Mechanus Trip

[Anastasia]

I need a sec to plan, so go ahead and set up Marie when she's ready to go.

[Ebiris]

The next day after that party Marie can be found in her and Antenora's room, looking at herself in the mirror and running her fingers through her hair, a prestidigitation spell smoothing and cleaning it slowly with each pass. She could do it all at once but there's something nice and restful about doing it this way, like using a hairbrush but better. And it's nice to admire her new body and how well everything fits together - not that she's going to get self obsessed and vain about it, but this higher state of being is her reward for a whole lot of hard work and risk-taking, so she doesn't feel at all guilty for giving herself some proper appreciation!

Of course that's when her sharp ears pick up a familiar pair of footsteps approaching, and she knows cogs aren't far behind.

[Anastasia]

Antenora is clad in her armor and gear, smiling. "Hello, dear," she drawls, "You look lovely."

[Ebiris]

Marie isn't wearing her starlight gown, now that she's empowered directly by Alicia that can be reserved as a fancy occasion only piece of attire. Though she is wearing a dress, a burnt orange thing with gold embroidery showing loops and whorls around her long skirt, strappy sandals worn below. "All orderly and regimented! Wouldn't want to catch my hair in the gears, right?" she smiles back at Antenora, standing up from her vanity.

[Anastasia]

"Oh yes, I've heard stories of naughty eladrin having that happen," Antenora drawls, "All because they didn't wait in line like good girls. She offers you her hand, "Shall we? In all honesty I have a place selected that I think you'll like."

[Ebiris]

"You got us diplomatic immunity but not a pass to skip the lines?" Marie asks with a hand on her hip. "Oh wait of course, the lines are part of the charm for you aren't they?" She smiles and walks over to take Antenora's hand.

[Anastasia]

A wink and the two of you are gone.

You stand in an arid desert with the night sky above - for merely a split second. A teleport and now you appear on a gear barely big enough to support the two of you. Below you is a cascading trail of gears, each one no bigger than a smallish island. Each has a different theme - one is an ocean, another is a forest, at hird is a city, a fourth is open plains, a fifth is hilly highlands, a sixth is a swamp, a seventh is a beach and so on and so forth.

"This place is known as Aryvinwatch," Antenora says, "An endless cascade of small gears that each is a small environment. They float alone, so the music of the greater gears can be heard freely, if you only concentrate. More importantly, most chaotic creatures who have reason to stay in Mechanus and the ability to teleport or take portals reside here. The variety is soothing to the chaotic soul. Each island has its own rules so long as they do not violate the rules of Mechanus and is ruled by a minor Inevitable. Ones that are usually fairly reasonable to suggestions if you argue properly."

[Ebiris]

"Aww, you didn't have to go to this trouble for me," Marie says, hugging Antenora's side. "I know you wanted to go to the part where everything looks identical and all the surfaces are gleaming metal."

[Anastasia]

"Oh, that can be a later visit," Antenora returns that hug, an arm around her. "Since we'll have to come back again and again, naturally." Smiling as she looks down, "Let's go find a gear you like and see about having fun on it and meeting who rules it?"

[Ebiris]

"Unless we get thrown out," she whispers slyly, before more loudly and pointing down at the city gear. "That one!"

[Anastasia]

It's a traditional city - albeit unnaturally clean. Wide streets with drainage and underground sewage, buildings of stone and wood dominating. It's nice enough, perhaps half the size of Balmuria, and arraigned in a circle. The roads are a spiral throughout it, winding around and around to the edges of the gear. People come and go - people of all kinds, a planar mishmash at a glance, but with a large quantity of Inevitables and other such things. In the center of the gear is a tall building, made of shining steel.

'Really,' Antenora drawls, 'I figure the fun will be getting whatever rules we want passed if we can find the right Inevitable ruler. That will be quite fun, don't you think?'

[Ebiris]

"And they called me subversive?" Marie gasps. "Maybe there's hope for you yet. Lets try getting some of the local colour first though," she says, hunting around for a tavern to get a drink and some local gossip.

[Anastasia]

Diplomacy check.

[Ebiris]

[20:02] <@Ebiris> roll 1d20+48 eladrin diplomacy
[20:02] <+Penuche> Ebiris invokes Penuche's magic: < 66 > [d20=18]

[Anastasia]

The city is named Rayville and is home to about 50% natives and 50% off plane visitors.

It is ruled by Raymand XI, a new Inevitable that is learning the rules. The rules are fairly simple right now - no fighting, no littering and no using magic above the third circle in town (and within 200ft of it) except for teleportation and similar magics. Violating these rules results in expulsion and banishment from Rayville.

There's some local industry but it's mostly visitors living here short to long term.

Right now the big news is...

- Simande, a harvester devil, is in a feud with Kacka, a half elven priestess of Hanali Celanil. They just don't get along and argue excessively, nearly coming to blows several times. Both are popular and well liked, resulting in cliques that don't get along.
- Rags, a strange creature with a floating head and who wears what his name suggests, has set up a small shrine to Ilmater. He's competing against Sir Penning, a dwarven knight who serves Empress Sulia and offers much of the same services. They really don't like each other - both religious rivalry and flat out bad personal chemistry. It's less obvious and more simmering than the previous two, but it's a flash point.
- Octomar the Bold, a wizard tiefling, has opened a small magic shop in town. His wares are generally thought to be high quality and he's getting a good reputation.
- Rumor is a traveling circus will visit Rayville in the next few weeks.
- Raymand spends most of his time reading reports about Rayville in depth, but it's about time for him to come out and see what's going on. He sometimes passes new laws after he does, so everyone's waiting on that.