sword can strike with accuracy and power far beyond that of any weapon.  I've heard of these rifles, they do not impress me, and neither do those who use them.  However, if you are up for a little demonstration, and a perhaps friendly wager, I might be willing to change my stance.  How about it?"

Greenport:

Noldeme & Nae: As fate would have it, you both run into each other on the way down.  It is still exceptionally early, so there is just a handful of folks who've come for an early breakfast.  There's not much light out, you can only hope you haven't overslept, but Noldeme is quite used to waking bright and early anyhow.  Nae's butterfly is nowhere to be found.

Temple of Allycs: Yaw:  Rattles seems to be trying to pull up a broken circular stone slab in the middle of circular platform in the center of the.  He pulls a crowbar out, doing his best to move it aside. The slab has that same symbol on it.  You walk over, and give the crowbar an added push, and the extra help alone moves the stone slab to the side.  

There is a metal hatch with a handle, and there is a tiny circular keyhole.  "Jackpot!"

Outer Corvidae

Dordis Falthenfyern

Dordis feels the adrenaline of combat go out of him, and realizes how much effort he exerted on himself. He looks over to Al, and slowly moves a few feet behind him to glance over at Zacharias, losing his original noble composure, "I—are they alright? How did that—being best a faithful man such as him?" Dordis sees Zacharias' state and is horrified of what happened, not even trying to steer his resolve back, "W-we should bring Zacharias to Corvidae and look for anyone who could help him, or at least preserve him for the time being."  Dordis tries to look over Zacharias' wounds at see if he can discern his current state with his little knowledge of medicine; 20

Orina and Jogs (Bunny Batallion) | Rabbit Warren Dungeon / Trial of ???

(OOC: Let's get a map up here shall we:

Anyway, I hope you all know how camera apertures work, but basically, if you make an aperture bigger you reduce depth of field, and if you make it smaller you increase depth of field.  In other words, a small aperture makes for landscape shots, and a big aperture makes for macro / closeup shots.  Alternatively, wide apertures mean a lot of light, small ones mean not a lot of light.  I am of the opinion we don't want to open the big door, and therefore am totally guessing that we should maybe make the aperture bigger, rather than smaller.  Of course, getting the right aperture width may have nothing to do with the size of the door we open at all, who knows.  Anyway since I have a hard time visualizing this with text and an easier time visualizing this with images, I hope this diagram helps a bit with our next choices.

Edit: staring blankly at my own diagram has made me realize also that we probably want to try to open the medium, not the small door, as the entrance to the rest of the dungeon.  Derp.  That means medium aperture, I think.)

Orina watches the aperture moving with bated breath.  "Try turning it slowly in the other direction," she tells Jogs, just to see what happens.

”Hey Noldeme good morning” Nae puts the butterfly out of her mind for now worrying about it for later “How’d you sleep?” She says with a yawn

Tower Level Two

Xamodas stops walking and considers the hallways.  Traps, she said.  He lights a torch and sets it carefully at his feet.  

Then he pulls the flask of wine from his pocket.  It reminded him of home, of training, of the latent psionic potential his people possessed.  He closes his eyes and meditates on his training.  On his own studies.  He spends ten minutes focuses, muttering the proper words to hone his awareness.  Finishing the somatic components he opens his eyes again, searching for a hint of the arcane in this hallway.

OOC: Xamodas casts Detect Magic as a ritual, hoping to catch a hint of any magical traps.

Zacharias, at first confused, is overjoyed to realize he is seeing his master face to face. It is all he can do to not either fall on his face in worship or to grab Ilmater in a bear hug and refuse to let go. He settles for being in his presence and speaking to him and hearing an audible response. "Am I, my lord? Am I one of your favorite sons? I have tried so hard to honor you with my life. Through the trials and uncertainties, I have striven to trust you. I know I haven't always been as faithful as I should have been, but I hope my life has given you glory, especially as of late. When you told me you wanted me to be a missionary, I never hesitated to leave the compound. Even when everyone else doubted and attempted to persuade me to give up on what they thought was only temptation and discontent, I didn't let them talk me out of it." He pauses as they walk, his eyes downcast. "Why me, my master? Why did you choose me to leave and to become a missionary? And did I do it right? Did I heed your voice? Was I supposed to become a member of Rosebush? Or ... is this my punishment for going my own way?"

Blackport > Corvetae...

"I will hear your wager, then decide."  Leshanna says with a shrug.

Orina and Jogs (Bunny Batallion) | Rabbit Warren Dungeon / Trial of ???

Jogs blinks...blushes...and baaaaaaaacks away from the pedestal.  "Gonna stand over here."  Hammer and shield up and ready, looking behind them.

Temple of Allycs - Yaw:

Unlooping the key from its place around my neck, I crouch down, "I think you found it, Rattles! Would you do the honors? After all, the key was left for you. We can lift it together."

By the light of my rapier in this strange yet sacred place, I finally hand him back his key, smiling as I realize the bond we've built since I stumbled upon him and his captor not far from this spot. Though the room is empty now, by the state of it it isn't difficult to imagine the brutality of the scene he had described with the amount of dried blood and decimated stonework throughout the temple.

Orina and Jogs (Bunny Batallion) | Rabbit Warren Dungeon / Trial of ???

Orina gulps.  "Light guide me," she prays, approaching the pedestal.  She takes the same knob Jogs turned (Knob "no. 1" on the left) and experimentally turns it in the opposite direction (counter-clockwise).  The she studies the aperture to see what it's doing, as well as assess what state it is in (how far open was the aperture to begin with: all the way shut, partially open, all the way open?).

If the aperture is simply opening and closing depending on the direction that the left knob is being turned, Orina will reset the first knob to the default state they found the pedestal in, and then turn the second knob (no. 2) clockwise for one full revolution to see what happens.  (Otherwise, Orina will react to whatever happened the first time she turned knob no. 1 backwards...)

"John, Dula. Find the door to the basement but don't go near it. Anyone you find, bring them here."

He turns back to Dane. "When did the creature arrive and how did it enter here? Is there a door we need to block?"

((Just posting this to say the next post will be coming much later today))

Resolve -> Corvidae:

Dordis:  A single hard bite from the demon has punctured several organs, and fractured his spine.  Dead.

  Al, who once had a stony smiling facade, seems broken and downtrodden, a genuine sadness across his face.  "I suppose this is my punishment, isn't it.  He chose to go with me, were it anyone else, he would have been fine.  I should have pushed him away.  Now, events have been set into motion which cannot be undone.."  He seems completely distraught, silent, as you try to direct him.  He eventually says.  "Put him on the pony, I will walk.  Thank you, Dordis, I am glad you are able to keep a clear concious.  We will try to take him to Corvidae, if there is Corvidae left to take him to.  The Divinity Cascade has already begun."

Dungeon: Trial of ???

Orina & Jogs:  The aperture  was orginally a perfect square, but when the left side moved in, it became a rectangle taller than it was wide.  Turning the left not counter clockwise moves the left side again, back to a square, than a rectangle wider than it is tall.  Turning it clockwise moves it inward again, back to a square at its orginal position.  The second knob (i assume the top knob) moving clockwise moves the top side inward, the aperture becoming a rectangle wider than it is tall.  

GrrGrrFrr looks over.  "Hmm, I think I get."    Hainsley complains.  "So, it's just some art deco?  Could this be what adventurers want so badly?  I guess it does really tie up the room."

The Tower of Heaven - Level 2:

Xamodas:  At the edge of your magical detection range, you see clear signs of abjuration warding along the entire hall, and near at the edge of your range, you can see traces of evocation magic.  There are also clear signs of pressure plates along the floors and walls, and obvious signs of holes where all sorts of nasty things could poke through.

Temple of Allycs:

Yaw:  Rattles shakily takes the key, nervous and excited, and inserts it.  He takes a deep breath, and turns the key.  There is a sudden bout of clicking and solid ker-chunking as he turns the key fully clockwise before it stops turning.  He pulls it out, and lifts up on the hatch.  There is a metal ladder going straight down into a deep, dark hole carved from solid stone.  "Woah."

Rafon's Run Settlement:

Ulrich:  John and Dula head downstairs.  "I do not know, perhaps quite some time.  I am one of the helpers here at the mansion, and I investigated a commotion in the baron's room, and I swear, I saw him talking to that thing in some horrid tounge.  I would block the basement door, but I do not know how long it would hold."

Blackport -> Corvidae: 

"Simple, we pick a target, and we show off out skills with our weapons of choice.  I wager 2 prismaticite pieces I could take down that entire tree over there, what say you?" Prismaticite is quite a valuable trade resource in blackport.

The End:

Zacharis:  "Ah, my child, you should know better, there is no punishment in going to go and do good for others.  It was my blessing to you to guide you out of that place, which, really, a blessing given to yourself.  Keener is the hand that acts than the eye that sees, and your hand is my hand, and your feet are my feet.  That is exactly why I am here with you, but at the same time, I am not here with you, but I am never not with you."

"No, this is not a punishment, it is just a sad turn of events.  This is the place where the dead, the tragically dead, wait for what is to come; well, not quite actually, it's right...over...there."  He points to a humble wooden building that moves toward you from the darkness, lights shining through frosted windows.  As it appears, you see words on the sign hanging above the door.  'THE ENN'"  

"Go inside, we will rest here to speak of things that have been, things that are, and the things that will be."

Blackport > Corvetae

"I have no reason to doubt your word on the matter."  Leshanna says with a shrug.  "I would like to see the weapon that could do that sort of damage, though would not overly value such myself.  I prefer to be able to pick my target, and take out only the target I am after.  Seems like a lot of calateral damage with a weapon that can deal the damage you are speaking of."  She glances to the tree.  "And yet you have not really spoken of the contest... I know that my weapons cannot take down that tree, but I also have no reason to wish to take down a tree.  I prefer accuracy more than blunt-force.  What sort of contest do you propose if we are to have a true contest then?  And what would you ask of me if I were to lose the contest?"

Zacharias stops and looks at Ilmater, his face a picture of tranquility. At last, wordlessly, he nods and then turns to enter The Enn.

Xamodas sighs.  This was going to be tough.  He focuses on the torch at his feet, whispering under his breath, and the torch begins to levitate about three feet off the ground.  Then, foot by foot, it floats down the hallway.  He's following the torch about ten feet behind, carefully watching the signs of magic he detected and the obvious 'danger holes' throughout the hall.

Casting Mage Hand to float the torch along, hoping to trip a trap or two before he would trigger it himself.