Chapter 11: The Parallax Reality

[redwarrior]

Connak Do we follow the tunnel, or use those potions? I don't think we had enough potions for the group? I like spooky tunnels more than being in the water...

[SilverBen]

Connak Do we follow the tunnel, or use those potions? I don't think we had enough potions for the group? I like spooky tunnels more than being in the water...

Finver pauses for a moment and casts a look of confusion at Connak, asking, "Oh ya, ya! I forgot about them. But did we figure out what tha potions do?"

[Bluetongue]

Sheriff Yul

Pats himself down, cracked and fractured in places, walking wounded but faculties, apart from an occasional mental glitch, intact.

He holsters his phaser and reloads his crossbow, keeping the favoured weapon in hand.

The signs down here are still meant to be read. So Sleestaks will be around at some point. It is all very strange for him, the screens, the gadgets but he has an instinctive gut feeling that his own cyborg creation is aligned to much of the energy which manipulates the objects.

He keeps his thoughts to himself and follows the others. Tunnel or water? He has no reasoning to choose one better than the other, so goes along with any group consensus.

[jemmus]

Mungo takes his pack off and digs through it. The letter we found in the desk in the human-smelling room. He begins to read aloud, pointing at each word with a long nail as he haltingly reads it. It turns out he's not that great of a reader, for a cleric. The party gives him the benefit of the doubt and assumes maybe it's because Common is a second language for him.

Dear. Yaradaz. My. regards. to. the. Academy. These. Sleestak. creatures. are. extremely. We'll cut to the chase here. strange, almost insane, but I am becoming increasing certain that there is something going on here. Something sinister appears to be working behind the scenes, and I am not at all sure that the King who has hired me is actually the one in charge of this place.
I have made careful preparations to explore what lies beneath the lake and plan to investiga....

"Beneath" the lake, it says. Maybe the tunnels lead to beneath the lake? Or someone has to drink one of the potions that are maybe for water-breathing and dive to the bottom?

[ChubbyPixie]

"My solar plexus..." groans Fiefo, the wind knocked out of him. His cybernetic tail sparks and twitches. He rolls to one side, struggles out of his pack and starts digging through it. Finally he pulls out the blue and green potions he recovered from the tower a literal lifetime ago, stares at them blankly for a moment and downs the blue one.

"I hope it's a healing potion, but, you know, desperate times," he says, "Well... more desperate than usual."

After hopefully not keeling over, he holds out the green one to Mungo. "You look like @#$%," he says, "Try this. But see if I die first."

[Inferno]

The City of the Sleestaks, Deep Beneath the Forbidden Zone
The Island of Xygax the Wizard, Land of One Thousand Towers
Day Ten. Night? April 5th, 912 CY






Through his spectacle-lenses, Ambrose examines another tapestry of the Sleestaks. Beyond the insidious wall hangings, all else is as it appears.

The blaring silence stands in sharp contrast to the wild fray they've just escaped. The adventurers regroup and recover their strength. Intimately familiar with pain, Ko-Nan administers first aid to everyone. The prayers of Draupadi and Mungo bring miracles of healing.

Fiefo pessimistically quaffs a blue magical potion from the Skyscraper of Xygax the Wizard with astonishing results! (+21hp!) He offers a green elixir to Mungo. (Does Mungo drink 0, 1, 2 or 3 doses?)

The tortured Altrusian elder seems calmer now. He sits down to recover from his injuries and thanks the adventurers for saving his life.

Connak and Finver examine the water and spy beneath its surface a large unmoving shadow in its farthest alcove.


Actions?!


Map Detail:

One square = 10 feet. PCs are purple. Altrusians are orange. Ambrose is brown.

Behind the DM Screen:

Fiefo Potion: [3d8+3]=18+3=21

PC Status:

Connak: Cat-Man Fighter/Thief 2/3: Move: 9", AC: 5, HP: 10/19
Draupadi: Human Cleric 4: Move: 9", AC: 2, HP: 17/34, Spells: 3/5 1st lvl, 3/4 2nd lvl
Fiefo LeBratt: Rat-Man Fighter 3: Move: 9", AC: 1, HP: 26/26
Finver Karstlander: Dwarven Fighter 3: Move 6", AC: 2(1), HP: 15/31
Ko-Nan: Human Barbarian 3: Move: 12", AC: 4, HP: 12/39
Maskelyn: Gnome Illusionist 3: Move: 9", AC: 7, HP: 9/14, Spells: 0/2 1st lvl, 0/1 2nd lvl
Mungo: Mole-Man Cleric 4: Move: 9", AC: 7, HP: 10/34, Spells: 1/5 1st lvl, 3/4 2nd lvl, Lantern
Sheriff Yul: Robot Fighter 3: Move: 9", AC: 5, HP: 19/38

PC Magic:

None currently.

Player Resources:

End of the World (game description)
Strange New World (maps and realms)
Memory Tapes (the story so far)
Viewscreen (the story so far in images)

[Rex]

Draupadi

"I would like to find a secure place to rest and recover prayers."

[jemmus]

Mungo accepts the green potion from his fellow rodent-man Fiefo. He regards it rather dubiously through his thick glass goggles over his spectacles of true Sleestak seeing. Err... thanks, I guess. But first, I agree with Draupadi. We should rest and recover prayers before fighting another army of Sleestaks or a lake monster.

The blue potion healed, right? Has the green one been tasted before? Is that the one that gave Finver the memories of aquatic life?

[Bluetongue]

Sheriff Yul

Not impressed with the potion quaffing etiquette of the Ratman.

I will check out the water. Can I assess how deep it is and how clear the water is and any life forms that might be in it. Eels or jellyfish or crabs?Anything that might look a threat or likely predator to swimmers.

[ravenn4544]

Ko-Nan leaves the group to discuss their next steps. He moves toward the eastern end of the room to ensure the cavern is safe from any immediate threats.

[jemmus]

Mungo says a prayer to the Professor and his prophets Verne and Wells in Mole-Manese. Then says solemnly and a little melodramatically, If I don't make it, I bequeath my forge gloves to Draupadi and the rest of my stuff to everyone else. On the condition that you bury my body, preferably not in Sleestak land.
Well, come to think of it, I guess dead mole-men can't impose any conditions. Well, here goes. He stick out his tongue and drops a drop of the green potion on it. It's not a very pretty sight.

[SilverBen]

Finver joins Yul at the shore of the underground lake. He calls to the group generally, "Hey, would ya bring the potions over here? The Sheriff and I are goin' for a swim..." ending with a self-amused chuckle. He'll set the wooden chest filled with gold coin and trinkets down a short distance away from the edge and removes a 50' length of rope from his backpack. Before he takes and imbibes the potion, he'll sling the rope around his shoulder and knot it. He walks to Connack and offers the end of the rope. "I wouldn't want ya to get yer fur all wet, Cat-man. Pull me out when ya see tha need, or if I strongly tug first - got it?"

(@Inferno, please forgive me that I am posting for both this round and next round. Sunset is ~45 minutes away from the time of my posting this. Otherwise, I would role play this out normally over two rounds. I assume @redwarrior would cooperate with Finver's plan to keep Connack out of the water.)

Assuming Connack agrees, next round: "Joinin' me, Sheriff? He'll first carefully explore the temperature and depth of the water before proceeding towards the shape to determine what it is.

[ChubbyPixie]

"Great google-moogly!" shouts Fiefo into the silence of the cave as he stands up briskly, invigorated, repeating an ancient expletive common amongst his tribe. He notices Sherrif Yul looking at him sourly. "...What?" he says, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

To Mungo he replies, "We had another one before, part of the set, that was pink. It was also a healing one. I think whoever made them just had an aesthetic."

[redwarrior]

connak takes end of the rope, loops it around his body once and declares Ready!

[Bluetongue]

Sheriff Yul

How much potion is there? If it is the same extra healing type we should share it between three of us.


He will prep for the dive, stripping his pack and gear as he studied the lakeside and water.

[Inferno]

Unknown Cavern, The City of the Sleestaks, Deep Beneath the Forbidden Zone
The Island of Xygax the Wizard, Land of One Thousand Towers
Day Ten. Night? April 5th, 912 CY







Having pulled back the curtain on the real, hidden world, the adventurers narrowly escaped with their lives.

The faithful among them know that in many religious traditions there exists a secret world perceived and understood only by the enlightened. A primary example of such theology is The Universal Adventists of Neo the Chosen One.

The explorers of this other reality look to rest and recover even as they are being hunted by a city full of Sleestaks. To that end, they probe their immediate surroundings. Ko-Nan stalks toward the tunnel mouth. The barbarian's sharp ears hear nothing emanating from its cold black maw.

Mungo scrutinizes Fiefo's viridian concoction, taken from the alchemy lab of a demented wizard. He gingerly tests but a single glistening drop upon his darting mole-tongue...



...and feels the warm tingle of a powerful restorative!

Finver and Yul stand at the shoreline. In the shallows, the subterranean pond is seemingly devoid of life but the rock shelf drops off quick and the water becomes opaque. They will need a light source to fully investigate the distant, enigmatic shadow beneath its surface.

Maskelyn brings forth the lambent, glass-bottled potions they found hidden in the well-appointed living quarters. With them is a large thick book, a pair of strange boots, and a small sack.

Finver and Yul unburden themselves of armor and gear. Finver ties himself to a length of rope and hands the end to Connak. The dwarf and the cyborg sheriff stand ankle deep in cold water, ready to drink of the strange glowing elixirs and take the plunge.


Actions?!


Map Detail:

One square = 10 feet. PCs are purple. Altrusians are orange. Ambrose is brown.





PC Status:

Connak: Cat-Man Fighter/Thief 2/3: Move: 9", AC: 5, HP: 10/19
Draupadi: Human Cleric 4: Move: 9", AC: 2, HP: 17/34, Spells: 3/5 1st lvl, 3/4 2nd lvl
Fiefo LeBratt: Rat-Man Fighter 3: Move: 9", AC: 1, HP: 26/26
Finver Karstlander: Dwarven Fighter 3: Move 6", AC: 2(1), HP: 15/31
Ko-Nan: Human Barbarian 3: Move: 12", AC: 4, HP: 12/39
Maskelyn: Gnome Illusionist 3: Move: 9", AC: 7, HP: 9/14, Spells: 0/2 1st lvl, 0/1 2nd lvl
Mungo: Mole-Man Cleric 4: Move: 9", AC: 7, HP: 10/34, Spells: 1/5 1st lvl, 3/4 2nd lvl, Lantern
Sheriff Yul: Robot Fighter 3: Move: 9", AC: 5, HP: 19/38

PC Magic:

None currently.

Player Resources:

End of the World (game description)
Strange New World (maps and realms)
Memory Tapes (the story so far)
Viewscreen (the story so far in images)

[Bluetongue]

Sheriff Yul

Takes a potion swig. He buckles his hand&held cross to his waist. Not sure how effective it might be under water, hardly a mini-harpoon but in a tight spot it might still injure a close up predator. Hope he doesn't have to find out.

Anyone got a dagger or better still a trident? What other resources do we need. Can a mage cast a light spell, perhaps in his tin star so we could shine that as we explore?

[Rex]

Draupadi

Draupadi will move over to the waters edge in case she is needed to help out or if anything goes wrong. "Good luck!"

[jemmus]

The drop of potion didn't kill Mungo, make him a drooling madman, or change him into some monstrosity. It was invigorating and actually rather tasty. He drains the bottle.

[redwarrior]

Connak gets ready to be a Catman anchor.