The Western Mountains

[Dracos]

[21:54] <Dracos> And so a month passed in training, the team honing their skills after their rough fight with the god Origin.... but soon they felt it was time to move on, and so they gathered once more at the inn.
[22:05] <Jan> "Hm. Cid managed to patch up the car somewhat so we're good to go, I say."
[22:09] <Dracos> "Where are we headed from here? We should probably get back on the trail of the oracle's prophecy,' Fizban suggested.
[22:10] <Leets> "You mean those mountains? What's along the way to there?" Leets asked, glancing to Fizban's bag of maps.
[22:13] <Jan> "The gravesite where we can get that whistle to calm the spectral wolves."
[22:14] <Felix> "Remind me. We know anything about the whistle and this gravesite it's at?" Felix asks.
[22:17] <Dracos> OOC: Last leets comment cut.
[22:21] <Dracos> "Well, we don't really...just what Origin told you...that it could calm the wolves. It's supposed to be a large graveyard of spirits, where a man was burried with it....and it would calm the wolves."
[22:22] <Jan> "The wolves are related to Pandora's Box, so that man was most likely the hero that came before us."
[22:26] <Dracos> "That's a possibility." Fizban agreed.
[22:26] * Shukuen (~Dinh@c-24-6-70-63.hsd1.ca.comcast.net) has joined #wasteland
[22:28] * Leets (Dinh@c-24-6-70-63.hsd1.ca.comcast.net) Quit (Ping timeout)
[22:28] * Shukuen is now known as Leets
[22:29] <Leets> "We're being chased by ghostly wolves, and the only way to get rid of them is dig up a grave," Leets groaned, slumping. "I hope we don't unleash a zombie horde when this is over with."
[22:31] <Jan> "Best not linger on things for long. It'll just lead to an ulcer." Jan replied as he lead the way out.
[22:34] <Jan> Getting into the Phoenix, the negotiator started it up as the others got into the automobile. Once everyone else was in, he started off towards the mountains to the west.
[22:38] * Felix (Merc@cpe-72-181-117-211.houston.res.rr.com) Quit (Ping timeout)
[22:40] <Dracos> And so they were off, though it was only a couple of nights before they noticed the howls of the wolves, chasing them as they drove... Aside from that, it was uneventful. Uneventful and hot. The car didn't particularly like driving on the desert sands either.
[22:46] <Dracos> At least until...
[22:47] <Dracos> As Jan was driving, he noticed a huge shadow ahead, moving pretty swiftly towards them along the ground.
[22:49] * Felix (Merc@cpe-72-181-117-211.houston.res.rr.com) has joined #wasteland
[22:54] <Jan> Jan swirved to the side to avoid the shadow.
[22:54] <Leets> "Hey!" Leets protested the sudden movement as he was nearly thrown to the side. "What gives now?"
[22:55] <Dracos> He'd have to swerve a lot. It was huge... like city sized ...and now going over them as the place got quite dark.
[22:56] <Jan> "And here I thought something was going to swipe down on us..." Jan trailed off. He leaned out of the car through a rolled down window and looked up towards the sky as he slowed the car down.
[22:58] <Dracos> He saw a gigantic spinning..wheel? Seemed to be made of steel or something as it floated over them. Huge though as it blotted out the sun mostly as it traveled over them.
[22:59] <Jan> "...great, now we have aliens added to the mix." The negotiator reported to the others in the car.
[22:59] * Leets stared at the cause of all their swerving. "On second thought, cut loose, go wild." That was followed by a tightening of buckles.
[23:01] <Jan> "Well...it hasn't attacked us yet..." Jan started as he started slowly creeping the car forward, even as he continued looking mostly at the sky.
[23:02] <Dracos> The vessel slowly passed over them, daylight returning as it continued on the other way.
[23:03] * Felix (Merc@cpe-72-181-117-211.houston.res.rr.com) Quit
[23:04] <Jan> "Shall we go on?"
[23:05] <Dracos> Fizban, to merit, had slept through it all.
[23:05] <Dracos> Mary whistled. "Aliens?"
[23:13] <Leets> "I hope they don't attack at all," Leets grumbled, watching the ship float away. "Let's just keep going. It's not like we'll see them again."
[23:15] <Jan> "Unless we can ever borrow an airship, that is."
[23:15] <Jan> The negotiator continued driving, eyeing the futuristic ship through the rear view mirror once in a while as they continued driving.
[23:19] <Dracos> More dust. More desert. It's been over a week at this point. Quite a drive and starting to give reason to question seeing it as uneventful.
[23:21] <Jan> Jan was on the passenger's side at this point as he looked out the window. "So what did you learn, Leets?"
[23:21] <Dracos> Luckly the car was holding out well as leets saw something moving in the distance... hard to make out but he was sure he saw motion.
[23:24] <Leets> "Enough," Leets replied, squinting at the object in the distance.
[23:24] <Dracos> The top of a tower maybe? Seemed to be as he was driving...but it was moving.
[23:26] <Jan> Jan noticed Leet's distraction. "What's wrong?"
[23:26] <Jan> He looked towards the direction the boy was.
[23:26] <Leets> "What do you suppose that is?" Leets asked the others warily, watching the 'tower' seem to move along with them.
[23:28] <Dracos> As they drove closer, they could see more of it...before finally clearing a sand dune and seeing a...city in the distance? A moving one, hard to make out details from here, but it was moving swiftly through the sands on what appeared to be a small hill.
[23:28] <Jan> "Nothing normal, that's for sure. Maybe we should avoid it too..."
[23:30] <Jan> "Do you think that hill would count as a mountain?"
[23:30] <Jan> "Magical mountains could probably move cities..."
[23:30] <Dracos> The hill was made of rock... shifting through the sands... taller than their car.
[23:32] <Leets> "Well, whatever it is, it's in the way." Leets glanced at the city in the distance. "Another unmappeded location? What do you suppose the odds of that are?"
[23:32] <Dracos> It seems to be moving, but not nearly as fast as their car.
[23:32] <Dracos> It'd be pretty hard to keep up with on foot probably.
[23:33] <Jan> "Well, we're the pioneers here, so pretty high."
[23:33] <Leets> "Darn. And here I was hoping we can buy lotto tickets."
[23:33] <Jan> The negotiator was in the middle of scribbling notes about the latest oddity on their trip.
[23:34] <Jan> "Drive near it. Not too close, though."
[23:35] <Jan> "Maybe we can see what they have to offer."
[23:37] * Leets nods, moving the car closer to the City. "Let's hope their as friendly as the last few places we found."
[23:38] <Jan> "Doesn't hurt to check." Jan continued jotting notes down on the city.
[23:40] <Dracos> The city seemed much larger up close...somehow humming through the sands with nary a care.... It had a stairwell down, but with it moving it'd be very hard to catch on foot. Not a sign of anyone on the side they were viewing. Just old buildings.
[23:41] <Leets> "That's pretty neat. Think they could give those Vaulties a run for their money techwise?" Leets commented, then frowned at the state of the city. "Looks almost abandoned though."
[23:41] <Dracos> Well, at a glance, probably not. The buildings seemed a lot older in style than anything in vault city. More ancient ruins type than anything else.
[23:43] <Jan> "Dunno. Looks pretty run down. Hey, Felix, take the wheel. Leets and I are going to hop on."
[23:48] <Dracos> Felix nodded. "Sure, though it looks pretty risky..."
[23:48] <Dracos> They stopped, switching and then driving after it.
[23:49] <Leets> "When hasn't it?" Leets asked rhetorically.
[23:52] <Dracos> "Okay, near the stairs? Or want to try the sides?" He drove close to the sides.
[23:53] <Jan> "Sides are better."
[23:53] <Leets> "Yeah. And it gives us more places to look around."
[23:53] <Dracos> They seemed a bit steep...but he was holding steady near them.
[23:56] <Jan> "Let's make holds in the side of the wall with the car's cannon."
[23:58] <Jan> The negotiator slid up to the roof of the car, sitting down on the seat welded on the roof and swiveling the roof cannon towards the rock face and began opening fire in specific spots to punch some gripple holes for their climb.
Session Time: Sun Jun 04 00:00:00 2006
[00:02] * Leets watches, memorizing the grips Jan created. When the last shot was fired and the car was close and stead, Leets took the first hand hold and began scaling the cliff. "See you up top, Smith."
[00:02] <Dracos> Leets' thief training served him well as he scaled the moving rocks. It was tough and rough going, but he got up to the top.
[00:02] <Dracos> Soon jan could see him standing up there on the edge of the city.
[00:03] <Jan> "G'luck." Jan waited for the next opportunity to present itself before he started scaling the cliff side. He idly remembered his last experience. 'At least the world didn't die on me when I wasn't looking this time.'
[00:07] <Leets> "Need a hand?" Leets asked, kneeling at the edge and watching Jan climb.
[00:07] <Dracos> damn, it was harder than it looked...nearly falling more than a couple of times, he was eventually able to catch leets hand.
[00:08] <Jan> "Man, I'm not really made to lead this kind of lifestyle." The negotiator puffed and huffed as he reached the top of the rocky side.
[00:09] <Leets> "This was your idea," Leets said pointedly, glancing in the direction of the stairs they decided not to use.
[00:10] <Dracos> "INVADERS....oh fuu, what are you doing here anyway?" A deep and booming voice asked from behind them....Jan seeing a... Huge tunnel of wind and mist? It seemed to almost form a face and a mouth against a twirling ghostly green smoke.
[00:12] <Leets> "Uh... we're sort of explorers. Nice to meet you?" Leets greeted, rather lamely. Mafia, knights, talking animals, and now talking fog. The sad thing was, he didn't even feel shocked anymore.
[00:14] <Dracos> "Explorers? And you didn't even come up the stairs." He sniffed a bit.
[00:15] <Jan> "We would've been rolled over by city if we had tried it."
[00:15] <Jan> The negotiator was also sadly used to things like this.
[00:15] <Jan> "And I couldn't let the kid scale the side alone..."
[00:16] <Jan> "I'm Jan Smith. My friend here is Leets."
[00:18] <Dracos> "hello. I am Mist."
[00:18] <Dracos> He looked more like fog really.
[00:19] <Dracos> "I technically am supposed to stop you...but it's quite boring here."
[00:19] <Dracos> "I really don't see why anyone would want to come."
[00:20] <Jan> "Hello, Mr. Mist, and we have to see everything we can."
[00:21] <Leets> "Besides, wouldn't you be a little bit curious yourself if you ran into a place like this?"
[00:22] <Jan> "What is this place anyway? I'd like to add it to my notes if you wouldn't mind."
[00:24] * Leets half-listened for Mist's response, taking the time to look around their immediate area and take in some more detail.
[00:26] <Dracos> "Mmm? This is Wisdon...or at least it used to be."
[00:31] <Jan> "What happened here?" Jan curiously questioned.
[00:33] * Shukuen (~Dinh@c-24-6-70-63.hsd1.ca.comcast.net) has joined #wasteland
[00:34] * Leets (~Dinh@c-24-6-70-63.hsd1.ca.comcast.net) Quit (Ping timeout)
[00:35] * Shukuen is now known as Leets
[00:37] <Dracos> "Mmm, well, it died out...think it was in a ware. It was so terribly long ago. Hard to remember at this point really."
[00:39] <Jan> "I see. Pretty sad, that." Jan admitted. "Do you know what's going on right now, though?"
[00:39] <Dracos> "Mmm, wandering. Possibly a direction change soon. Hard to tell these days."
[00:42] <Jan> "Well, I don't know if you care much, what with being foggy and all, but I'm going to tell you. Most likely you aren't in your native world now."
[00:43] <Dracos> "Oh, that's a new one I suppose...not that it makes too much difference."
[00:45] <Jan> "The world's core is a demon?" Jan tried. He was feeling very disturbed that this spirit didn't seem to mind too much about what others were so shocked over.
[00:45] <Jan> It made a guy feel kinda sad.
[00:48] <Dracos> "A demon? You don't say... well, I suppose that's pretty important." The fog seemed vaguely interested.
[00:50] <Jan> "And if it's allowed to go unchecked, the world will dissolve away to nothing?" Jan was genuinely trying now.
[00:51] <Dracos> "Probably not..." He floated back, around the various semi-wrecked houses.
[00:51] <Dracos> They noticed there was a large temple-like structure towards the center of town.
[00:54] <Jan> "So, why is this place wandering around randomly, anyway? Someone put a curse on it? I doubt that, considering you intially acted like you were guarding something."
[00:54] <Leets> "What's that place?" Leets asked, feeling weirded out by Mist's apathetic attitude.
[00:56] <Dracos> "No, not really... hmmm, can't remember to tell you the truth." They noticed a few others, wandering around the city.
[00:56] <Jan> "Geez, how long were you guys guarding this dump?"
[00:58] <Dracos> "Dump?" One took offense. "Why...oh, I suppose it is now... Well, a long long time?"
[01:00] <Jan> "Sorry, it was probably a very lovely city in its prime." The negotiator replied.
[01:01] <Dracos> "Yes...such a beautiful city...we took...care of it? I think."
[01:03] <Jan> "Hm. Is there any way we could convince you spirits to help us?"
[01:05] <Dracos> "Not really." "Nope" "For a bowl of spagghetti?" "You don't even like spaghetti." "So?" "what is it anyhow?" "I'm not sure!"
[01:08] <Jan> "Nothing at all we can offer?"
[01:08] <Jan> "Maybe we can find out why you spirits are here in the first place..."
[01:08] <Leets> "And has anything in this place survived?"
[01:13] <Dracos> 'Well, what's here is here." Mist responded.
[01:14] <Jan> "Try exposing them to the starstone, Leets."
[01:16] <Leets> "All right." Leets popped open Pandora's box and went in to retrieve the starstone. Moment's later, he popped out with it in hand.
[01:21] <Dracos> THey didn't seem to be paying attention by this point, wandering around again.
[01:21] <Dracos> It glowed softly, but didn't seem to do anything.
[01:22] <Leets> "So much for this side trip." Leets sighed, returning the starstone to the box.
[01:23] <Jan> "Well, they probably won't mind if we look around, right?"
[01:24] * Leets glances around. "They don't seem to mind anything at the moment."
[01:24] 4Disconnect notice: Disconnected from psx-dude.net. Attempting to reconnect in 30 seconds...
[01:24] <Jan> "They've probably been existing long enough to not care anymore. C'mon, let's check out those temples."
[01:25] <Jan> The negotiator started towards the closest one.
[01:25] <Dracos> OOC: Temple. Singular.
[01:32] <Dracos> Heading in, they found it quite dusty...as if no one had entered here in a very...very...very long time.
[01:32] <Dracos> Old statues worn away by time... pictures faded beyond any recognition marked the decorations.
[01:32] <Dracos> There was a stairwell in the back.
[01:37] <Jan> "The desert didn't treat this place kindly." The negotiator let out a low whistle as he started towards the stairwell.
[01:38] <Leets> "They did say they've been here for a while." Leets followed, keen eyes used to spotting anything useful scanning the rooms they passed.
[01:39] <Dracos> Nothing interrupted them as they stepped into what felt like hallowed halls, heading for the stairs.
[01:41] <Jan> Jan's footsteps sounded terribly loud in his ears as he continued down the steps at a slow pace.
[01:44] <Dracos> Heading down them...gah, the air here feels old... but no dust...not even cobwebs here as he stepped onto the fine tiled floor.
[01:44] <Leets> "That's strange."
[01:52] <Jan> "Magic?"
[01:52] <Jan> Jan shrugged as he continued, coughing slightly as he was repulsed by the air a bit.
[01:57] <Dracos> Heading in, they felt a bit light headed, wandering the corridors until... They saw her, a tall woman with the lower end of a long green snake. A beautiful woman dressed in a purple robe with a grey sheet over her, apparently in deep sleep on a stone slab, a passageway leading into the room she was sleeping in.

[Dracos]

16:29] <Leets> "That's... different," Leets commented. Whether he was refering the the woman or the fact she was sleeping in this tomb-like temple wasn't entirely certain. He stepped closer; slowly, as to not disturb her if possible.
[16:30] <Dracos> As he did so, a bolt of lightning struck down from the ceiling, blocking his path, ozone thick in the air.
[16:30] <Dracos> "I remember now. Can't let you through, nope." Mist appeared, two other ghosts beside him.
[16:30] <Dracos> "None may pass through to awaken the sorceress."
[16:32] * Leets coughed, waving off the smell of burnt stone. "Anything else you remember that you'd like to share?" he asked sardonically, a bit annoyed at the near electrocution.
[16:32] <Jan> "Convenient timing." Jan replied.
[16:34] <Dracos> "Thank you." The green one responded. "Probably a trigger, really..." The blue one retorted. "Oh hush, we just like our dramatic entrances. We only get to do them once every few hundred years."
[16:36] <Jan> "So, this was all built just for this sorceress?"
[16:38] <Dracos> "Hmm, probably." "This building was." "Certainly the bed."
[16:49] <Leets> "Are there any other forbidden places then?"
[16:54] <Dracos> "That's an interesting question." "Is it really?" "Well no one's ever asked it before." "True." "We should answer it." "No." "What do you mean no." "Shut up, I was answering." "Oh, sorry." "Stupid fog." "There are no other ones, only here. At least in the city."
[16:54] <Jan> "So, did this sorceress cause the war?" Jan added his own question.
[16:55] <Jan> "Or is she the one being guarded?"
[17:12] <Dracos> "War?" "I think there was a war." "Didn't she end it?" "She's being guarded though." "So she can sleep, yup."
[17:16] <Leets> "How long has she been sleeping?"
[17:18] <Dracos> "Longer than you've been awake." One responded.
[17:19] <Jan> "So, she's a goddess then?"
[17:19] <Jan> Jan looked over at Leets. "Didn't Origin say there was a god to the west?"
[17:20] <Dracos> "Goddess?" "She's the sorceress."
[17:21] <Leets> "Asleep that long? She's going to wake up to one bloody stiff neck then," Leets muttered, rubbing his own neck uncomfortably at the thought.
[17:23] <Jan> "Man, learning magic must be pretty bad, then. I wouldn't want to be asleep that long."
[17:27] * Retrieving #wasteland modes...
[17:27] <Dracos> The ghosts were silent at that, not haing anything clever to say.
[17:31] <Leets> "Well, we'll just keep exploring then and leave your sorceress to her - ah, nap." Leets smiled pleasantly as he backed away from the forbidden room; eyes half on the ceiling for more lightning bolts.
[17:32] <Dracos> None seemed to be appearing.
[17:33] <Dracos> "Goodbye then..."
[17:37] <Jan> "You guys should really like make sure she doesn't die in her sleep or something. Routine wake up calls wouldn't hurt." Jan shook his head at the spirits as he started the climb back up the stairs.
[17:38] <Dracos> "Oh no...she wouldn't like that." "Verily." "And clearly she's just fine."
[17:38] <Leets> "I can't tell if they idolize or fear her," Leets said quietly to Jan when the two were out of earshot of the ghosts.
[17:41] <Jan> "Probably both. At least we managed to remind them of what their duty was."
[17:42] <Jan> "Let's give this place a quick glance for anything else noteworthy, then we go back to our job."
[17:43] * Leets nods, resuming their quick study of the city for any points of interests.
[17:45] <Dracos> Wandering through, there was clearly a lot of history here, not that it was easy to make out as the city was quite old.
[17:54] <Jan> "Pity the ghosts are so...weird. Maybe we could've asked them what their homeworld was like."
[17:56] <Leets> "Maybe they're naturally like this at their homeworld." Leets shrugged, not seeing anything at the moment. "Maybe we should head back now," he said, retracing their steps back to the car.
[17:58] <Dracos> Felix was still keeping the car nearby, within shouting distance.
[17:59] * Leets eyed the cliff walls, the car's positions, and considered. "Say, Smith. Do you suppose golems would survive freefalling from here?"
[18:04] <Jan> "I can make it, sure. It'll probably rattle me something fierce, though."
[18:05] <Leets> "It's sand you're aiming for. Worst case scenario, you end up buried to your golem hips."
[18:05] <Jan> "Before we do something suicidal, though. Let's see if we can manage to convince the spirits to stop the city for a second."
[18:06] <Leets> "Or maybe we could find those stairs again and walk down."
[18:06] <Jan> Jan walked up to one of the ghosts. "Excuse me, don't mean to intrude on your ...existing and everything, but I was wondering if you could stop the city for a bit so we can climb down the steps and get out of your fog."
[18:08] <Dracos> "Oh? Well...I suppose." "DOn't make a habit of it..." The city stopped for a moment.
[18:10] <Leets> "Thanks." Down the stairs they go before one of the ghosts forgot why they stopped the city.
[18:10] <Jan> "Have a good day." The negotiator thanked the spirits before following after Leets.
[18:13] <Dracos> And so they made their way out of the ancient city and back to the car...

[Dracos]

[20:36] <Dracos> At the end of last session, our bold adventures, needing no real recap, had just finished exploring the ancient unknown moving city of the sands...
[20:36] <Dracos> Stopped nearby with the car, they we're ready to move on!
[20:41] <Leets> "At least it was a short detour this time," Leets said as he climbed back into the car, watching the moving city start off once more into the desert.
[20:42] <Dracos> Heading off, they continued west under the burning sun. Many nights and days passed in mostly silence and off-key singing... Until finally, they saw it. The mountains in the distance, slowly peaking up over the horizon.
[20:45] <Jan> "Aliens, societies of scatterbrained lightning flinging ghosts, geez..." The negotiator sighed as they arrived at their goal.
[20:47] <Dracos> They saw, in the distance towards the base of the mountains, what seemed to be a mid-sized town.
[20:48] <Jan> "Bets on what we'll find there?" Jan questioned the others in the car as he drove on.
[20:49] <Leets> "Pickaxes," Leets said flatly.
[20:49] <Dracos> It seemed to be a tribal type village as they approached, lots of wood and stone buildings.
[20:53] <Jan> Jan looked annoyed for a second as he pulled closer to the village. "Hm...so much for getting the car serviced." The man sighed as he stopped close enough to walk on foot.
[20:54] <Jan> "C'mon, let's not freak out the locals."
[20:54] <Leets> "Who knows? Baron was medieval, but had flying boats."
[20:54] <Jan> Getting out of the car, he repled. "Yeah, I guess we shouldn't judge by looks alone." He admitted.
[20:55] <Dracos> Mary and Fizban joined them. "Looks kind of indian really from here." Mary pointed out a couple of the buildings were more tentlike, then went and checked his guns a bit.
[20:59] <Felix> "If so, I'm hoping they don't want our scalps," Felix jokes morbidly.
[21:01] <Jan> Jan reached into the trunk of his car and pulled out a handgun. Checking it for a few moments, he grabbed an extra two clips before stowing them away in his vest. "Well, that's what we have weapons for."
[21:01] <Dracos> They saw a few darker skined individuals towards the edge of town look and head inward as they approached, soon a towering 30ish man heading out to greet them, indian sort of, dressed in a vest and long woven slacks with something slung in a holster on his back. "Greetings travelers. Welcome to Baskar."
[21:02] <Jan> "How do you do? My name is Jan Smith, and these are my companions."
[21:03] <Leets> "They call me Leets." He nodded in greeting. "It's a pleasure meeting you."
[21:06] <Dracos> "Greetings. You'll pardon the greeting. We don't see that many visitors out here, but the town elder wants me to know your business before you proceed further."
[21:08] <Jan> "It's a typical response at this point." Jan replied. "I kinda feel bad for anyone else that's wandering around this messed up world right now."
[21:09] <Dracos> "Hmm? You're from far over the desert aren't you? How is it there? I haven't gotten over there in years. Sorry, forget my manners. I'm Gallows." He offered a broad and rough hand.
[21:09] <Felix> "Felix," the magician introduces himself with a flourish of a bow.
[21:10] <Leets> "It's pretty bad," Leets said. "Do you suppose we can meet your elders and explain what's going on directly?"
[21:10] <Jan> Jan took the offered hand and gave it a firm shake. "Well, I can give you the reader's digest version here, though."
[21:10] <Jan> "The world is in bad shape because something pretty bad is at its core. We're going around looking for stones to fix it."
[21:12] <Dracos> "Again? Doesn't anything stay together anymore." He shook his head. "Well, in that case I better take you to the elder. First though, promise too start no fights while in the village?"
[21:12] <Jan> "Works for me."
[21:12] <Leets> "Though we won't promise we won't finish fights that find us."
[21:13] <Dracos> Gallows eyed leets, considering the boy frowning.
[21:14] <Leets> "Something's been following us," Leets added in explaination, returning the stare evenly.
[21:14] <Jan> "Forgive him. We've had plenty of bizarre runs in lately."
[21:14] <Jan> The negotiator stepped between the two with a smile on his face.
[21:16] <Dracos> The man considered. "I can understand that. Makes one testy it can, but we're a pretty peaceful folk, and appreciate that being respected while you're here. Come on." He turned and lead towards a large wood house further in the village.
[21:17] <Jan> "Have you seen a flying ship nearby?" Jan idly asked as he followed after Gallows.
[21:18] <Dracos> "A flying ship? I do not believe so."
[21:20] <Jan> "Oh, do I have stories for your people, then..."
[21:20] <Dracos> The man lead into the house, a nice warm atmosphere with an old, practically ancient woman dressed in handmade clothes sitting before a fire. "Elder, I have brought the visitors."
[21:20] <Dracos> He greeted and sat down near the elder.
[21:21] <Dracos> There were some benches nearby on the floor, around the fire.
[21:23] <Jan> Jan waited for the elder to recognize them before he took a seat, gesturing for the others not to rush to seat quite yet either. "Hello, my name is Jan Smith, and these are my friends." He pointed to the others that had caught up.
[21:25] * Leets bowed respectfully to the elders. "I'm known as Leets.
[21:25] <Felix> "Felix," Felix introduces himself simply, again bowing.
[21:26] <Dracos> "Greetings travelers. What brings you to the village of the guardians?"
[21:35] <Leets> "We were told to come here in our search," Leets said, carefully chosing his words. "Do your people know of jewels called "starstones"?
[21:36] <Dracos> "No. I've never heard of such."
[21:38] <Jan> "Leets, show them the starstone." The negotiator turned to address the two. "Don't be surprised if it looks like the box eats him. It's a feature, not a flaw."
[21:39] * Leets ceremoniously opens Pandora's box, blanking out the familiar shift of perspective as he was sucked in. Moment's later, he returned; a glowing gemstone in hand.
[21:43] <Dracos> "A stone of spirit?" The old woman gazed at it considering.
[21:43] <Felix> "Do you recognize it now, then?" Felix asks.
[21:46] <Dracos> "No, but I sense it is tied strongly to the spirits."
[21:46] <Dracos> "Who are you to carry such a stone?"
[21:48] <Leets> "We were just the only people who stuck around to do a job." Leets added a breath later, "To seal a demon to repair this world."
[21:49] <Jan> "The starstones are key to fixing the state of the world. We only have four more to go."
[21:51] <Dracos> "And you have come here in search of another? I know of no such stone in the village...hmm..."
[21:51] <Jan> "We were sent to the mountains in the west in search of the mountain king."
[21:51] <Jan> "He has the next stone."
[21:52] <Dracos> "I know of no mountain king...but you are welcome to stay here while you search the mountains themselves."
[21:55] <Jan> "Thank you, elder."
[21:59] <Dracos> "Gallows, show them to a room. He can guide you while you are here."
[21:59] <Dracos> He stood, gesturing for them to follow. "You're lucky, she's in a good mood today."
[22:01] <Jan> "Oh?" Jan followed after Gallows.
[22:02] <Dracos> "Yeah...usually, well..." He made that kind of gesture. "Anyhow, you can stay here. It's not much but it's nice enough." He gave them a small room in the house.
[22:03] <Jan> "What are the guardians, anyway?" The negotiator asked Gallows.
[22:04] <Dracos> "Ancient spirits of the land or s omething. Anyhow, they look over the land. If you want the fancy shtick, you'll have to ask the elder."
[22:07] <Leets> "Do you think the Mountain King we're looking for could be one of your Guardians?"
[22:08] <Dracos> "Could be, but I don't know any called that..."
[22:09] <Jan> "Hm. Did this area suffer from any earthquakes recently?"
[22:13] <Dracos> "Earthquakes? Not for a while no..."
[22:15] <Jan> "Hm. When was the last time it happened, out of curiousity?"
[22:18] <Dracos> "Years ago."
[22:19] <Dracos> "Anything you need? I've got to get going."
[22:20] <Leets> "No, we're okay. Thanks"
[22:20] <Jan> Jan waved Gallows off.
[22:20] <Jan> "Thanks for all the help."
[22:23] <Dracos> and so they were left to their devices in the room.
[22:26] <Leets> "So where do we start looking?" Leets asked gesturing to mountains outside. "that's a lot of ground to search."
[22:27] <Jan> "We have a starstone detector."
[22:27] <Jan> He rapped on Pandora's Box to annoy Yomi out of it.
[22:27] <Leets> "A rather lazy one," Leets muttured under his breath.
[22:28] <Dracos> "Yeah, yeah, now you think about me." Yomi popped out. "It's never "Yomi, let's get some beers." or "Yomi, let's head to this concert." Just "Yomi, starstone get!""
[22:28] <Dracos> he yammered.
[22:29] <Jan> "It's hard to find beer in the middle of a desert." Jan consoled.
[22:30] <Jan> "And I played cards with you back in Baron."
[22:30] * Leets eyed Yomi, imagining him as drunk as Mary usually got after a day at the bar, and grimaced.
[22:30] <Leets> "Should you really be drinking at your age?"
[22:31] <Dracos> "That was weeks ago. And what are you talking about kid?"
[22:32] <Jan> "I let you out sometimes, but you always whine during the trip."
[22:33] <Leets> "I'd just thought you'd care more about your age when you're passed 1 million years old."
[22:33] <Leets> OOC: Replace "age" with "health".
[22:34] <Jan> "But fine, I'll let you out more often. Leets, hand me over Pandora's Box. It'll probably be better if I have it. The wolves'll zoom in on me instead."
[22:35] <Leets> "A'right." Leets handed Jan the box after making sure his weapons were back in his own bag.
[22:36] <Jan> "There, you big primordial baby." Jan secured the box in his pack. "I'll just bang the box when I want you out."
[22:38] <Dracos> Yomi, if anything, snorted.
[22:38] <Dracos> "So...Yes, there's a starstone nearby."
[22:39] <Jan> "You shouldn't throw a hissy fit, Yomi. It's not dignified for someone of your age."
[22:40] <Dracos> "Dignity is for the young."
[22:40] <Jan> "Anyway, you can float along with us for now. Who wants to stay here and rest for now while the rest of us go to the mountain king?"
[22:43] <Dracos> "I'll come." Fizban offered.
[22:45] <Jan> The negotiator nodded at Fizban's offer. "Okay, anyone else coming along?"
[22:45] <Leets> "Sure. Besides, who knows what lurks up there at night."
[22:48] <Felix> "Might as well. Two magicians are always better than one anyway," Felix adds.
[22:49] <Jan> And so, having assembled the party, the group bid Mary farewell as the gunman had decided to stay for a while longer.
[22:49] <Dracos> "I'll stay here and man the fort." Mary responds as they head off.
[22:49] <Dracos> OOC: Flip those
[22:51] <Dracos> Heading out, they headed right up the mountain?
[22:55] <Dracos> Heading off, they traveled to the mountains, seeing a couple of trails, a few along the lower ends, and a harder one heading high up the mountain.
[22:58] <Jan> "What are you getting, Yomi?"
[22:58] <Dracos> "It's close...but moving. Within 5 miles at least."
[22:59] <Felix> "Moving is never good," Felix says with a sigh.
[23:01] <Leets> "Maybe we'll be lucky and it'll be small?" Leets suggested hopefully.
[23:01] <Felix> "When are we ever lucky?" Felix retorts amusedly.
[23:02] <Jan> "I guess we should go up to the top..."
[23:04] <Dracos> "That's the tougher path though." Fizban looked up it. "Shall we start?"
[23:06] <Leets> "Yomi, can you tell in which direction it's moving at least?"
[23:07] <Dracos> "Not quite that precise, sorry."
[23:08] <Jan> "Well, if you guys want, we can split up. I'll go up the harder path, and whoever else wants can go up the other. That thing is moving, afterall..."
[23:10] <Dracos> "That may be wise," Fizban agreed. "Groups of two?"
[23:11] * Jan nods.
[23:11] <Leets> "How do we signal the others if we find something?"
[23:13] <Felix> "I can cast lightning out towards the sky," Felix offers.
[23:18] <Jan> "Who'll go into which group?"
[23:18] <Felix> "Well, unless you and Leets have some way of signaling, probably Fizban and I should be in separate groups, and we can attract the attention of the other group with our spells," Felix suggests.
[23:19] <Jan> "Works for me."
[23:19] <Leets> "Well, I'll go with Felix then. You and Yomi could probably protect Fizban better then I could anyway."
[23:20] <Dracos> "Well then...who takes the high road and who takes the low road and which will get to swissberg in the morning?"
[23:23] <Dracos> Fizban looked at them.
[23:24] <Jan> "Best if you go the low road, Fizban."
[23:24] <Felix> "Actually, I would suggest your team goes the high road. Jan, you would have an easier time going down than going up if you have to transform, right?"
[23:25] <Jan> "If anything, I'd be the one to survive a fall from the high road, though."
[23:26] <Leets> "So long as you don't land on us anyway."
[23:26] <Leets> "And don't create rock slides either."
[23:26] <Jan> "Anyway, I'll go the low road, then. No problems." Jan shrugged. "Leets is more agile than me, so he probably would have it easier going up."

[Dracos]

[21:08] <Dracos> And so the group parted on the mountainside, Jan and Fizban taking the low roads, hanging down the lower sides of the mountain, where  the trail was easier and there was indeed some foilage along the sides of the path.
[21:08] <Dracos> "Mmm, the mountains are nice this time a year."
[21:09] <Dracos> Fizban mused as they walked along.
[21:15] <Jan> "I suppose." The negotiator replied back distractedly.
[21:17] <Dracos> "Something occupies your mind, young friend?  Take heed, for moments of peace can be all too rare in a journey such as this," Fizban advised, keeping the pace.
[21:20] <Jan> "I'll rest when I'm dead. Since I'm on the clock, I have to worry about all those loose ends we keep running into."
[21:23] <Dracos> "Well then, speak what troubles your mind."  The old man marched on with his cane.
[21:25] <Jan> "We didn't find the grave of the hero along the way."
[21:28] <Dracos> "This is true...  but worry not, these kinds of things have a way of working themselves out.  The villagers surely have some that have explored the nearby lands.  Perhaps they will know."
[21:29] <Jan> "I think I'm starting to suffer culture shock. They're getting a bit too bizarre to handle."
[21:31] <Dracos> "Mmm, I find it rather exciting myself...so many different walks of life.  Did you get a chance to talk to the bards of Baron?"
[21:34] <Jan> "No, that's the thing. I'm focusing on just the end goal to keep myself stable."
[21:35] <Dracos> "What then though?" The man wondered as they walked along in the warm day.
[21:37] <Jan> "When those spirits have their peace." The negotiator replied. "I wronged them unintentionally, but I'm not going to give myself over to them to rip apart, and the world needs Yomi."
[21:38] <Jan> The man looked about the surroundings. "I might even leave you guys when that happens."
[21:40] <Dracos> "Escaping destiny can be a harsh journey." The man meandered as he walked, seeming in thought.  "But I never believed much in that myself."
[21:41] <Jan> "My destiny isn't that grand. I don't belong out in the country fighting demons. I'm just a simple negotiator, and that's it."
[21:43] <Dracos> "You remind me a bit of someone I once met.  A son of a peasant."  The man responded enigmatically as they traveled.
[21:44] <Jan> "I think it's enough that I guided the others. People can't be expected to give so much of themselves that they lose their own identity." Jan replied.
[21:48] <Dracos> "Hmmm, possibly.  Think to go back to the city then?"
[21:48] <Dracos> The path was getting narrower as they walked.
[21:49] <Jan> "It's where I belong." Jan replied.
[21:50] <Dracos> "Belonging is important." The man intoned, going silent as they walked, as if a decision was made.
[21:55] <Dracos> The trip was quiet...as eventually they got to a point where they either had to scale the sheer cliffs..or turn around.
[21:56] <Jan> "And here we thought this was going to be the easy way."
[21:57] <Dracos> "Hmm...Well...it might be an important way none the less." The older man stroked his beard, looking out onto the lands far below.
[22:00] <Jan> "Do you want to wait for me here? Maybe my golem body could carry the both of us up the cliff sides." Jan tried to gauge the area he had to work with.
[22:00] <Dracos> "Wait a moment and look.  Do you see it?
[22:02] <Jan> "What?" Jan already had a back up plot as he started taking Pandora's Box out of his pack. He looked about.
[22:02] <Dracos> The old man pointed down, way down the mountain side, towards ... an arrangement of large rocks?  They looked a bit odd though.
[22:04] <Jan> "Just a bunch of weirdly positioned rocks to me." The negotiator blinked. "Don't see what the big deal might be."
[22:05] <Dracos> "look closer...Those aren't rocks.  Unless rocks are whitish in tone and bear the shape of a skull."
[22:08] <Jan> "Wow. I hope I got your kind of eye for detail when I get older, Fizban." The man looked surprised as he narrowed his eyes to observe. "Down we go?"
[22:10] <Dracos> "I don't really fancy breaking my neck...probably better to travel out here later, on ground."
[22:11] <Jan> "There's always Pandora's Box." Jan humorously replied. "Although, I wonder if a golem can survive that big of a fall."
[22:13] <Dracos> "I'm not chancing it." The older man turned to head back.
[22:22] <Dracos> It was getting dark by the time they reached the earlier pass.
[22:25] <Dracos> "So...what now?  I can summon a bit of light to head up." He looked a little tired though.
[22:26] <Jan> "No point to it. We'll fall and break our necks with how things are."
[22:29] <Jan> The negotiator began setting up camp for the two of them.
[22:31] <Dracos> "Mmm, why not head down to the village?  It's only a short walk there, and we'll probably find more comfort?" The older man suggested.
[22:32] <Jan> "Doesn't feel too fair for the others. They might need help."
[22:36] <Dracos> "Fair enough." The old man found a spot on the ground and waited, offering a bit of help but mostly resting his weary bones.
[22:37] <Jan> Once everything was set up, Jan offered his extra blankets and such to help pad the ground for the old timer.
[22:39] <Dracos> "Thank you Jan."  And they settled down to wait.

[Dracos]

[21:15] <Dracos> Meanwhile, watching their friends head off down the easier path, the two men looked up at the path heading up the mountainside, a bit of a craggy twist but heading mostly straight up for the early part of it.
[21:18] * Felix sighs as he looks at the workout ahead of them. "This should be fun," Felix mutters besides Leets as they proceed to go up.
[21:18] <Leets> "You know, I just realized we never asked what this 'Mountain King' looks like," Leets said, striking up an idle conversation as he tightened the laces of his boots before starting the trek up the path.
[21:18] <Felix> "It probably shouldn't be too hard to figure out, I imagine. Besides, have you ever met a king who doesn't enjoy his title?" Felix asks.
[21:22] <Leets> "That's if this king isn't some ravenous, flesh rending beast who strikes terror into the hearts of all that lives." Leets eyed their surroundings conspiratorily. "Of course, if that were the case, those villagers would probably know about it."
[21:23] <Dracos> The winds blew over the lands with a whooosh as they walked up the slow path.
[21:25] <Leets> "Ah, the great outdoors," Leets muttered, keeping a tight grip on his cap as the wind rushed by. So far, they haven't encountered anything worth noticing. Alive or otherwise. "After so many weeks of it, I'm starting to miss civilization."
[21:26] <Felix> "Only now starting to miss it?" Felix replies. "I've been missing it since the moment we left."
[21:27] <Dracos> Felix noticed some small squirrels running about as they carried on.
[21:28] <Leets> "I grew up with the concrete." Came the retort. "After six years of smog and grey walls, I thought wilderness would be more interesting, but it's been nothing but deserts and forests so far."
[21:30] <Felix> "And mountains now too," Felix adds with a small smile as he looks up and ahead to estimate how much further they could go.
[21:32] <Dracos> They clearly had miles and miles ahead of them, though they noticed the brush thinning out...then vanishing as they proceeded upwards.  These were no mere hills they climbed, but true mountains, massive enough to remind man of their place in the world.
[21:36] <Leets> "At least all that smog makes me use to low oxygen," Leets mused outloud as they continued their long hike up; the path seeming to become rougher with less plants holding the soil together.
[21:37] <Dracos> Soon the path stopped heading up, leaving them a few options, a rougher looking path heading to their left...one weaving a bit down the mountain also to their left, and one that looked rather easy heading almost straight along the mountainside along the same direction Jan and Fizban had traveled.
[21:39] <Felix> "Which way do you want to take?" Felix asks Leets.
[21:41] * Leets shrugged, studying the three paths for a moment. If there was something living here, maybe they could simplify things by narrowing down their choices to trails still in use.
[21:42] <Dracos> The wind wooshed again, a bit harder it seemed...  he couldn't tell though.  The ground was rough, and his eyes not used enough to picking out animal trails to tell the difference between them and simple wear and tear by the winds.
[21:45] <Leets> "Do you have some spell that can sort out trails, Felix?" asked Leets, finding nothing in the windwashed soil, "we just need to know what trails are being used and what aren't."
[21:56] * Felix shakes his head. "Sorry, but no. We'll just have to pick a path at random."
[21:58] <Leets> "Right then. The old fashion way it is." Leets sighed, digging a small coin out of his pocket. "Heads, the left path. Tails, the right path." Up flew the coin, somersaulting in the air.
[22:00] <Dracos> and it landed on it's edge...until the wind WHOOOSHED and blew it over.  Heads.
[22:01] <Leets> "Well, that was odd." Leets retrieved the coin, then began the journey up the indicated trail. "Still, left path it is."
[22:03] <Felix> "Left path it is," Felix agrees as he starts moving again.
[22:04] <Dracos> The path was narrow and rocky, they'd have to mostly stick to single file.
[22:05] <Leets> "If you have to shoot a spell at something in front of me, yell 'duck' so I don't get zapped," Leets said dryly, eyeing the trail in distaste.
[22:10] <Dracos> The trail was not fun to traverse but after a while, they noticed it was starting to rise up, leading up the mountain again.
[22:13] <Dracos> It was  beginning to get dark as they traveled, the path harder to see.
[22:15] <Leets> "Bugger. I hope we don't have to camp up here." A tired glare at the fading daylight, as if he was willing a few more hours.
[22:16] <Felix> "It would be a bother to have to go back down and then go through this all over again," Felix agrees.
[22:17] <Dracos> It was soon hard to see as they traveled..far up now.
[22:19] * Felix mutters some incantations before grabbing a rock, which soon begins emitting light for them to have a bit more light. "Looks like we might have to camp. This spell won't last forever..."
[22:23] <Dracos> Light flowed over them, letting them spot...something watching them from a distance...  a large dog...or wolf perhaps?   no, a bit big for that.
[22:26] <Felix> "Well...looks like we have some company for the night," Felix mutters.
[22:26] <Leets> "Darn. I was hoping I was hallucinating..." Leets stared at the wolf behind narrowed eyes, wondering where or if there was a pack in reserve.
[22:28] <Felix> "We're going to have to scare it away, or it'll think we're dinner when we go to sleep," Felix comments.
[22:30] <Dracos> The creature watched them, and then headed off, a hint of orange/red fur before it vanished further up the mountain.
[22:31] <Leets> "That... was too easy," Leets muttered. "Do you have any warding spells handy?"
[22:36] <Felix> "It probably went to get the rest of it's pack," Felix replies with a frown. "I have an alarm spell that'll warn us if something breaches it, but nothing that'll actually keep the beasties out."
[22:38] <Leets> "What? No wall of fire?" Leets asked in disappointment. "Well, guess knowing where and when they're coming will help us fight or run."
[22:39] * Felix laughs. "I'm not that good yet, sadly enough."
[22:42] <Leets> "Don't you have sentries in your bag?" Leets asked hopefully.
[22:44] <Dracos> OOC: Checking the ooc channel yes.
[22:46] <Felix> "Sentries? No. Remember, I only recently started learning magic. I haven't exactly had time to learn the full spectrum of possibilities," Felix says as he concentrates and casts the alarm spell with as large a radius as he can centered from a spot that looks good to set up camp in.
[22:49] <Dracos> A spot that looks good isn't soon in coming, though they find a bit a little wider that they could rest in.  Totally undefensible, but at least they've got a bit of room.
[22:51] * Leets began to clear up the bits of debris in the field. "Okay, you set up the alarms. I'll start making camp."
[22:52] * Felix nods as he quickly finishes casting the spell and helps Leets set up a camp of sorts from what they've got.
[22:57] <Dracos> The night was peaceful despite the gusty winds that pilfered the paths up high in the mountains...
[22:57] <Dracos> They slept well enough for the rocky terrain, waking early at dawn.
[22:59] <Felix> "Brr, that was a cold night," Felix says once he awakens, shivering a bit. "Glad the animals didn't try to sneak in at least."
[23:01] <Dracos> He noticed...something watching in the distance...  A large..Lion?  He seemed to be watching over them almost...and on his neck something glimmered.  The magnificant creature noticed him stirring though, and soon enough bounded up the mountain, taking paths they wouldn't darre.
[23:03] <Leets> "Yeah, there's at least that," Leets agreed, half-awake. He paused, watching the apparation running. "Is that... the mountain king we're looking for?"
[23:05] <Felix> "Well... I certainly wasn't expecting Aslan to be the mountain king," Felix mutters.
[23:07] <Leets> "Aslan?" Leets muttered. "Nevermind. We better signal the others."
[23:08] <Felix> "Reference to a book from my world," Felix replies before nodding and casting a lightning bolt out to the sky, hopefully getting the others' attention.
[23:19] <Dracos> Hours passed while they waited...

[Dracos]

[23:09] <Dracos> the next morning as they were getting up, they notices a bolt of lightning flashing up from the mountain way way up there.
[23:14] <Jan> Jan quickly began putting things away as he gestured for Fizban to start up the trail. "I'll catch up later."
[23:14] <Dracos> The old man nodded, heading up the trail as best he could.
[23:17] <Jan> And so, a good while later, Jan was up and following after!
[23:19] <Dracos> Soon enough, for values of soon measured  in hours of long and tiring travel, they spotted their friends.
[23:20] <Leets> "Hey guys. Took you long enough," Leets waved to Fizban and Jan as they approached.
[23:22] <Dracos> The old man nodded tiredly. "It was a long walk."
[23:23] <Felix> "Good to see you guys again. We think we may have found the mountain king," Felix comments as the two approach.
[23:26] <Jan> "What was it?"
[23:26] <Leets> "Funny thing, it was your lion, Jan."
[23:31] <Jan> "Come again?" Jan blinked, thrown off balance by the statement. He offered the old timer a cloth to wipe away the sweat on his face.
[23:31] <Dracos> Fizban took it gratefully, wiping his head.
[23:33] <Leets> "Or it looked like the one you described. Even had something sparkley on its neck."
[23:33] <Jan> "Anyway, let's go after it. We shouldn't waste anymore time. We'll find out soon enough if it is or not."
[23:35] <Leets> "It went up there," Leets said, pointing helpfully as he packed up their camp. When that was finished, they followed the trail up the mountain top.
[23:40] <Dracos> Heading up towards the tops of the mountains, it was getting quite cold, the path seeming to fade as they were left to climb along rough hewn chunks of land, half walking, half sliding to continue along.
[23:40] <Dracos> No sign yet of the lion they'd seen earlier.
[23:43] <Jan> Jan made sure to keep an eye out on Fizban as they moved along, helping him out whenever it looked like he was lagging behind.
[23:44] <Leets> "I hope we didn't lose it," Leets muttered, picking their way through the trail, and keeping an eye out for signs of mane or gem.
[23:48] <Dracos> No such luck...did they break for lunch...or try retracing their steps?
[23:50] <Jan> "I think we should eat now. We're burning our energy now that we're up here."
[23:54] <Dracos> As they stopped to eat, Jan's eyes chanced up, further up the mountain...spotting their qurrey mid meal.
[23:57] <Dracos> The proud lion was watching them from higher up, observing those in his domain
[23:58] * Leets swallowed, noticing Jan freeze. "Is something wrong?" he asked, following Jan's gaze and spotting the lion. "...nevermind."
[23:59] <Dracos> The lion didn't immediately flee this time...  but then, finding a path up to it wasn't clear.
[23:59] <Jan> Jan's eyes narrowed as he tried to place the creature, comparing it to the year long memories.
Session Time: Sun Jun 11 00:00:00 2006
[00:02] <Dracos> Odd though it might be....he thought it might actually be the same one.
[00:04] <Jan> "Well, fancy meeting you here." The negotiator admitted after a few moments to digest the concept. "Nice to meet you again." He called up to the lion as he rose to his feet and began walking closer towards the lion.
[00:07] <Dracos> The lion looked silently down at Jan, not saying anything, a sort of quiet noble presence on the mountainside.
[00:09] <Felix> "Are you the mountain king?" Felix asks bluntly while looking at the lion before looking at his companions. "Figured it's worth a shot to ask."
[00:09] <Dracos> The lion, being a lion, didn't answer, even though he looked clearly at Felix, starting to make his way off in a slow gait.
[00:10] <Jan> "You've moved up in the world. I'm glad that you found your niche in this world." The negotiator gripped the side of the cliffs the lion was standing on and with a grunt, began to climb it. He kept his eyes on the lion the whole while.
[00:15] <Dracos> The lion turned, noticing and watching his climb.
[00:15] <Dracos> It wasn't looking to be an easy one though, the rocks were mostly smooth and he had not anything in the way of equipment.
[00:19] <Jan> Jan briefly toyed with the idea of calling on his power, but disregarded it for now as he continued struggling up. Didn't feel quite right to rely on that power in front of the lion from his memories.
[00:22] <Dracos> The lion moved as he finally reached the top, glancing back and heading further, down an odd path.
[00:24] <Jan> The negotiator huffed, arms shaking from the strain of lifting himself up the cliff. Shaking his head, and taking in a deep breath, he followed after the lion as old memories of doing the same thing before came back to his mind.
[00:26] <Dracos> And up they went, swifly leaving his friends behind as he chased the cat up the mountain...eventually reaching the frost tipped peaks, where the lion finally stopped, turning to face him.
[00:27] <Jan> "This time I made it all the way." The negotiator questioned as he waved an arm at the frigid land around them.
[00:29] <Dracos> The lion looked at him, standing nobly in the snow and waiting for him almost.
[00:31] <Jan> "Mountain King...please let us have the starstone. The world needs it to be reborn." Jan moved closer to the lion, and knelt before it.
[00:33] <Dracos> The lion paused, looking into his eyes...before licking him once, standing still and letting him get at the star stone.
[00:35] * Felix is now known as Merc-zzz
[00:36] <Jan> The negotiator smiled, reaching over and giving the lion a hug first. "I'm glad you're safe." Reaching over, he pulled the star stone free from around the king's neck.
[00:40] <Dracos> The glistening gem shone in the noontime sun.
[00:40] <Dracos> It truly was a beautiful thing.
[00:43] <Jan> Jan looked over the lion to see if he was alright.
[00:45] <Dracos> The lion stood there watching him, alive and well.
[00:57] <Jan> "Is there anything I can do for you?"
[00:58] <Dracos> The lion quirked it's head and turned, heading away..then glancing back to see if he was following.
[01:00] <Jan> The negotiator rose to his feet and began following after the regal lion.
[01:01] <Dracos> The line lead to a hole in the ground and seemed to stop there.
[01:03] <Dracos> OOC:*Lion
[01:03] <Jan> "What is it?" Jan stood behind the lion.
[01:05] <Dracos> Looking down into it, he saw darkness.  No, wait, not quite darkness...  More like...Nothing?
[01:08] <Jan> "The world is coming apart at the edges.." Jan frowned. "Don't worry, now that we have two stones, we can repair this." He promised to the lion.
[01:10] <Dracos> The lion nodded and turned away, climbing swiftly back down the mountainside.
[01:10] <Jan> The negotiator followed after the lion.
[01:11] <Dracos> The lion paused near where he had climbed before, stopping where his friends could see.

[Dracos]

[20:13] <Dracos-GM> At the end of last session, our bold party had discovered the second star stone, meeting with the mountain king and retrieving the precious artifact.  Shortly afterwards, they regrouped on the shakey path that they'd followed up, high into the frigid mountain peaks.
[20:16] 4Disconnect notice: Disconnected from DejaToons. Attempting to reconnect in 30 seconds...
[20:16] * Disconnected
[20:16] 4Disconnect notice: Disconnected from psx-dude.net. Attempting to reconnect in 30 seconds...
[20:18] * Rejoined channel #wasteland
[20:18] * Topic is '#wastelandOOC up | <Jan> Bikimono. | Kweeeeh. | There are no gunblades here. | Jan chose to stand!'
[20:18] * Set by Dracos on Sun Feb 26 00:30:52
[20:18] * ChanServ sets mode: +qo Dracos Dracos
[20:21] <Leets> "Well, at least we got an easy starstone," Leets said as the party picked their way down the mountain path. "Where's the next one?"
[20:23] <Dracos> "Check the tablet?" Fizban suggested as they made the long walk down.
[20:26] * Leets mumbles, and reaches for Pandora's box; giving it a sharp rap. "Yomi! What's the tablet say about where to go now?"
[20:30] <Dracos> Yomi popped out "Do you mind?" He handed Leets the tablet.
[20:39] <Leets> "Looks like we go South," Leets commented after studying the tablet. "Well, this is cheery. Do you feel up to challenging crime lords or visiting hell?"
[20:41] <Dracos> "Hell, I'm told is nice the time of the year you don't go to it." Fizban, rung in as Yomi, a bit quickly, snapped right back into his box.
[20:44] <Leets> "East sounds right cheerful too. City of Skulls," Leets muttered. "Why couldn't the powers that be send us on a quest through something more normal then a "city of skulls"?"
[20:46] <Felix> "Because it would be too easy if they sent us to the City of Chocolate Cupcakes," Felix says with a sigh.
[20:48] <Jan> "I think Yomi is jealous."
[20:49] <Jan> The negotiator rapped on the box.
[20:49] <Felix> "Why would he be jealous?" Felix asks, raising an eyebrow.
[20:50] <Jan> "He doesn't like being just used. Guess he wants us to talk with him more.
[20:50] <Dracos> the box opened slowly, Yomi seeming a touch nervous. "Yes?"
[20:51] <Jan> "Can you sense it? Or are you being weird for no reason today?"
[20:53] <Dracos> "Yes.  Yes I can.  It's close."
[20:54] <Jan> "We're going south, people. It's time we activate one of the towers. We can get the star stone from the kingpin on the way too."
[20:54] <Jan> The negotiator paused his step to look at the others. "The Mountain King showed me something pretty bad when I followed him."
[20:55] <Felix> "Did he? What was it?"
[20:56] <Jan> "Nothing. The demon inside the core of this place is fraying at the edges, and the mountain here is showing signs of some sort of void creeping in."
[20:57] <Jan> The negotiator frowned at the thought of the lion having to stay near. "Maybe we can fix it if we activate a tower soon."
[20:58] <Leets> "Or we could be making it worse," Leets said pointedly. "You're right though. Better to do something now then let it get worse later."
[20:58] <Dracos> "A risky proposition...It might stir the demon if it notices us closing in...but I suppose we have no better alternatives." Yomi chimed in.
[20:59] <Jan> "That void can't be allowed to spread."
[21:01] <Dracos> They were approaching the bottom of the mountains now, another ten or twenty minutes would put them back in the village.
[21:01] <Jan> "Should we check out those bones we saw on the way up, Fizban?" Jan questioned the old timer.
[21:02] <Dracos> "I don't see why not.  It may be that graveyard you were searching for."
[21:05] <Jan> The negotiator nodded. "Let's go while we still have some daylight left."
[21:05] <Leets> "Lead the way then." Leets gestured for Fizban and Jan.
[21:05] * Felix follows silently behind
[21:10] <Dracos> OOC: OOC important =p
[21:10] <Dracos> They made their way back to the town...
[21:10] <Felix> "Let's find Mary and see what he's been up to while we were up there," Felix comments.
[21:11] <Jan> Jan took note of the time, trying to make sure if they'd make it to the graveyard in time.
[21:15] <Dracos> They'd make it to the graveyard around evening.
[21:16] <Dracos> Possibly just after dark if he guessed right.
[21:22] <Jan> "We'll get there too late. I'd rather not face the wolves out there." The negotiator pitched his idea to the others. "Let's just stay here and rest for the night. We'll try in the morning."
[21:23] <Leets> "Probably the safest bet." Leets agreed. "Besides, after hiking all day, we all need a break."
[21:24] <Dracos> And so the party took gracious advantage of the room they'd been allowed, in the morning, they noticed a lot of work being done towards the center of the village, strange structures being put up.
[21:29] <Jan> Jan went to look out of curiousity.
[21:30] <Leets> "What do you suppose is going on?" voiced Leets as he watched the activities curiously.
[21:31] <Dracos> "A yearly festival to the spirits."  A stern voice behind them answered.  "Bit of hogwash but the village insists."
[21:32] * Leets glanced behind. "I take it you don't believe in this?"
[21:36] <Dracos> Gallows stood there, heading up. "Yeah, something like that."
[21:36] <Jan> The negotiator yawned a bit as he cleared the morning fog out of his system. "If they're good spirits, I don't see what the problem is with celebrating them."
[21:38] <Dracos> The man brushed his chin.  "I suppose.  Feels like supersticial hogwash to me.  The elder sent me to tell you you're welcome to stay for it though."
[21:40] <Felix> "Is there free food involved in the celebration?" Felix asks with a small grin.
[21:43] <Dracos> "Well, yes," Gallows laughed.  "it's a big feast."
[21:45] <Felix> "Well, I'm up for staying, after having spent the night out in the mountains," Felix says to his companions.
[21:45] <Leets> "Doesn't it last all day?"
[21:46] <Felix> "Well, we don't have to stay for all of it of course," Felix notes with a shrug.
[21:47] <Dracos> "It's a starts in around sunset, and lasts all night." Gallows informed.
[21:47] <Leets> "Well, that simplifies things. We can finish that errand and enjoy the rest of our time here."
[21:47] <Jan> "If you all want, you can stay the day, I'll get back for part of it."
[21:55] <Dracos> "I'll come." The oldest, Fizban, mused.
[21:55] <Dracos> "Hmm?  What errand are you folks up to?  More mountain climbing?"
[21:56] <Felix> "I'll come with you if you think you'll need me, otherwise, I can't say I wouldn't mind a nice short break to party," Felix comments.
[21:57] <Jan> "Going to just combat spectral wolves." Jan idly replied. "If it comes down to it, they can't hurt me, so best if I go alone."
[21:58] <Leets> "It will go faster with extra hands," Leets said pointedly. "And if they do show up, you can keep them busy while the rest of us look."
[21:59] <Jan> "I'd rather not have the lot of you be chew toys while I look."
[22:00] <Jan> The man calmly replied.
[22:00] <Dracos> "Wolves out here?  I'd think the desert would get them." Gallows folded his arms.
[22:01] <Leets> "They're not regular wolves."
[22:02] <Jan> "Not these. They're souls of people slaughtered to protect something important to them. Their duty changed them into wolves even in the afterlife." The negotiator waved an arm at the desert. "They're out there, and I have to put them back to sleep."
[22:02] <Dracos> "I see...  Sounds like nasty mojo... but nothing a few shotgun shells shouldn't fix."
[22:02] <Leets> "Believe me, we tried. We might as well have been throwing pebbles."
[22:03] <Dracos> "Really?  I've found a good shotgun blast  pretty much deals with anything."
[22:07] <Jan> "Don't worry about it. This is my job. I'll see you all later." Jan nodded at the others, before rushing out of the village towards the car.
[22:07] <Dracos> "In such a rush..." The old man didn't try to follow Jan's pace.
[22:15] <Dracos> "You rushing off too?" Fizban turned to the younger ones, noticing leets already springing after him.

[Dracos]

And so Leets and Jan hurried off to the car, finding it much how they'd left it, thankfully sturdy enough to take the desert sands and heat, though they might want to let the old thing air out a bit before driving in it.

Dracos

[Dracos]

To Mary, Felix:

Mary and Felix, meanwhile, were left behind in the village as Jan and Leets hurried off.

"Young people these days, no patience at all."  Fizban said, somewhat with a smile.

Dracos

[Shukuen]

"So what did these skulls look like?" Leets asked Jan, hopping into the passenger seat and rolling down the windows. The pressure in the car lessened as fresh air moved into the opening, making the interior more comfortable to be with.

[Olvelsper]

"No, but there's five of them. Arranged around something, so it'll be noticable."

[Shukuen]

"Well, hopefully it won't take long if there's only five of them."

[Merc]

"That's youth for you," Felix replies to the older man with a shrug, before slapping him in the back (lightly of course...he -is- older after all). "C'mon, let's go get festive while we wait for them to come back."

[Dracos]

To Mary/Felix:

"Well, it's not starting for a while, though I suppose you could help setup or watch." Gallows admitted, leading the others towards the village center.

Dracos

[Olvelsper]

Jan and Leets drove on.