D&D II Act One Scene II(b) - The Dread City

Fourier

About forty or so white robed figures lie bowing at a man who stands in their center, who wears only a light cloth and is consumed by flame. The room is baked sand brick, a light brown in colour, several murals depicting the sun throughout the history of this plane line the walls. From when it was healthy, with oceans and grassy plains beneath it, up to the blackened sun and deserts of today. Two stairs downward lie at the back of the room.

The central figure looks in Sarric's direction.

"Who comes to seek the purifying flame of Mi?"

sKeith

Sarric tries to ascerntain where the man is looking, and if that causes him to do a little spin, then he does one.
"Excuse me, are you addressing me?
I hope you can excuse my ignorance but i have know idea what you are talking about.
I'd much prefer to be on my way that trying to figure out what you are on about, but i promised my friend here that i'd give it a shot.

Where's the tea and sandwhiches?"

Sarric continues to wander on, making it obvious he is looking for something, towards the stairs.

Fourier

"Tea and sandwiches?! This is a serious cult, we worship the great Mi"

Karinth steps into the middle of the circle.

"My friend is looking for tea and sandwiches, perhaps there are some down those stairs?"

The central cultists eyes narrow.

"Who are you, who sent you?"

Ser Boros bows.

"Travellers sir, from a far off land. We are ignorant of your customs, forgive our boorishness" he says, following the bow by going to his knees in genuflection.

The priest seems pleased at Ser Boros's grace and humility.

Sarric reaches the stairs.

sKeith

Sarric desends the stairs while saying "are the toilets down here?"

Fourier

Sarric enters a room with a man bound and gagged to a sacrificial alter.

sKeith

Sarric says slowly for the man to undestand,
"I am going to remove your gag and i only want you to say your name,
if you start saying anything else, i will just regag you and walk on, ok, do you understand?"

Sarric then removes the gag, and listens for a name, once he hears a name he will regag the man, or if he start spouting stuff he will also just regag the man.

Fourier

"Thronis" he says sharply and quickly with a nod.

The area behind the alter suddenly lights up, revealing a second set of stairs.

The high priest runs down.

"You shouldn't....oh, the lights...it seems the temple has accepted you."

sKeith

"ah, very good, I wouldn't want to keep you away from your duties.
This man here will show me around the facilities,
no need for a person of your rank to be escorting new recruits around showing them the mundanities of our temple."

Sarric beings to unbinding the man whilst saying, "i don't know how they expect you to carry out your duties all tied up like this, we'll get you working productively in no time."

Fourier

"Oh wait..." says the high priest "...Nibenay himself gave us this man to sacrifice..." he tosses a dagger over to Sarric.

"Could you take him to the lower temple area and kill him on any of the alters, I don't want Nibenay to be annoyed at us for wasting a sacrifice."

sKeith

Sarric catches the dagger,
"no bother, we'll do that right after he shows me to the urinatorium,
I'm sure he is dying for a bit of relief and i don't like my sacrafices to be twitchy when they expire,
it makes them taste funny."

Sarric uses the dagger to cut Thonis free but leaves the gag in place,
"I think Ser Boros and Karrinth mentioned the need to use the urinatorium just before we entered the temple."

Sarric pushes the man toward the stairs he came in by, "Up them stairs now, you get your relief, then down to the lower temple area we go, to cut your neck and drain you, then we slice and dice you and add you to the evening stew.
Would you believe they had no tea and sandwiches out for the new recruits, ridiculous, I tells you."

sKeith

Sarric ascends the stairs behind Thonis urging him forward if he slows.

Fourier

Surprisingly Sarric is permitted to ascend the stairs. The informant from the bar whispers to Sarric.

"I understand now, you really are of this faith, otherwise the temple wouldn't have accepted you"

sKeith

Sarric whispers back, "Our numbers are dwindling, you needed to be persuaded back, by any means necessary."
He beckons for Karinth and Ser Boros, and walks to intercept with Thonis in tow, slightly clicking his heels together as he walks.

Fourier

Karinth and Ser Boros turn and head with Sarric.

"Rather easy no? Sarric?..." Karinth begins "...perhaps these cultists will attack us on the way out, right?" he looks hopefully at Sarric.

sKeith

"Can you use your thingy and make a portal?"

Fourier

sKeith wrote: »

"Can you no use your thingy and make a portal?"

Karinth looks back at the cultists.

"Sarric these are fire worshiping cultists...surely a fight is to be had here..."

Ser Boros places his hand on Karinth's shoulder.

"Another time Karinth, another time."

Karinth takes out the amulet and a bright flash overtakes the room. When it clears the group are gone.

The cultists stand in shock. The high priest smiles.

"They are simply gone, ascended in light! Prophets sent by Mi"

Over the next few weeks construction begins on a statue of Sarric.

Fourier

The flash clears and they stand once more in the planeshifting chamber.

Thonis cries.

"Oh beautiful Othegregrad, I shall never leave your flesh covered streets for as long as I live." He then kisses the floor.

"Wha...where is this place?" the Nibenayan palace guard whispers.

sKeith

"Right so, another mission down, how many of these do we have to do Karinth, before they deem the punishment for your crimes is over?
Don't be telling the council that they are too easy!

do ya think we have earned a nights rest before more portaling? "

Fourier

sKeith wrote: »

"Right so, another mission down, how many of these do we have to do Karinth, before they deem the punishment for your crimes is over?
Don't be telling the council that they are too easy!

do ya think we have earned a nights rest before more portaling? "

"I think I could swing that last one as payment enough. A mythical sword, a asset recovered. I will simply lie and say Nibenay's most vile sorcerers assaulted us..." he turns to the palace guard "...you are to say we rescued you from Nibenay's throne room, if you don't..."

"I get it" the guard replies wearily.

sKeith

"Thats great, I hope they go for it.
Lets go and collect our payment then, and if they accept, maybe I can get another ride on that wonderful steed of yours, Cargulok." , Sarric is visibly excited at the thought.

Fourier

Karinth leads the gang into the council chamber.

"Gentlebeings, I have returned from Athas tearing victory from the braying beasts of that world...if I were to describe the daring feats of Sarric and Ser Boros you would scarce believe them, let me say that there are more than a few cultists on the plane of the Dark Sun that want for a head to match their shoulders....I present to you Thonis"

The liquid bodied head of the council stretchs his hjead out of the high seat, all the way down to Karinth and looks him in the eye.

"Exceptional work..." he then turns to Thonis "...Thonis, for being captured you will be sent to knowledge liquidation, in death know that the vats will retain a portion of your talents for neural grafting onto others more fitting of the honour."

"What? No please...Nibenay has power beyond...there was no way I could..." Karinth knocks him out and his body is dragged away by Trollish guards.

The councilman continues.

"Sarric, we reward unto you either coin or land, your choosing. Ser Boros a townhouse here in Othegregrad and Karinth...your freedom from debt. You may continue your travels of this world without the fear of our Clockmen assassinating you."

"I feared no such thing you spineless whelp, but thank you" Karinth says with a bow.

sKeith

"Some land to call home would be nice, thank you councilbeings"

Fourier

sKeith wrote: »

"Some land to call home would be nice, thank you councilbeings"

"Twenty miles to the east, we grant you lordship over a small village and the area around it."

OOC: Level 4

sKeith

"Thank you again councilbeings, am I allowed to leave, your guards made it very clear when I entered that I needed to get your permission to leave."

Fourier

"It is granted, my the world be your flesh vat"

The council seats rise into the ceiling and the council members with them.

The room now only has the gang as its occupants.

"What do I do? Where am I even?" the palace guard from Athas asks in a whining tone.

"Shut it, you're our mule until you prove otherwise" Karinth says without facing him.

sKeith

"Ser boras, you may wish to stay and visit your new townhouse, or you may wish to come with me, I shall not stand in the way of your wishes, and maybe these fokks can arrange for you to jump back and forwand between your home plane and here with the frog chambers but I would like to return to the ice valley were I met Karinth. Karinth has a shack there and I have to free some slavers from a 'do not move' pact.

Karinth, can I get a ride on Cargulok?

Mister guard, you're coming with me, at least until I know you better, for your own sake. What's your name anyhow, us same faithers should at least know each others names, I'm Sarric."

Fourier

sKeith wrote: »

"Ser boras, you may wish to stay and visit your new townhouse, or you may wish to come with me, I shall not stand in the way of your wishes, and maybe these fokks can arrange for you to jump back and forwand between your home plane and here with the frog chambers but I would like to return to the ice valley were I met Karinth. Karinth has a shack there and I have to free some slavers from a 'do not move' pact.

Karinth, can I get a ride on Cargulok?

Mister guard, you're coming with me, at least until I know you better, for your own sake. What's your name anyhow, us same faithers should at least know each others names, I'm Sarric."

Ser Boros considers. "No, I shall come with you Sarric, plenty of time for the townhouse later, I want to see more of your world."

"Cargulok will want for exercise, let us go then Sarric" Karinth makes his way outside and leads them past the gates.

As they travel the guard introduces himself. "I'm Jotano, been working as a guard for...." suddenly, on the way out the gates he halts, dumbfounded, tears welling in his eyes.

"The Sun? She is whole and healthy. Mi has brought me here so that I may know her true face."

He removes his upper garments and cuts himself across the chest.

"I pledge loyalty to you three until the day I am taken from this life"

Karinth is impressed. "So a man of conviction lives beneath the wormish exterior?"

Ser Boros lifts him up. "Don't be ridiculous Jotano, it's just the Sun, nevertheless I am humbled by your oath."

They reach outside the city and Karinth whistles. Cargulok rises from the sand.

"Climb on" Karinth says to a stunned Ser Boros. Jotano on the other hand seems unfazed.

"It's just a sandworm Ser Boros"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9AkZV6FxK3Y

sKeith

Sarric hops onto Cargulok, "come on ser boros, its a rush, once its over, all you'll want to do is go again!"

Fourier

Karinth suddenly halts Cargulok halfway through their journey in the early morning.

"Sarric, Ser Boros, Mule....I sense something, in the air....the sand over there"

A strange blue ball crackling with energy lies in the sand.

A huge multicoloured being steps out, followed by Varkrash.

Necro

Vrakrash looks around his new environment, scanning for any dangers.

He turns to the multi-coloured being.

'So... what can you do to help us out if we get into trouble... and while we're at it...

What can I call you... I'm thinking Redzer but if you don't like it that's fine.'