006: Letters in the sand

[Sierra]

<El-Cideon> "Are the counsel's deliberations quite finished?" Silverbark asks impatiently as Bullfinch rejoins the trial proper. "Oh yes," the winged woman replies smoothly. "We are quite prepared to resume questioning the defendant."
<Julia> Julia turns to face the other fey from where she stands besides the unfortunate Hyacinth. "The defence is ready, your honour," she says with a curtsey.
<Stephanie> It's time to make sure she can get in there with a proper objection! Since the court doesn't seem to follow any actual laws, she just needs to wait until she can make the prosecution look stupid...
<El-Cideon> "I believe the particulars of the crime quite well established," Bullfinch preens. "Witness after witness testifying that they saw the defendant commit the crime of which she is accused--you have all heard it!" she says to the jury/witnesses. "If the defense has an explanation for this terrible behavior, well!" She laughs lightly. "I am sure it would be very entertaining to hear."
<El-Cideon> For her part, Lady Horseshoe looks equal parts surprised and irritated to apparently no longer be the defense counselor, although one could begin to suspect irritation is a constant aspect of her existence.
<Julia> "Yes, actually," Julia does her best to match Bullfinch in haughtiness. "First of all, we would like to question the prosecutions evidence. Was a detect magic spell performed at the crime scene and the results entered into evidence?"
<El-Cideon> "Oh, but of course!" Bullfinch replies instantly.
<Julia> "Then the defence calls to the stand whomever cast the spell in question," Julia retorts with all due drama.
<El-Cideon> Bullfinch draws herself up and smiles at Julia in a sedately predatory manner.
<Stephanie> "Hey, is having the prosecution as a witness allowed? That happens?" asks Stephanie, sidling up to Franceska.
<Julia> "First of all, at what time was the detect magic examination made?" she asks, unruffled by the multitasking prosecuter.
<Franceska> "Of course not," Franceska tells Stephanie in her businesslike manner. "Nor are witnesses allowed to serve on the jury and vice versa. Of course, if I were to object to that I might as well object on the basis of all witnesses being too drunk to be credible."
<Stephanie> "Hmm. Maybe we should just repeat back everything they say in a silly voice. That wins arguments, that does!"
<El-Cideon> "It was precisely eleven fifteen in the evening," she says.
<Julia> "Thank you. And if I may ask the Court Scribe, at what time did the alleged incident take place?" she asks, looking around to see if there's a scribe or anyone who can answer her.
<Franceska> "It would get you accused of contempt," Franceska muses, before glancing at Stephanie. "But it is up to the judge, so if you act entertaining enough you should score your points and escape any reprecussions."
<El-Cideon> The human bailiff flips through his notes/scribbles for a moment. At a very sharp look from Bullfinch he answers, "Eleven fourteen?"
<Julia> "One whole minute," Julia then says with a tone of shock and disbelief. "I would hope everyone here is sufficiently versed in magical theory that it would be understood when I say, that even a spell of the sixth circle could have its lingering aura dissipate completely within that time. Therefore I put it to the Jury that it is fully possible - indeed, extremely probable! - that the defendant
<Julia> was victim of magical malfeseance to make her appear the criminal! A Gust of Wind spell, a Telekinesis spell... a Suggestion spell or a Dominate spell, even a Confusion spell! All of these could have been used to make her collide with the vase through no fault of her own, and all the traces gone by the time the prosecution bothered to step away from drinking and debauchery to even take
<Julia> the first step in their investigation!"
<El-Cideon> OOC: roll diplo? +5 for application of MAGICAL THEORY
<Julia> roll 1d20+9 I'm better at lying
* Hatbot --> "Julia rolls 1d20+9 I'm better at lying and gets 19."12 [1d20=10]
<El-Cideon> There is some murmuring amongst the jury--they don't necessarily seem convinced, but they're certainly intrigued to hear a new theory!
<El-Cideon> "Really, dear," Bullfinch says with a slight edge to her voice, "the prosecution had consumed but one glass of wine. Someone must watch over this lot, after all."
<Julia> Rather than going for a clear win, Julia is happy to appeal to the Judge now, "The defence moves for a mistrial, on the grounds of inadequate investigation by the prosecution."
<El-Cideon> Lady Silverbark frowns. "Is that allowed to happen?" she asks dubiously, glancing to her human aide for guidance in these mysterious mortal affairs. He looks up and nods. "Oh sure, all the time milady. Nine out of ten trials end in a mistrial," he says with deliberate seriousness. "Well," Silverbark continues, "then I simply cannot see the point of this trial by jury business at all! Justice is simpler when a person does something wrong and I simply give her a lashing then and there." She affirms this with a confident nod. "Very well! Court is...adjourned?" She hefts her hammer and bangs it on the desk, which contact the desk does not survive in one piece.
<Julia> "My work here is done. No need to thank me," she smiles at Hyacinth and quickly backs off before Silverbark follows through on her hopes of lashing someone.
* Franceska can't help but be disappointed at the avoided punishment to someone who clearly deserves it.
<El-Cideon> Hyacinth gives Julia a respectful bow, then takes wing and flies across the clearing to rejoin her mistress. Bullfinch watches Julia slip away as though she were a cockroach scurrying away from the light.
<Julia> "How does anyone ever get found guilty of anything?" Julia quietly asks Franceska as she gestures for them all to move along. "That was easy!"
<Franceska> "By striving to avoid corrupt or inept participants in the process," Franceska responds just as quietly, respecting Julia's wishes.
<El-Cideon> "I don't think they really understood what they were doing," Rosemund says, glancing back. "Or at least the judge didn't."
<Julia> "Well we got what we came for! Now we just need to find a way to this Mithardir?"
<Stephanie> "Or by indulging heavily in corruption and incompetence! The trick is to go all in on one or the other!"
* Franceska glares at Stephanie.
<Stephanie> Stephanie beams at Franceska.
<El-Cideon> Anyone taking a last look back would just have time to see Hyacinth communicate something to her Mistress--which Silverbark receives with evident delight--and then the two turn away hand in hand. The stone circle is soon left behind, leaving the group alone again amidst rolling, flowery hills.
<El-Cideon> "Mithardir is easy enough to find, at least," Marina points out. "Portals between the realms of Arborea are quite common."
<Franceska> "How might we go about finding one, then?"
<El-Cideon> "Mm." She searches her memory for a moment. "You want to look for a bare patch of white rock. It should stand out among all the greenery. Follow the hills north to the mountains? I believe they should be more prevalent as the grasslands give way."
<Stephanie> "You don't wanna come along for the fun?"
<Franceska> "Yes, is it not fun to walk through all these green open spaces?"
<El-Cideon> "Oh, well!" she sounds relieved to hear the question. "I didn't exactly pack for desert travel...but I would be glad to help, of course." She can only nod with complete sincerity to Franceska's question.
* Franceska cheers up a bit upon seeing that.
<Julia> "Speaking of, we should make sure to try and gather some food and refill our canteens here before we cross into desert," Julia suggests.
<Franceska> "I could summon water if we need it," Franceska assures Julia. "It would be perfectly clear and not poisoned one bit!"
<Julia> "That's handy! Well just food, then?"
<Stephanie> "I brought plenty of food, but water, water's good," muses Stephanie. "So what spells do you cast, eh? Are you one of those flashy wizards?" she asks, sidling up to Marina. "Can you cast that spell that makes people big?"
<El-Cideon> "Well, I would offer you whatever you like from my garden, but we would have to walk all the way back and then again here." To Stephanie, she looks somewhat abashed. "Ah, just a few simple spells, really. In truth, none of it comes to me from study. I lack my father's discipline in that way. Sometimes these things just...occur to me. I cannot say that I know that spell. Why, do you have need of it?"
<Stephanie> "Nah, nah, it's just fun!" replies Stephanie. "Almost as fun as the one that makes you go fast, you know?"
<El-Cideon> "Oh, we do not have to worry about food!" Rosemund adds for her part. "I can conjure whatever we might need! Although I can make no claim that it will be as tasty as what Julia might cook."
<El-Cideon> "Ah, I do know that one," Marina says, brightening up.
<Julia> "What about if you can summon just ingredients?" Julia asks Rosemund, "A bit of spices and cooking them up properly and they'd be just as good as real food, perhaps?"
<Franceska> "Is there a spell like that?" Franceska asks with renewed interest.
<El-Cideon> "Oh, I do not know," Rosemund says. "It has always been very simple stuff. The spell was designed just to keep a person alive, not satisfy a gourmand." She looks skeptical. "Perhaps if I learned to cook I would be able to conjure better food?"
<Julia> "Ah well, I'm sure we'll make do," Julia shrugs.
<El-Cideon> Marina looks up to the sky, where the first stars are starting to show through. "Well, I doubt that we want to search in the dark. Shall we...camp out for the night?" she suggests, sounding enthusiastic about the prospect.
<Franceska> "I will summon the hut, then," Franceska says just as enthusiastically, finding a spot to do just that.
<Stephanie> "Nah, let's get a ways away first," replies Stephanie. "I didn't like the look that Bullfinch woman was giving us. Real mean, daggers right through the heart."
* Franceska pauses, glancing at Stephanie. "Really? I doubt she would keep a grudge."
<Julia> "Since the hut goes up much faster than making a tent we can go further than normally," Julia agrees. "And I know, it's just like Prince Gecki said, she looks at you like she wants to eat you!"
<El-Cideon> "She is not one to appreciate a loss," Marina acknowledges. "But then, they do all seem to have very short memories."
<Stephanie> "Except when they develop a fixation on something?" replies Stephanie, tilting her head. "And she lost. People like her hate losing. You see how proud she was, all stuffy and arrogant?"
<Franceska> "Can you even consider that sham a loss?" Franceska asks dubiously.
<El-Cideon> "Well, it is not as though anyone really won either, is it?" Rosemund points out. "Do you think it would make a difference if we explained that?"
<Julia> "Hyacinth never got whipped so I'd say she won," Julia disagrees with a sage nod.
<Franceska> "If she chases us down and we need to explain it, it would not really do any good," Franceska muses. "And yes, that... fairy, what's her name, she never got whipped so she can count that as a win."
<Stephanie> "Eh, balls to explaining things. If she chases us, we can dump a bucket of manure on her head and run away," replies Stephanie, nodding.
<El-Cideon> OOC: so, pressing on? We're in forced march territory at this point, so make CON checks if you're walking more.
<Franceska> roll 1d20+3
* Hatbot --> "Franceska rolls 1d20+3 and gets 12."12 [1d20=9]
<Julia> roll 1d20+1
* Hatbot --> "Julia rolls 1d20+1 and gets 9."12 [1d20=8]
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+3 Rosey
* Hatbot --> "El-Cideon rolls 1d20+3 Rosey and gets 15."12 [1d20=12]
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+2 Marina
* Hatbot --> "El-Cideon rolls 1d20+2 Marina and gets 10."12 [1d20=8]
<Stephanie> roll 1d20+3
* Hatbot --> "Stephanie rolls 1d20+3 and gets 4."12 [1d20=1]
<El-Cideon> roll 1d6 nonlethal and fatigued Julia/Marina/Stephanie
* Hatbot --> "El-Cideon rolls 1d6 nonlethal and fatigued Julia/Marina/Stephanie and gets 1."12 [1d6=1]
<El-Cideon> After an additional hour's walk, the mountains are closer and the stone ring is a distant memory...but most of the group is also sagging with weariness.
* Julia starts to quickly flag despite her wish to press on, slowing down and walking with a more slumped gait. "Mmm... lets camp here?" she asks wearily, just wanting to sit down for a bit.
<Franceska> Looking distinctly smug, especially in the glance she gives Rosemund, Franceska heads to put up her hut in a good spot.
<El-Cideon> OOC: setting up any kind of watch or anything? (General point to note any time you camp out in the middle of nowhere.)
<Stephanie> OOC: we have like owls and unsleeping imps
<Julia> OOC: Thing can watch on Julia's behalf
<El-Cideon> OOC: okay!
<Franceska> OOC: Darrin can likewise take my watch
<El-Cideon> The night passes uneventfully, and the party familiars do not report seeing anything of note while you were resting. When you rise, the foot of the mountains looks no more than a couple hours' walk away. As Marina promised, it's not at all difficult to find a stretch of chalky white stone just by walking along the foothills for a few minutes. "I can't properly guide you from here on out," Marina warns. "I've never visited, you understand."
<El-Cideon> Rosemund experimentally reaches a hand within the boundaries of the circle. "If it is always spring here," she says, "then it must be summer on the other side."
<Franceska> "There is a first time for everything, so this is perfectly understandable," Franceska assures her. After all, isn't it a first for her to leave her home on such a fool's quest? "And next time you need to go, you will have all this experience!"
<Julia> "Well, hopefully we can find someone to point us to the Skull of Ormist and from there we can find the... wailing well? Yes, that sounds right," Julia nods.
<El-Cideon> "Well, I don't plan to make walking through the desert a habit," Marina says.
<Stephanie> "Hopefully we won't get lost in the desert and die," adds Stephanie, nodding.
<Franceska> "We can summon water and food. However will we die?"
<Julia> "Heatstroke," Julia replies easily.
<Franceska> "We can summon shelter as well."
<El-Cideon> "There are sandstorms," Marina adds.
* Franceska pauses to consider. "Sandstorms? I will probably survive those...."
<El-Cideon> "*You* probably will?" Rosemund asks, pouncing on the selectiveness of the statement.
<Franceska> "Yes."
* Franceska nods. "My confidence is very high."
<El-Cideon> With a disapproving "Hmph!" Rosemund steps across the border and vanishes!
<Julia> "Let's hope there's no sandstorms to contend with, then..." Julia says before following Rosemund.
<Stephanie> "Desert heat's nothing for me~," proclaims Stephanie, though she seems a little dubious at the prospect of sandstorms. Nonetheless, it's time to follow!
<Franceska> "What? What did I say? Rosemund!" Franceska calls after her, following.
<El-Cideon> Immediately upon arriving in the next world, you find yourselves blasted and buffeted by abrasive winds. Before you can even get your bearings, white dust assaults your eyes, nose, mouth, and tearing at any bare skin. Visibility is nonexistent and you can barely hear a thing above the roaring gale.
<Stephanie> Stephanie almost chokes, quickly raising an arm to shield her face. "Hold hands!" she tries to shout, groping around for Rosemary.
<Franceska> Already regretting waking up that morning, Franceska pulls her shawl up over her face.
<El-Cideon> OOC: any tiny companions with the group, roll fort?
<Franceska> roll 1d20+7
* Hatbot --> "Franceska rolls 1d20+7 and gets 13."12 [1d20=6]
<Julia> roll 1d20+3 Thing
* Hatbot --> "Julia rolls 1d20+3 Thing and gets 7."12 [1d20=4]
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+2 Canterbury
* Hatbot --> "El-Cideon rolls 1d20+2 Canterbury and gets 21."12 [1d20=19]
<El-Cideon> Thing finds the winds of Mithardir just too much to handle, and is battered from the air!
* Julia grabs Stephanie's hand and uses her other to try and shield her face as Thing squeaks and is bashed down to the sandy ground, Heaven's revenge against a demonic interloper!
<Julia> Thing meanwhile just struggles to crawl over and grab onto Julia's leg for some sort of security.
<Franceska> Visibility might be reduced normally, but everyone should still be able to see faerie fire, shouldn't they? She decides to test that and casts the spell upon herself.
<El-Cideon> Rosemund finds Stephanie's hand with one of her own, and otherwise raises her shield to try and keep the worst of the storm off of her face. "Oh! What should we do now?"
<Stephanie> "Will this last forever?!"
<Julia> "Walk away from the wind?!" Julia shouts uncertainly.
<El-Cideon> Canterbury flaps his wings madly and clamps with a vicelike grip onto Marina's shoulder, of which show of affection she is as appreciative as ever.
<El-Cideon> The wind, insfoar as you can tell amidst nature's fury, is predominantly blowing from the southwest.
* Franceska picks east at random and gestures towards it, as Darrin finds her shoulder. Then, she decides walking there is better than just standing in place and taking the abrasive winds.
<Julia> Tugging the neck of her undershirt up above both breastplate and robes, Julia tries using it as a makeshift face shield and takes Marina's hand with her now freed hand before starting to trail after Franceska.
<El-Cideon> Marina hasn't much to shield herself with but a bare arm, and looks profoundly miserable as she trudges along behind Julia. After what feels like hours but, judging by the sun, couldn't have been more than one, the storm is suddenly gone--you can see it tearing away from you to the north, a wall of roiling white fog, leaving all of you caked and coated in alabaster dust inside and out. Around you are only anonymous ivory dunes.
* Franceska stops to rest, at long last.
* Julia slumps and moans now that they're out of the sandstorm. "All this sun and sand... my skin will be ruined..." she says mournfully, rubbing a sand-caked cheek.
<El-Cideon> Marina waves a hand and the dust falls away from her. "Anyone else?" she offers. "Oh yes, I should have brought a parasol," she adds, touching a hand to her own very fair skin.
<Franceska> "Oh please!"
<El-Cideon> Marina is only too pleased to sidle up next to Franceska and magic away the grime!
<Julia> "I as well," Julia says with quiet eagerness.
* Franceska sighs in profound relief.
<El-Cideon> Once she's ensured every girl has a chance to look her best (familiars will have to make do as best they can on their own), Marina looks around and frowns. "Where...exactly did we leave the portal?"
* Julia looks around but in the featureless landscape she finds herself quite lost. "I... don't know."
<Stephanie> "You said there were lots of them, right?" replies Stephanie, bracingly. "We'll just find another one!"
<El-Cideon> "Well, one can hope," she allows.
<Franceska> "I went east, so it would logically be to the west?" Franceska voices. "I think there is a spell for directions...."
<Stephanie> "Anyway, you people, you have birds," continues Stephanie. "Figure out which way we should go, would you? There's gotta be something around here."
<Julia> "But did you go east, truly?" Julia presses, "I couldn't very well tell where the sun was nor how it was travelling amidst that sandstorm."
<El-Cideon> "Well, I can't claim to have that spell myself," Marina admits. "But I DO have a bird. Canterbury! Make yourself useful!" With a SQUONK of protest, the tropical bird takes to the air.
<Franceska> "It is my first time to a desert," Franceska admits. Darrin, unwilling to be outdone by such an unprofessional familiar, takes to the air as well!
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+6 pro bird
* Hatbot --> "El-Cideon rolls 1d20+6 pro bird and gets 23."12 [1d20=17]
<El-Cideon> OOC: feel free to roll perception for Darrin
<Julia> Thing is happy to cling uselessly to Julia's leg.
<Franceska> roll 1d20+28 always!
* Hatbot --> "Franceska rolls 1d20+28 always! and gets 46."12 [1d20=18]
<El-Cideon> Canterbury returns and flaps a flurry of dust in Marina's face as he makes his report. "Well, I don't know why I asked you in the first place!"
<Franceska> After Darrin returns to report his findings to Franceska, she finds herself grimacing. "It seems like we will need to go back at least part of the way. The only thing Darrin could spot was in that direction, mostly to the north."
<Stephanie> "Can we circumvent the storm? We'll go faster even if it's like twice the distance!"
<Franceska> "I would propose going north for now, and then circling to the west once we are close enough to see the details. How does that sound?"
<El-Cideon> The storm is assuredly moving on its way faster than you could walk in any event. Assuming it doesn't change direction.
* Julia nods agreeably, not having any ideas of her own.
* Franceska forces herself to start walking anew.
<Stephanie> "Okie-dokie!"
<El-Cideon> OOC: roll perception as we move along, anyone who cares to?
<Franceska> roll 1d20+28 this is Darrin's job
* Hatbot --> "Franceska rolls 1d20+28 this is Darrin's job and gets 47."12 [1d20=19]
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20 Marina
* Hatbot --> "El-Cideon rolls 1d20 Marina and gets 6."12 [1d20=6]
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+6 MarinaBird
* Hatbot --> "El-Cideon rolls 1d20+6 MarinaBird and gets 13."12 [1d20=7]
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20-1 Rosey!
* Hatbot --> "El-Cideon rolls 1d20-1 Rosey! and gets 0."12 [1d20=1]
<Julia> roll 1d20+7 Thing
* Hatbot --> "Julia rolls 1d20+7 Thing and gets 16."12 [1d20=9]
<Stephanie> roll 1d20+10
* Hatbot --> "Stephanie rolls 1d20+10 and gets 29."12 [1d20=19]
<El-Cideon> It's slow going, trudging through the dunes, the shifting sands sometimes making for awkward footing and quickly filling everyone's boots with grit. After an hour so of tiresome footslogging, something--just barely--breaks the monotony, only spotted by Stephanie and Darrin. High along the side of the dune to your left is a...cylinder of some sort? Partially buried (or unburied) by the recent storm. Lying on its side in the sand, it could be a petrified tree trunk, or it could be a wayward minaret from some ivory castle. The hue blends in so well with its bleached surroundings that it's difficult to tell.
<Stephanie> "Hey, something shiny-!" Stephanie drifts away towards it, intent on uncovering this mystery.
<Franceska> After Darrin whispers of his finding to her, Franceska is quite content to leave exploring to Stephanie.
<Julia> Better than more sand, so Julia goes the same way!
<El-Cideon> Whatever it is, your vantage point allows you to see a faint sliver of shade within it--it's hollow, and quite tall enough to serve as shelter if need be.
<Stephanie> Stephanie peers inside upon arrival.
<El-Cideon> Stephanie finds the interior half-choked with sand--it really does look like a tree trunk up close, though it feels like stone. Twenty feet or so along, half-buried in the drift, Stephanie can see what looks like a mummified human head poking out of the sand.
<Franceska> "What are the chances," Franceska muses, "that eventually she will rush into a dangerous place and find it already occupied?"
<Stephanie> "There's a dead guy in here!"
<Franceska> "Is he moving?"
<Stephanie> "Not yet!"
* Franceska remains content to keep her distance.
<Stephanie> "Aww, poor sod," says Stephanie, taking a gander at the rest of the interior.
<Julia> "Maybe he can tell us where the skull of Ormist is?" Julia wonders, "Or maybe he is Ormist!" Smiling brightly, she goes over to the skull and crouches before casting Speak With Dead upon it.
<Julia> OOC: DC 18 will save if he wasn't neutral
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+6
* Hatbot --> "El-Cideon rolls 1d20+6 and gets 19."12 [1d20=13]
<El-Cideon> Julia finds the mysterious dead unwilling to speak with her! Stephanie sees whatever else might be strewn about in the cylinder is likely buried beneath the foot or so of sand coating the interior. For her part, up close Julia can see enough of a shoulder to discern that the deceased individual was lightly armored at the time of death.
<El-Cideon> OOC: for reference, it's more mummified than skeletonized. It's fairly well-preserved.
* Julia pouts. "Doesn't want to talk," she says, standing up and looking around the interior walls to see if there's any grafitti like 'Ormist was here'.
<Stephanie> "You got any way to blow all the sand out, see if anything else is left here?"
<Julia> "I can summon a zombie to do it for us," she offers brightly.
<Stephanie> "Where d'ya summon them from?" asks Stephanie, pensively.
<El-Cideon> Julia doesn't see any kind of writing on the inside walls. Just rings and striations like one see with natural wood growth.
<Julia> She blinks. "I don't actually know. They just appear? Maybe from the negative energy plane?"
<Stephanie> "Let's never, ever go there!"
<Julia> "Oh... alright," she agrees but doesn't sound very happy about it. "Anyway," she proceeds to cast her spell and call forth two ugly bugbear zombies whom she instructs to start digging! Backing away outside to let them work, she waits.
<El-Cideon> The industrious undead uncover a few things through their efforts, clearing most of the sand after several minutes of work. Several feet away from the corpse are a shiny longsword and shield that look untarnished from their interment; a blackened circle next to the corpse suggests a long-ago campfire; and the corpse itself--somewhat rudely jostled by the uncaring zombies--proves to be curled up protectively around a slip of paper rolled through a ring with the emblem of a broken bridge, this clutched tightly in her dead grasp along with a sealed envelope. You think it's a she, at least--the hair proves to be quite long. The corpse is dressed in a fine mail shirt with a tattered leather jacket over it.
<Julia> After the zombies vanish, Julia filches both the paper and the envelope, looking at the former before opening the latter.
<El-Cideon> The rolled-up slip contains the following text, written in a precise cursive script that suggests noble erudition:
<El-Cideon> "To whatsoever unfortunate may chance upon this note, I ask for a simple bargain: take whatever of my possessions strike your fancy, as I shall have no need for material things where I am bound; do not trouble yourself with interment of my mortal shell, nor funeral rites; but make whatever effort is in your power to deliver this sealed missive to Belinda Haverbrook, 14 Gyre Street, The Foundry, City of Brass. Do not accept the assurance of servants, guardsmen, or self-proclaimed protectors. It must be delivered to her personally. Should we meet in another life, I shall endeavor to convey my gratitude."
<El-Cideon> The envelope is indeed sealed with wax; the emblem is that of a broken bridge.
<Julia> Julia elects not to open it after all. "If we're ever by Brass we can fulfill a dead bargain," she tells Stephanie. "See anything you like?" she gestures at the deceased's gear.
<Stephanie> "Eh? Any of it magic?" asks Stephanie, but she's quite interested in filching anything valuable...
* Julia casts detect magic to look!
<Stephanie> roll 1d20+13 appraisals?
* Hatbot --> "Stephanie rolls 1d20+13 appraisals? and gets 24."12 [1d20=11]
<El-Cideon> Julia finds that the sword and shield radiate magic, as does a ring still worn by the corpse.
<Julia> roll 3#1d20+13 spellcraft in order
* Hatbot --> "Julia rolls 3#1d20+13 spellcraft in order and gets 70."12 [3#1d20+13 = 30, 24, 16]
<El-Cideon> "What have you two found up there?" Rosemund calls up, shading her eyes.
<Stephanie> "A letter and some gear! You want a new shield, Rosie?"
<Julia> "A letter to be delivered to someone in the city of brass and some magic items!" Julia calls down. "There's an axiomatic sword and an arrow catching shield! As well as a ring I can't identify if anyone else wants to give it a try?"
<Franceska> "I could take a look at it," Franceska muses, deciding to be helpful and casting her own spell of magical detection. Avoiding looking at anything but the ring in question, she focuses on the magical signature is has....
<Franceska> roll 1d20+10
* Hatbot --> "Franceska rolls 1d20+10 and gets 29."12 [1d20=19]
<El-Cideon> Rosemund takes the shield and gives it an experimental heft. "Well that is nice, but my old shield is lighter," she says. "Also it was mother's. But it could be useful?" She stows it away unless anyone else wants it.
<Franceska> "It protects you," Franceska announces. "Very nice look to it."
<Stephanie> "Hey, it's one of those?" asks Stephanie, swiping the ring a moment later. "I always wanted one of these, y'know?"
<El-Cideon> "Huh. I wonder it is in the letter," Rosemund says. "Was it the last thing he wrote? Maybe it is his will!"
<Julia> "I have one like it, so if anyone wants it by all means," Julia says, putting the letter and note in her haversack. And then the sword since no one wants it for now. The mithril shirt too, while she's graverobbing. Well it's not robbing if she has permission... it's not even a grave! "I think it's a warning, personally."
<Stephanie> "I think he's a she, Rosie," adds Stephanie, slipping the ring on her finger and admiring it.
<El-Cideon> "Is that so?" she asks/.
<Franceska> "It could be a request for resurrection?"
<Stephanie> "Think so. She's in a better place, now. Probably," muses Stephanie. "Where's, uh, Brass?"
<El-Cideon> OOC: K:P
<El-Cideon> "Well, that would be a most useful thing for a dead person to ask for, would it not?" Rosemund says.
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+10
* Hatbot --> "El-Cideon rolls 1d20+10 and gets 13."12 [1d20=3]
<Julia> "Well, she said she'd reward us in whatever life she's in now," Julia points out. "She also said bound, though. Wonder if she's in Hell?"
<El-Cideon> Marina makes a show of searching her memory, but evidently this reference is of no significance to her.
<Franceska> roll 1d20+9
* Hatbot --> "Franceska rolls 1d20+9 and gets 27."12 [1d20=18]
<Stephanie> "What, so she'd be a devil, now? That's how it works, yeah?"
<Franceska> "She might be, though we are far more likely to find her on Fire."
<El-Cideon> "Well, well I do not see how we would know that," Rosemund says, unwilling to make assumptions.
<Stephanie> "Ain't everything in hell on fire?"
* Franceska shrugs. "Something to consider another time, perhaps. I have high confidence of surviving on Fire, but...." She trails off, glancing at Rosemund.
<El-Cideon> "But what?" Rosemund obligingly replies.
<Franceska> "Do you?" Franceska asks, before shaking her head at Stephanie. "A common misconception. The sky is on fire in Hell, I believe."
<El-Cideon> "I will persevere!" Rosemund concludes nobly.
<Stephanie> "We'll just go nab some gear. There's fire-proof gear, and gear that makes you fireproof! If we have to."
<Franceska> "It is an entire plane that tries to burn you alive!"
<El-Cideon> "I am sure that will shall find a way to survive," Rosemund persists. "We are resourceful and determined, are we not?"
<Julia> "It would be expensive, so lets put it off till much later?"
<Stephanie> "But keep your eyes open for opportunities! You never know what we'll find in these far-flung bazaars."
<Julia> With everything looted that can be, and Julia sadly lacking in black onyx to reanimate the unfortunate woman, all that's left is to say, "Any ideas where to go from here, then?"
<Stephanie> "North, still!"
<Franceska> "For the time being, yes."
<El-Cideon> Continuing north, avian directions prove sufficient to direct the party towards their goal despite lack of anything but dune after rolling dune at ground level. In time, Darrin's sharp eyes lead the group towards a black hill thrusting incongruously from the ivory landscape. Once you're close enough, this turns out to not be a hill at all, but an enormous obsidian skull. It may have belonged to a dragon once, if one large enough to swallow small houses whole. The lower jaw portion is either buried or gone now; one could, if she wished, step inside the cavernous skull through the eyeholes. Which may soon prove an attractive option, as the horizon shows another storm bearing down from the north.
<Franceska> "Lucky, I would suppose?" Franceska asks uncertainly, with a wary look at the massive skull.
<Stephanie> "What is it with this desert and heads sticking out the ground?" wonders Stephanie, peering up at the huge thing.
<El-Cideon> It certainly does not look inclined to move any time soon!
<Julia> "Maybe this is Ormist?" Julia says hopefully, clambering into its mouth and wondering how much onyx she'd need to reanimate it.
<Stephanie> She'd certainly rather hide inside a skull than brave the sandstorm, but Stephanie feels caution is in order, and peeks inside before heading in.
<El-Cideon> The interior of the skull is poorly lit, light only filtering in through the eyes. Within the sand ramps up to a small interior hill at the crown of the skull, upon which a silhouetted figure sits as on a throne: a lion's body with the wings of an eagle, you think, and there's just enough light to make out a knowing female expression. Stephanie's sharp eyes can just pick out a pile of shiny objects behind her. "Ah, I have a visitor?" the figure purrs, rising to its feet. "Good, it has been some time. Let us see what you can do to keep me entertained?"
<El-Cideon> ~