[Forum Game] Descend into the Abyss

[Mezukie]

Aranea Courtesies to Ria "Good day Ria, My name is Aranea, I too use to be in power of my own kingdom though mine wasn't a council. It's a delight to see more have come to this place to make a home and see it flourish," She smiles. Venator doesn't seem to care to much for the introduction and instead just stands next to Aranea.

(Aranea use to be a queen which is why ykw said that, they hugged in a pm- when he was taken away from the main group)

[Mobbstar]

"What I am looking for?" With a funereal expression, the tinker interrupts his work and starts telling his story...

Spoiler

"Almost half a century passed since a merchant travelled through my village of birth and talked of the great success of the tinkers in the north. Y'know, the wonderous tinker family. I was a boy, but already known for craftsmanship comparable to that of professionals. My parents took the opportunity, scraped together what money they could and sent me with the merchant, so I would become a great workman.

Upon seeing my abilities, the leader of the tinkers - Hammas-Pyora, agreed to take me under his wings. Like most tinkers, I got a new name: Pih-Dit, or Pit for short.

At some point, a new artifact had been discovered: the basalt heart. It is believed to be a basilisk's organ, or at least to have come in contact with a basilisk, for it would petrify anything it touched. It also emitted astonishing amounts of energy under the right circumstances, a property the tinkers harnessed to supply the nearby city with all the power it could possibly need."

Pih-Dit stops talking for a moment, smiling, as if remembering something he doesn't want to tell... yet.

"Things were going well."

Suddenly Pih-Dit has a face like thunder.

"Hammas-Pyora promoted me to work with the basalt heart. The more I studied the contraptions and materials used in the harnessing apparatus, the more worried I became about it. The construct wasn't safe enough in my opinion.

I said: 'Hammas, the generator is insecure. I think we can implement better security measures with the knowledge and resources available, take a look at this design!'
'But Pit, the system is stable. I understand your concern, yet I don't see any way the basalt heart could damage itself or its surroundings.'
'What about external forces? What if, for whatever reason, the room catches fire? What-"
'Listen, the basalt heart is protected well and our interaction rules are strict. Adding the layer you suggest here would reduce the gain severely. We can't allow for that.'

Feeling rage and defeat deep within, I grabbed various supplies and pieces, some tools and a few gizmos, then set off to leave the tinkers. I wouldn't take it, I wouldn't live anywhere near something this volatile. And so, I made a living off fixing mechanims and pottery on-site."

Pih-Dit calmed down again.

"Years passed, who once was a young man now has slight wrinkles and laughter lines. I was in a tavern, repairing the keeper's gimlet, when a merchant entered and told of a sudden power cut in the city the basalt heart linked to. A dire premonition struck me, only to be confirmed at late night. Two hunters entered and reported that they came from a deer stand to the north and saw trees in the distance that wouldn't sway despite the strong wind.

Some days later, there was still nobody coming back from the area, not even the gendarmerie sent to investigate on the nearby path. There has to be an answer to this. I gathered information everywhere I could eversince the hunters' telling, but the only faintly promising cure for what I still fear to be true lies in the "Abyss". Having nothing left to lose, I set out for adventure."

"That is why I went with this rag-tag group. I'm sorry I haven't told any of you earlier." Deep in thoughts, the tinker looks at the temporal wizard.

[PhelsarusBeel]

(Don't you worry about spamming Mage. ATM we got a social phase so you guys can talk as much as you want till I decide that it's time to get up and move on.

Really it's only spamming if it happens during combat but if I make it clear that this is a resting phase you can talk as much as you want.)

[Ysulyan]

Rhi was listening to Ria when she suggested he stayed at the kingdom they were visiting right now after everything was over. The idea was very tempting. This was by far the biggest adventure yet, and he really had nowhere to go. He overheard Pit talking about his past, so an ear perked up to listen, finally looking at the tinker. “Pit… If this is the name your superiors gave you, then… What is your real name? Also, you can count on us for finding this cure… We are all going to get through this, and when we reach the bottom of the Abyss, perhaps what we seek is there… Perhaps some way to revert the petrified state of your region…”
He then paused.
“But as far as my story goes? I only wish to be with great adventurers, like this group. It’s the joy and dream of every bard, to be with great heroes and support them as they travel! Only the greatest of stories and songs can come from adventures like these. I don’t know what will I find at the end of this journey, though…!”

[GiddyGuy]

"Yes, yes Pit sounds like a rigorous task to find such a cure but if the two love bir-dragoons would stop swooning each other I shall tell you why I've come to the dungeon"

Backstory

Spoiler

I've come in search of a certain tome I've heard rumors about true time travel, for I had an assistant before I came here and she was more than an assistant mind you that.

My assistant Elizabeth always longed to explore the past and future eras she was always ready for adventure, pity she's not here.

But anyway me and her were performing a ritual to do the very exact same thing, we spoke many incantations, collected many ingredients, and last but not least got my very own staff the tempus imperium for the portal to manifest upon. 

So we performed the old song and dance of the ritual, and at first it worked we opened a portal to somewhere, I tried to predict where it might lead to, but I felt an evil presence on the other side my assistant...my poor Elizabeth was pulled into the portal right before my very eyes and like that the portal closed...I couldn't even repeat the process to open the portal, no matter what I tried it would never open again.

So that is why I've come here to this accursed "abyss" to seek any scriptures, any pages, ANYTHING! That can tell me how to find my beloved.

"Ahem anyway." Jordan wipes a single tear away. "Jasmine, why would an eccentric swamp dweller come to a place like this, also you've been mighty quiet haven't you my darling."

[DragonMage156]

"Quite an interesting tale you all have. I hope you all find what your looking for". Then Ria looked at Jordan, wide eyed. "What? Are you implying that me and the kobold like each other? Let me just say that I came along with you guys simply because I wanted to go on an adventure and help you get to the depths of the Abyss. It can get rather boring being part of the council here afterall" Ria crossed her arms "If anything were to happen between us however, it would not be till after our quest is completed"

(Unfortunately, Ria doesn't know these people...)

[LiptonPee]

As the spotlight moves to her, she freezes up for a moment. She had been zoned out mostly this entire time, dragons were just so boring to her. "Oh, well," she begins, glaring at Jordan from under her gaze. "You see..."

Spoiler

"I'm a human from a swamp far south of this dungeon in the over-world. At a young age I was overpowered by a spider, and eaten. I seemed to be indigestible, and grew into it pretty well- I'm fine by the looks of it today, and my colorful friends of the swamp cared a bit less about my presence since I resembled them more, naturally. It was hard to get along with townsfolk, so I turned to adventurers. They seemed to be a little more diverse in who they got acquainted with. And as it turns out, I find adventure thrilling! I wouldn't ask to be anywhere else, well, most of the time." 

She bows to Aranea in apology. "I'm sorry if I have fooled you with my appearance. But I couldn't let you hurt my friends until you gave them a chance."

[DwerBomb]

Renn waves at Ria

[YouKnowWho]

Manny sighs, and points at Aranea. "She knows. I'd rather not say it myself, thank you very much." He says, beginning a colored ice sculpture of Ria to hopefully make up for not saying his tale himself.

[Mezukie]

Aranea bowed back to Jasmine "It is quite alright, there was no harm that came with it and protecting those close to you should always be top priority. I'm glad to be able to become a part of your group, it remind me of older times before I came here," she walked over near Manny and watched him work. Venator looked around at the group then focused on Ria "I'm called Venator," he finally said before staying quiet again.

[DragonMage156]

Ria waved back at Renn. Then saw Manny working on a small(?) ice sculpture. She couldn't tell what/who it was since he had just started (atleast that's what I think). "I must say you are quite good at sculpting my friend" Then Venator introduced himself. "Nice to meet you Venator" She smiled.

[DragonMage156]

(Welp, no one's posted in over 24 hours. Is that our signal to move on with the story now?)

[PhelsarusBeel]

(Probably. I start working on it but I can't make promises today due to me having to do some stuff for college. If all else fails I just start writing on it today and finish it tommorow.)

[Mobbstar]

The tinker appears to be done fixing Tony. He leans back and starts dozing off.

(yeah I can sh*tpost too)

[MenaAthena]

Miles had been listening with half an ear to the ongoing conversation as she intently watched the tinker work on her prized weapon. Her reasons for being here, although important to her, she thought wouldn't be all that interesting to listen to, so she'd only speak up about it if directly asked. Right now she was looking over Tony in her hands, mentally going over how and why Pit made the repairs.

[PhelsarusBeel]

(A'ight back to work for me it seems. Sorry bout the delay got a lot of stuff happening ATM due to the semester nearing it's end and now every darn Prof wants us to write essays or other things it's quite annyoing)

 

 

After a small introduction round the Veteran returns with a few more of his bretheren all carrying different types of food from simple bread to meat. All seems rather simple yet you don't hesitate since you don't know when you have the chance to get another meal of this kind.

As the night creeps in you decide to head of to sleep. Some head off towards the offered beds while others keep their sleeping place simple to not get to comfortable inside this dungeon.

As the morning approaches you wake up refreshed and ready for everything the dungeon can throw at you. As the group gathers in the main room you notice that someone is missing. Battal didn't appear out of his room. YOu open the door and find him lying in his beat drenched in sweat. Quickly you call for assistance from the dragonkin. A few moments later a medicus appears and starts observing the unconcious man.

After an hour he finally is done with his diagnosis. It appears that Battal had some major internal injuries. Remembering back you did recall him getting weaker as time went on. Maybe he was injured even before entering the Abyss or maybe one of the encounters caused him this injury. You ask the Medicus if he will survive. The halfdragon looks at your group and tells you that with the medical skills of his kin he's going to survive but the healing process will take time. Time you unfortunatly don't have. Hesitant at first you all agree on leaving him in the hands of the dragonkin hopping he will recover soon and you might see each other again.

With a slightly damped mood you make your way towards another set of portals that the Elder send you news about during the meal. As it seems the dungeon has many portals all throug out each of it's own little pocket dimensions and all lead towards different places. The Elder said it can be considerd like a spiderweb of paths all leading towards the middle or the sanctuary.

As you arrive at the designated spot you see that he wasn't lying. Two of the big omnious portals stand infront of you. As your group gets closer two things suddenly happen. First the expected resonating effect the crystals in everyones hand. However the second one wasn't as expected. A small piece of everyones crystal suddenly breaks off to form a new one wich directly flys towards Ria and burrows into her hand just like it did with the rest. It appears that the crystals can feel the presence of new memebers towards the group and ensure everyone can get further even if the rest gets killed.

After this weird event you finally look towards the portals. Through both you can faintly see a bit of what lies beyond.

The portal to the left shows a lush green plain area.

The one to the right shows what appears to be a rainforest.

It's now in the hand of your group to choose where to go next.

 

[DwerBomb]

(So is this Battal taking a break?)

[PhelsarusBeel]

3 minutes ago, DwerBomb said:

(So is this Battal taking a break?)

(Nope he's gone for good. He told me like 2 pages ago that this isn't for him and that he wants to drop out. So I was literally thinking for a few days on how I can remove him without just killing him. Maybe not the best way but it's at least something decend)

[YouKnowWho]

Manny worked all night on his miniature ice sculpture of Ria. In the morning, he surprised her with the gift, yawned a couple times, and sleepily stumbled around, kind of following the adventuring group.

He was too tired to care about which portal they went through.

[Battal]

(I could just give up and live in the dragon village.)
 

(Never mind, I failed to actually read P's post )

[Mobbstar]

"H-Hrn... Is the crystal... thinking? Even now?"

[DragonMage156]

When Ria woke up, she was excited and anxious about her new adventure. She didn't get a lot of sleep last night because of it but she was wide awake and ready for her new quest.

Once everyone was awake and ready to set out, Manny gifted her with a little ice sculpture. It was a mini Ria. "For me?" she said, pointing to herself. Manny nodded so she took it. "Thank you" she smile "this gift is lovely, greatly appreciated"

As they walked down their path, Ria says to the group "Do not worry, our medics are professionals. I have seen them bring many people back from the brink of death. Battal with be just fine" Ria thought for a second "...He'll like it in that world. It's peaceful and better off for him than to journey on, I'm sure he'll understand once he wakes up"

"Here we are" she said as they came across the two portals. Just then, she noticed small crystal pieces floating upwards from everyone's hand. It formed what looked like another crystal then shot towards Ria's hand. "AH!" she shouted in pain as for it was sharp, almost like a pullet. Then she looked at it. The crystal she thought, much like the others. Perhaps it has something to do with these strange portals. But why? My people, from the young mages to the great sages, have never needed such crystals to travel through portals.

[Zeklo]

Quentin had remained rather quiet through the bulk of the journey through the dragon paradise place or whatever. He hadn't really been paying attention. What he had been doing was dumping countless mixtures onto the crystal that rested in his hand. He had yet to get over it, and his glove had become a colorful stain of colors, burns, and tears.

~~~~~~~~

What? The crystal was finally doing something! Ha! Finally he had discovered—wait, they were... oh come on. They were just forming a crystal for... wait who even was that? He had been so distracted he didn't realize they had a new member. That must have left a bad first impression. Not that he cared, but... ok, maybe he cared a little bit.

[Ysulyan]

Sometimes, he enjoyed waking up early to gaze at the morning sun and gather inspiration from his surroundings to create new melodies. So he did, but a moment after the sun fully rose, he stopped and double-checked the strings,  making sure they were properly tuned. His voice was better now, and even though the constant playing left his hands a bit sore, he was alright. He gathered his belongings and looked at the most prized thing someone ever gave him: a trophy made of unthawed ice. It said: “#1 Bard”, and it was gifted by Manny the day before. He let out a happy yip and hugged the icy reward once again. He whispered to himself that he was getting even closer to his actual desire, and was glad he had found that group. After he put the object away, he geared up and grabbed a second bag filled with provisions, so that next time nobody would have to go hungry, at least for as long as the food and drink lasted.
He was rather sad Battal had to stay. After staying a good amount of minutes and offering him a soothing serenade, he bid him farewell and wished him the best. He promised to come back and share treasures with him. He also thanked him for the help he had offered and will remember him in his songs.
Gathering, Rhi greeted the other party members. He followed he or she who lead the way now, plucking idly at his lute strings to give some calm atmosphere. When they finally arrived at the portals, he was impressed by the fact that the crystals on their hands fragmented slightly to give Ria a brand new jewel of her own. Inspecting the portals, he was inclined to choose the rain-forest, it reminded him of his home so he was used to such terrains. Rhi simply noted he was eager to continue through that place

[GiddyGuy]

8 hours ago, Battal said:

(I could just give up and live in the dragon village.)

(And have dragon babies :^))

1 hour ago, Ysulyan said:

After staying a good amount of minutes and offering him a soothing serenade

Spoiler

I'm pretty sure that's how it went down. :^)

And thus after leaving the cold, and never liking of his humor Battal to rest at the inn/tavern/hospital, Jordan joined the group to embark towards the portals as they approached the portals and after Ria got her piece as expected from the presence inside the gem shards, we were then faced with two options.

"I say we go to the plains area, sounds like it would have less poisonous and annoying insects, plus what would be threatening in a plains area?" Jordan said with an confident smirk.