Chapter 1: To seek a Great Perhaps

[Wizard Lizard]

Vanis will also help with replacing the flagstone, mostly to have a good reason to walk behind most of the party up the stairs.

[coil23]

Horton hides his antsiness to be done with the flagstone with a heavy sigh. He helps as best he is able to get the thing back in place.

Books! Safety must come first but then I simply must see that spread. Who knows what exotic gems will be found in this fantastical place.

[Pulpatoon]

The flagstone replaced, the party prepares to climb up the giant stack of marble books.

Since each step is five feet tall, it's just tall enough for you to muscle your way up them, but it's pretty exhausting. Let me know if you have a better plan for getting up them, or getting back down, later.

As long as I'm thinking about such things: I assume you left the front doors open and the wooden door ajar. Correct?

[Stirling]

guess you have to ask the last one through them?

[Wizard Lizard]

I don't think we could have closed the front doors without a shared effort, so I think we left it open, yeah.

"This is going to be fun." says Vanis, trying to reach the next step. Checking his inventory, he looks for some iron spikes and checks out the stone steps, trying to guess if it would be useless to try and hammer a few of those in the steps to make the ascension a bit easier on the company's muscles.

[mjulius]

Langston gestures "outward" as the others discuss the front door.
He adds, "Though I'm here to meet my truth. I'm alright with leaving the way out quite open.
Alternately hoisting some, being hoisted, and pulling, being pulled up the steps. Langston and Brick manage, with the others, their way up the five foot stairs.

mb. shows remarkable foresight by adding "player character slain" to the key.

[Pulpatoon]

Checking his inventory, he looks for some iron spikes and checks out the stone steps, trying to guess if it would be useless to try and hammer a few of those in the steps to make the ascension a bit easier on the company's muscles.

Sounds like standard climbing gear to me. And...
[1d6] = 6
Yup, there are plenty of a cracks just right for sinking the spikes in.

[Stirling]

A lot of other adventurers have come this way, are there ropes and spikes left behind by others.

Mouse checks the bottom stair in case there is an elevator switch. The stairs are taller than he and at a plump weight and middle age, Beaker is going to struggle physically.

"Leg up anyone?"

Going down will be easy, just use a big tray for a slide and hope the door is open before you stop sliding.

[Urson]

Jake nods and moves to help the town crier. He's tall and lanky, so the stairs shouldn't prove a problem.

[mb.]

Deet whistles a repetitive, soothing little tune to himself as he and Odric join Vanis in hammering in spikes, slowly ascending the huge stairs with Schroff riding in a backpack. As they take a breather on top of the third step, Deet says, "Mister Vanis? Um... what do you think uses stairs this big sir?"

mjulius: I'm sure we won't need that part of the key. Nope nope.

[Pulpatoon]

A sweaty hour later, the party reaches the top of the stairs, leaving spikes and rope in place for ease upon return trips.

At the top of the stairs, the landing opens into a large circular room with a domed roof. The floor is set with tiles of brilliant earthen colors. The walls are white marble, occasionally run through with streaks of pale grey. The ceiling, far overhead, is painted the brilliant blue of heaven, decorated with monumental putti and white clouds, accented with gold leaf.


The Crooked Theodolite: The room has a radius of 120' and is 90' tall.

The cold draft that has been steadily blowing on you since the front doors opened swirls in a clockwise motion around the room.

There are signs of recent stonework, here. Someone has been chipping away at some of the decorative motifs on the marble walls, smoothing them out into cleaner, plainer shapes. Several of the colored floor tiles look recently replaced.

Something something something: [1d6] = 1

All appears quiet, except for the insistent susurration of the swirling breeze.

There are three archways, evenly spaced on the side of the room opposite the stairs. One arch is open, the other two are closed with stone slabs.

[mb.]

Wiping sweat from his brow, Deet looks up, and is dumbfounded. Staring slack jawed up at the ceiling all the while, he wanders slowly into the room, mumbling under his breath, "acids can't dissolve gold, except aqua regia, which can," and "angel means messenger, yup yup." He stops directly in the centre of the room, staring up and drooling slightly, "bwoaaaaaaaaah..."

Schroff trots along with his master, wandering to and fro sniffing the floor, then continues on to check out the open archway.

Odric rolls his eyes at his brother, then proceeds to check out the newer floor tiles.

After a while Deet waves back at the stairs, without taking his eyes off of the ceiling, "it's best here! Very best! Come look!"

[GreyWolfVT]

Kurt, Will & Hans stare at the art in utter amazement at how wondrous the art truly is.

[Wizard Lizard]

"Mister Vanis? Um... what do you think uses stairs this big sir?"

"Something very big, with hands. I was told the eponymous Gargantua was a giant, was that what you heard?"

And then later, in the domed room : "Something with great taste, apparently! And grander ambition! Making such a place stay in one place is truly a feat of architecture that-" Vanis suddenly shuts up, remembering that the castle is in the sky, supported by clouds.

Intrigued by the potential that the tiles show, he trots briskly toward one of them, and pokes at one with a ten foot pole, to avoid any unpleasantness. If that doesn't trigger something horrible, he will try the same thing than with the earlier secret passage, and evaluate the weight of the tile and if it is to be lifted.

[coil23]

Horton wonders if this could at times be a wind tunnel of sorts. He doesn't stray too far away from the open archway. He also examines the chipped away stonework, looking for any patterns. Anything look like prudish censorship or trying to obliterate particular themes?

Aloud to no one in particular, I had heard that inquisitors had recently entered this castle. Unchecked they would bring destruction upon us all- even worse, they are notorious book burners. They are said to like pointy hats and buckles, attire tends toward the darkest hue of the deep winter fashion palette. All are signs of a people who take themselves far too seriously.

[Pulpatoon]

The newer tiles are solidly cemented. The rest of the floor is similarly firm and well-maintained. It is a stark contrast to the dust-choked Hall.

The stonework on the walls would seem to be aesthetic—the more urbane among you will be aware that the decorative motifs on the walls, while exquisite, are a little outdated.

Schroff's delicate nose picks up the rich scents of feces, raw eggs, and curdled milk from the open archway.

[Urson]

Jake, being a small-town kid, wanders the room, mouth wide, taking in all the opulence. After a minute or two, he seems to realize he's gaping, and heads toward the leftmost of the two stone-sealed arches. He examines it as closely as he can, poking a finger into holes in the stone, checking to see how tightly closed the archway is.
Did you notice, he says, to no one in particular,the rag dolls that thing had in its nest? I wonder if maybe it was less dangerous than we thought...

[mb.]

Deet sneezes, looking down finally and blinking as if he's never been here before. He wrinkles his nose, pointing at the open archway, "ewwwww, that stinks there, yup yup."

He glances up briefly at the ceiling again, then wanders over to the rightward archway, to check out the slab blocking it. Schroff trots over, and Odric joins them, saying "Someone blocked it with this bloody great slab, so you'd think there's a damned good reason..."

Odric snorts over at Jake with a smirk, "y'think it just wanted a hug kid? Hah!"

[Pulpatoon]

The two stone slabs are leanly against the open archways, with ample gaps. They look like they could be moved.

The slabs can be shifted by two characters with STR 13 or greater.

[mjulius]

Brick holds his hat on his head as he looks at the domed ceiling, twirling a little like a schoolboy on his first trip to the capital. He whistles long and [to Langston's ears] obnoxiously.

Langston, all business, examines the slabbed exits and watches the dog's reactions to the center arch. To the group: Whad'ya all think?