Prelude - The Pit: Ashes and Cinder

The Age of Magic is ended, Bhall, the Goddess of Fire, has succumbed to the whispers of Agares and fallen into Hell. Her worshipers and creations driven mad, and fire, which has been a powerful ally to man, has turned against him. Each good god was charged with the opposition of an evil god. Bhall was responsible for balancing Mulcarn, the God of Winter. Finding himself unopposed Mulcarn has broken The Compact and moved into Creation.

Creation was on the verge of another open war between the gods, that which they had outlawed with The Compact. To keep that from happening a deal was struck and the gods agreed that one god would enter Creation to challenge Mulcarn. That was Sucellus, the God of Nature. The two gods battled across the face of Creation, entire civilizations still recovering from the Burning Skies that marked the fall of Bhall were destroyed by their power. In the end Sucellus was killed and Mulcarn remained.

The Eternal Winter has begun...
Run by the Arch-Mage Vardaen
paradoxa
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Re: Prelude - The Pit: Ashes and Cinder

Post by paradoxa » Tue Jan 19, 2010 8:45 pm

Vren seems to be content with that explanation, or perhaps just with having changed the topic.
She waits for the four kids to pick up their share, until she also takes some of the hard bread. But there seems to be something troubling her, the longer she has time to think about it, the clearer it shows.

Only after the kids have run off again, Vren speaks up.
"Listen. We got to talk. " There is some tension in her voice. She glances over to the playing kids, as if to make sure they're out of earshot, then focuses on Ellsbeth again.

"Nessa. You saw her hands?" Indeed, if Ellsbeth has been paying attention to those details, the girl's fingernails were blueish-black, and not just from dirt or bruises like one might first think. Also, the veins running from the back of her hand to the wrist are darker and more prominent than they should be, almost like black tendrils conjoined with the child's skin, under all that grime and dirt.

"It's the taint. "

Vren stares at the older woman, challenging her to meet her eyes. She's half expecting, half fearing a negative reaction, and bracing herself for that, but her stance makes it clear that she's ready to defend Nessa. She offers no further explanation. For her, it's obvious what the taint is and that it will be met with suspicion, fear, or hate by many people. So she waits for an reaction, just letting those three words sink in.

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Re: Prelude - The Pit: Ashes and Cinder

Post by Vardaen » Tue Jan 19, 2010 9:39 pm

Its taken enough time to where you are now eating the last of your rations, between Ellsbeth's 5 days and Vren's 5 days, that's enough to get you this far. If you don't reach Falcon's Hollow tomorrow you're going to go hungry. I adjusted your sheets to show the food gone. Also removed Ellsbeth's extra Explorer's Outfit cause the kids now are wearing it.
The group is moving forward walking slowly, eating on the way, talking and enjoying the lack of demon dogs chasing them.

Nessa and the kids are out chomping away on the bread laughing and playing in the grass, even little Jak seems a bit more happy than normal. Tomorrow you should reach Falcon's Hollow, a good things since you are about out of food.
"He that breaks a thing to find out what it is has left the path of wisdom." - Gandalf
J.R.R. Tolkien, Council of Elrond, The Fellowship of the Ring

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Re: Prelude - The Pit: Ashes and Cinder

Post by MadVlat » Wed Jan 20, 2010 8:32 am

As the group walks on throughout the day Ellsbeth continues to get to know her new friends. "I do not know what can be done for Nessa. Has she shown any other signs besides the physical ones?".

The afternoon wanes and Ellsbeth soon calls a halt to the day's journey. She begins a small fire and checks on the children's wounds as well as her own. Dusk is an eerie time, reminding the group of the area surrounding the great pit. So the paladin attempts to draw the children's attention, by reciting Junil's prayer as she prepares the youth's for bed. Then she opens her bedroll and gives up her blanket, expecting them to share as she takes up a position to guard the others near the fire...
Fluffing it with flavor folks. Won't be surprised if Vren want's to sit up for awhile, hint, hint...

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Re: Prelude - The Pit: Ashes and Cinder

Post by paradoxa » Wed Jan 20, 2010 5:46 pm

Vren is not sure what to make of this reaction, or better the lack thereof.

"She's done no wrong, if that's what you mean. But people will blame her... they always do. " Vren shrugs, remembering the numerous quarrels and clashes that Nessa's presence had caused. She can't believe that Ellsbeth doesn't seem to share the common aversion against the taint, or even acknowledge the problem, which is awfully obvious to her. So she maintains her somewhat aggressive defensiveness, trying to find out if Ellsbeth honestly doesn't see the point, or is playing the fool for some reason.

"Right after Nessa and Gunner - they're twins - were born, their own father wanted to abandon her, saying 'that demon-spawn' had cursed his son, drained his life-force... 't was just their mother's soft heart that saved her from being left in the ruins to die. And it's been like that, ever since... people don't want the tainted ones around. They say their blood calls out to the demons, their touch makes folks fall ill, brings bad luck... so.. will Falcon's Hollow even welcome her? "

The black-haired girl crinkles her nose, with all the defiant arrogance of youth.
"'Cos if the don't, they can go hang for all I care... bath or not. "
I'll post something to the "setting up camp"-part later... trying to get the conversation finished first, or we'll be having two diverging lines of action and a very confused paradoxa

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Re: Prelude - The Pit: Ashes and Cinder

Post by MadVlat » Wed Jan 20, 2010 6:19 pm

Ellsbeth has seen a few people bearing the marks of the taint and knows that they were hunted down by vigilante's in and around Peptine. The mobs of misunderstanding men and women blaming every catastrophy that came along on the unfortunate souls. However, she also knows that very few ever manifest truly to become evil. Of course few get the chance...

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Re: Prelude - The Pit: Ashes and Cinder

Post by paradoxa » Wed Jan 20, 2010 11:23 pm

Vren leaves the matter of the taint at that. She's not reassured at all by Ellbeth's thoughtful silence, but has made it clear that she will protect Nessa, so what else is there to be said. As for Falcon's Hollow, she decides to hope for the best, and prepare for the worst.

In the evening...
When Ellsbeth sets up camp, Vren sets out to do some foraging, She's used to this, that's how the kids got their food back in the ruins, hunting small animals with the bow, catching lizards, setting up slings, digging out roots and tracking down rats' nests in the ruins. But the environment here is quite different, so a lot of her old tricks don't work and she is forced to adjust those tactics to the new conditions.
Coming back, she is a bit grumpy, because of the meager successes.
When the kids go to sleep, she joins Ellsbeth at the fire, wrapping her own blanket round her shoulders.

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Re: Prelude - The Pit: Ashes and Cinder

Post by Vardaen » Thu Jan 21, 2010 10:45 pm

There is a sudden rumbling under the ground not too far away from camp, perhaps thirty yards or so, fairly close to where the kids are playing. The ground rumbles and then there is a burst of water high into the air. Jak screams in terror at the sight of the gyser. The super heated water blasts into the air and comes showing down on the kids who all take up the screams as they come running back toward the camp!

This whole area is home to strange geothermal activites, and up until now the small group has managed, by the luck of Junil, to simply avoid the various mud pits and gysers. By the grace of Junil you have managed to not fall into one of the hidden mud pits or discover the gysers in the most dangerous manner. Now however you are more than aware of the situation of where you are camping!
This is being added to the region sort of post-hoc, sorry about that. This world may evolved slightly as we go, that's why its the prelude and not Chapter 1 yet.

Geothermal Activity: Various forms of surface-level geothermal activities exist all throughout the plain, particularly in the areas south of River Foam and between it and the Burning Pit. Explorers after the Fall of Bhall in the area faced'€"in addition to the usual dangers from monsters, wild animals, and savage humanoids'€"the hidden hazards presented by subsurface mudpots and hot springs. Many early expeditions lost men or pack animals when an unsuspecting victim stepped on a particularly thin bit of ground and fell into the superheated mud or water underneath. Modern guides know of these dangers and lead their patrons around such obstacles, often following game trails. Unfortunately, even the most experienced guides sometimes lead their employers astray, as the geologic activity beneath much of the Darkmoon Plain remains relatively active and constantly shifts.

Most of the geologic features of the plain remain in plain sight, however, and announce themselves regularly or continuously. Many of these exposed geysers and mudpots attract the attention of people and creatures drawn to natural displays of beauty and heat!!
"He that breaks a thing to find out what it is has left the path of wisdom." - Gandalf
J.R.R. Tolkien, Council of Elrond, The Fellowship of the Ring

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Re: Prelude - The Pit: Ashes and Cinder

Post by paradoxa » Thu Jan 21, 2010 11:17 pm

Vren is up is a moment, sword in her hand, ready to fight or flee.
It takes her a moment to realize that the water blasting up in the air seems to be a natural phenomenon.
When she's sure it doesn't come any closer, and they are in relative safety for the moment, she checks on the kids. Tension turning into relief, Jak gets a friendly nudge on his head.
"Now don't get careless. Stay close, you hear?"
She looks from Jak, to Griet, Gunner and finally Nessa, to make sure they're paying attention.
"That still holds true when we reach Falcon's Hollow. Especially then. "
Vren is still uneasy about how they - Nessa in particular - will be received there, and if the happy ending they are hoping for isn't yet another delusion.
No problem...
I had imagined that there was lots of activity in the ground near the Pit, like earthquakes, cracks and rifts, lava, perhaps even whole areas crumbling away and slipping into the Pit.
So having those geothermal activities spread out a bit seems quite fitting.
Would be a bit strange anyway, if it's all green hills and lovely pastures, once you've left the fringes of the Pit behind... because why bother staying there, then.

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Re: Prelude - The Pit: Ashes and Cinder

Post by Vardaen » Fri Jan 22, 2010 12:25 am

Yeah. On the world map you'll see a wide piece of brown around the pit. Its all mud flats and gysers and crazy terrain. Not until you reach the Foam River and Falcon's Hollow does it pretty normal terrain. The water allows for grasses like we've been seeing, but lots of mudpits, and things along the way too.
Jak is silent as he's nudged in the head. Nodding he sits down around the fire to eat and eventually falls asleep at some point leaning against Vren right where he's sitting.

Nessa and Gunner linger near the fire as well but get up from time to time to look around poke and nudging one another both annoyingly and playfully as siblings do. Greit remains at the fire after the discovery of the gyser, silent, she eats and drinks and helps get Jak laying down and then curls up and falls asleep as well.

The sky is dark tonight, and cold, but the warm springs and mudpots in the area make this camp site ideal, even with the frost that will cover the ground come morning.
We are almost there.

MV remember that internal dialog doesn't help RP. Vren can't reply to thoughts in your head so be sure to vocalize Ellbeth's thoughts on the taint, etc.
"He that breaks a thing to find out what it is has left the path of wisdom." - Gandalf
J.R.R. Tolkien, Council of Elrond, The Fellowship of the Ring

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Re: Prelude - The Pit: Ashes and Cinder

Post by MadVlat » Fri Jan 22, 2010 7:35 am

Actually only half of the post is there. Time has been extremely short this week and I was in a hurry, apologies...
Ellsbeth too sits by the fire into the early night. Staring into the flames for long periods of time in between glances to survey the children. Finally, as the last of the children pass into sleep she begins to speak to Vren in hushed tones. "Tomorrow we shall arrive in Falcon's Hollow Junil willing and I have been thinking about the young one. I have extra bandages to wrap her hands with until we can obtain some decent gloves for her. Nessa is a sweet child and would see no harm come to her while she is under my care. That is if you approve Vren?"...

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