Previously...
Leeja drove off an all-too-inquisitive Purple Spider and then she and Bujilli followed a small almost-path until hitting a fork in the road. One way led down into a marshy area full of birch and poplar trees, the other led upward across and around twisted gray rocks and rugged outcroppings interspersed with clusters of majestic, immense pine trees...
Leeja breathed deep the fragrance of the birch trees in the marsh just below her. The scent was unfamiliar to her, but it reminded her of some of the flowers in a Walled Garden she had raided during her first week as a Forager...before getting hired-on to work in the beast-pens for Unfred. The memory stung her. It felt like a lifetime ago. She was conflicted about what had happened to her former employer. Sure, he had been a petty tyrant and a real jerk at times, but he had given her a place to sleep, food in the winter, and a small source of income. She had suspected his ties to the Corruption Trade or to the Confectioners...there was too much White Powder freely available among her co-workers for Unfred to not be getting a cut of the action. But he had betrayed and ambushed her, seized Bujilli and dragged him off to the Butchers. He deserved to die for that. If he was truly dead. No one who had survived more than a couple of winters in Wermspittle would ever underestimate the perverse horrors made possible by the White Powder. Least of all someone who had toiled in the beast-pens where abominations were made to order for the Arenas.
What's done is done. She told herself. It didn't make it any easier, nor less conflicted, but it allowed her to let go and focus on the task at hand. Bujilli was still dazed and confused; his experience tampering with the mirror-aperture leading to Yian-Ho had taken a toll on his system. He was feverish, but improving rapidly, much more quickly than the last time he had done something weirdly questionable and sorcerously dangerous and extremely unwise.
She shook her head. This outsider with the scraggly beard and mis-matched hands was her friend, her partner...perhaps...she stopped. Something moved off in the distance. Ripples sparkled and shimmered. Trees swayed and groaned, not form any wind, but from something huge moving past them. A Bandersnatch? Some gargantuan serpent-thing? A wallowing Bruthem?
Moss. Glistening and gleaming with a thousand-thousand little wet diamonds of dew, tiny red filamentous whiskers flailing about like guard hairs or antennae; a Moss Whale shuddered and quivered and shoved its massive bulk through the marsh.
Leeja watched the Moss Whale wander past. She considered following it, but the ground quickly became spongy, soggy, treacherous and sucking the farther down the path led. Not more than fifty feet down the slope and the path was flooded with black water. Slim, dirty figures flitted from tree to rock to bulbous growth--Bogles. Whether they were hunting or herding the Moss Whale, or simply following it to see what turned-up, she didn't know. But she did know that there were far too many of the nasty things moving through the area below to even consider going that way.
She led Bujilli away from the softly precipitous edge of the gravelly path overlooking the way down to the marshes. Leeja had decided. They would head towards the rocks and the pine trees. Besides, she preferred the fragrance of the dark green space with the pines to the fetid reek of the stirred-up mud left in the wake of that huge, wallowing beast.
Bujilli's boot scuffed. He nearly tripped. Leeja caught him. There was a shining thing lying there, partly buried by the dirt and gravel. She knelt down and brushed aside the small rocks. It was some sort of jewel or gemstone, curiously cut into an elegant oval, not quite an egg-shape--it was too uniform, too regular for that. It held a tiny flickering blue-green light deep inside...
Meanwhile...
Niobe screamed in agony. The black-iron barbs dug into her flesh the more she struggled, shifted, flowed. Voorish magic curdled her nerves and assaulted her senses, but she would not submit. Not to these scum. She closed her smoldering gold-green eyes and calmed herself, stilled her flesh, even her hair. Bathurst had given her three vials. The first vial contained a powerful solvent that had dissolved the bloated old Orbiculate that these parasites let prowl around the dried-out moat. The second vial had been a oily-golden solution that put both the Horlas to sleep. The third vial...that one she still had with her, in the soft leather sleeve dangling from her belt. Smiling, she ground her hip against the black-iron constraints. It hurt. Oh it hurt terribly. But finally the vial snapped and the red fluid drizzled down her leg, mingled with her own blood. Her captors wouldn't stand a chance now ...
Niobe screamed in agony. The black-iron barbs dug into her flesh the more she struggled, shifted, flowed. Voorish magic curdled her nerves and assaulted her senses, but she would not submit. Not to these scum. She closed her smoldering gold-green eyes and calmed herself, stilled her flesh, even her hair. Bathurst had given her three vials. The first vial contained a powerful solvent that had dissolved the bloated old Orbiculate that these parasites let prowl around the dried-out moat. The second vial had been a oily-golden solution that put both the Horlas to sleep. The third vial...that one she still had with her, in the soft leather sleeve dangling from her belt. Smiling, she ground her hip against the black-iron constraints. It hurt. Oh it hurt terribly. But finally the vial snapped and the red fluid drizzled down her leg, mingled with her own blood. Her captors wouldn't stand a chance now ...
Leeja wished to herself that Bujilli was more coherent. He might have some idea of what this gem-thing might be, whether it was good to pick it up, or best to leave it behind.
He had told her about his experience with a green gem, one that had whispered into his mind and taught him spells in his dreams, one that had led him into danger and deadly peril in order to get itself into the hands of a more suitable candidate, someone more pliable, gullible, less resistant to the gem's influence.
Not that he hadn't been lulled into believing, into trusting the gem, at first.
But then he had grown up in a sorcerer's yurt, surrounded by duplicitous demons, grinning skulls and worse.
It was a wonder that he hadn't turned out much worse, or become something horrific...like his uncle.
Leeja stood up. Brushed off her gloves. Kicked dirt and small stones over the gem, reburying it.
She didn't like the idea of something twisting her brain and distorting her mind to serve some implacable, inhuman agenda that considered her expendable.
Looking back there was only a cold, dim gloom and much swirling murkiness...and behind the billowing haze was a deadly desert, a dreary gray wasteland that bled off into every direction and thee were Purple Spiders and farther back, in the deeper reaches of the space in-between mirrors there were undulating-gronking hillocks that grazed along the fault-lines of uncertainties and flocks of twittering masks...and she had no intention of going back through any of that. Not again.
The pine trees gave off a clean fragrance that she found comforting, welcoming.
She'd never seen such a thing as a pine tree prior to her arrival in Wermspittle by way of the Unterrail tunnels from Aman Utal.
They were like fungi, only with better wood and lovely green needle-like leaves all along their gnarly branches and rich with a sticky sap that she was sure would be good for something if she only had paid more attention in cooking class. There were delicate ferns uncurling in the light mist. Dewdrops made the grass shine. An owl hooted overhead. Bujilli tugged at her hand.
He shook himself, shedding accumulated moisture from his beard and tossled hair. His eyes were clearer and getting better quickly. The shock was fading even as the knowledge he'd gained was assimilated and processed. Whatever had happened when he meddled with the mirror-aperture, it had changed him.
Leeja stood there watching as he woke up from his walking slumber. This half-breed sorcerer underwent a great number of personal transformations, almost as many as had been forced upon her during her childhood. Perhaps that was one of the things they held in common. One of many such things, she suspected.
"Where?" He gasped through cracked lips.
"Away from there. Were on a path that leads into a wooded area. Here." She helped him drink some water. They would need to replenish their supply soon. She didn't trust his water-skins; she knew that he had used one to hold some sort of dream-goop and wasn't sure if he still lugged it around, and did not want to inadvertently contaminate either of them.
"Thanks." He handed back the water-skin with a crooked smile.
"Do you want to go back?" She hesitated.
"No." He laughed. Stretched his arms. Took a deep breath. Held it. Exhaled slowly.
"Well?" She prodded, slightly nervous at his stare.
"You could have left me--"
"No. I could not. So let's get moving." Leeja's hair fluttered and whipped about her head as she turned and started walking along the increasingly steep and rocky path.
Bujilli followed. He had the nagging sensation that he had come very, very close to something grand and glorious...but couldn't quite place it. The effects of his recent experiment still blunted his senses and left him disoriented. He was glad to have a partner like Leeja. She wasn't like anyone else he had ever know before.
RRRAAAAHHHRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!
Leeja stifled a shriek. Bujilli dropped into a crouch, slipping-out his hand-axe and drawing upon his repertoire out of deeply ingrained instinct, sheer reflex
"Tiger?" Leeja hissed.
"Bear?" Bujilli wasn't certain either.
A wounded Kalidah shambled out form behind some densely-packed mulberry and currant bushes...
What should they do next? Which direction should they go?
You Decide!
You Decide!
Synchronocitor Status: Fully Recharged.
Roll for Initiative!
Someone please roll 1d6 for 1) Bujilli, 2) Leeja, 3) The Kalidah, and 4) Whatever lurks off to either side...just in case...oh, and how about 5) Anything that might be following the wounded beast...Which Direction?
So...they can rush forward to attack the already wounded beast. Or they an try to evade it; maybe hide in the bushes or climb a tree or use a spell like Invisibility. Or they could attempt to scare off the creature, possibly Wrathful Facade would work well for that. Or...hmmm...they could turn around and head back toward the marsh or the swirling murk behind them. Or maybe you have a suggestion for a better option. Let me know in the comments or by email! You Decide!
Roll for Possible Observation.
Please roll 1d6 and let me know the result. If you get a 1, there is a bonus Random Encounter. If you get a 6, then the encounter is from the other side of another mirror-aperture.
Optional Spot Mirror Roll. (1d30)
We'll also need another d30 roll to determine if Bujilli or Leeja spot yet another mirror in the distance. A result of 10 means maybe/it isn't clear, a result of 20 means that there seems to be a mirror in a random direction, but it looks closed/shuttered; and a result of 30 means that they spot a mirror in the distance that might be open and accessible...or at least whatever they are seeing appears that way from a distance. A result of 1 means something else mirror-related happens, possibly some sort of environmental effect or shift in the surrounding terrain...
What Should They Do Next?
You Decide!
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About Bujilli (What is This?) | Who is Bujilli? | How to Play
Bujilli's Character Sheet | Leeja's Character Sheet | Cast of Characters
Bujilli's Spells | Little Brown Journals | Loot Tally | House Rules
Initiative Rolls:
ReplyDeleteBujilli = 4
Leeja = 5
Kalidah = 3
Lurkers = 3
Whatever's chasing the Kalidah = 5
I think Bujilli and Leeja should be prepared to defend themselves but not attack the Kalidah preemptively. Wait to see what's chasing it and learn more. Can Counsel update Bujilli on what and who's around them, now that Bujilli's more awake?
For possible observation I rolled a 1. For the spot mirror roll I got a 26. I also rolled 5d20s (15, 13, 19, 18, and 11) and 5d6s (3, 5, 3, 2, and 1) in case they're helpful.
Thanks! I used most of those die rolls. The '15' gave us the Hobyahs, just in case you were wondering.
DeleteThe Kalidah is wounded, obviously bleeding from a number of small wounds. It is roaring and rearing and thrashing about...but it is focused on whatever is tormenting it, not Bujilli and Leeja...so they have a good chance to get out of its way.
Counsel could be engaged t reveal more details, but to do so would have some repercussions that might not be so welcome--this is a very mutable space, so Counsel is less useful here, at least until they enter into a more stable space.
Leeja declined the special encounter...due to a reaction roll using your results...probably for the better...
I agree with ETP. It might also be worth making clear to the Kalidah by body language at least that they're not interested in slowing it down, and are no new trouble at all.
ReplyDeleteGood point, but in this situation, the Hobyahs had a pretty good bonus, since these were their hunting grounds. I think it worked out alright, so far...
DeleteKalidah are ferocious, much more cranky on average than either tigers or bears and incredibly difficult to use in the arenas, and never domesticated...
The beast barely registered Bujilli or Leeja's presence...it was very focused on the Hobyahs...