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Post by AxeMental on Apr 22, 2008 5:16:07 GMT -5
With caution (after having his mind almost scrambled once before when using the crown) the cleric gingerly places the elvish crown on his head.
After a minute, His mind links with something....extremely afraid, paniced, yet aware of the group. It seems to peer out threw smokey dark glass pushing close to see your shapes....though without eyes. Its thoughts and emotions seem to be human!
"Ahha, now I remember"! Sog shouts to no one in particular (recalling an old lesson from his youth when he was a young cleric in training transcribing a holly book described such a wicked lantern), "of course, this my friends (pointing at the glowing spark within the lantern) is a soul, or spirit of most likely a human. The lantern is a sort of magic jar used to hold the soul prisoner."
The lantern is made from an odd metal and is unworldly, and given its designs, the wise cleric believes, it was fashioned in hell (though its not glowing evil).
"The question is who is in this magic jar, and why" he mutters to himself. After some more deep reading the cleric opens his eyes, "Its a young woman I believe, totaly terrifide by someone...or something in a black cloak who is apparently completely infatuated with her, wants her." After another 5 minutes of reading "she has given up all hope of rescue, thinks we are here to harm, to deliver her to "the Master" the black horrid being tormenting her. Shaking his head. "She is forced to combine with this being as a soul in some fashion that violates her in the extreme". The crowns effects stop, and the cleric removes it and stowes it safely away, sweating slightly.
He then looks up "given her patterns of thought and the words she thought in, despite her paniced and horrifide condition, I'd say she is nobility, very possibly the princess we seek...the soul not the body. I believe the body and soul are seperated, though we now have both pieces, I think we should be able to put them back together".
What do you wish to do next (feel free for anyone to make a suggestion).
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Post by The Master on Apr 22, 2008 6:49:56 GMT -5
I guess the best thing to do would be put her back together. We could question her about what she knows regarding the dungeon, bring her back home, and then return to clear the rest of the dungeon.
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Post by AxeMental on Apr 22, 2008 7:33:50 GMT -5
How do you wish to remove the lantern? No one has attempted to touch it yet.
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Post by Ska on Apr 22, 2008 15:52:05 GMT -5
Is there a way to cut around the base of the lamp (the wood of the platform itself) and simply lower it to the ground by having someone hold the wood like a serving tray and be lowered to the ground by rope?
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Post by AxeMental on Apr 23, 2008 7:27:42 GMT -5
To save time I'll assume the group agrees to attempt Tiberious's idea. Subdolus attaches a rope to the top of the lantern and secures it to a thick vine above. Fletcher uses his incredibly sharp short sword and easily cuts a circle threw the wooden platform all the way around the metal disk that the lantern sits upon. Once the disk starts to fall toward earth the lantern seems to momentarily stick to it (like glue or perhaps a powerful magnet) and the rope supports both. After 20 seconds the metal disk begins to turn white hot causing the platform in areas to burst into flame and it also melts the bottom of the lantern (causing great agitation to the spirit). Luckily the lantern (which is supported by the rope) finally beaks free of the hot metal disk allowing it to fall to the ground below. Every second the metal disk gets hotter and hotter until it begins to glow like a star (burning your flesh and eyes if you look at it...luckily your over 20 feet away and take no real damage) causing all the plants on the ground near it to smolder and burn. The earth around the hot disk begins to melt into red liquid glass and then burn downwards eventually being covered up in a puddle of multen red.
The group attempts to put out the flame on the platform, but the conditions are too dry and the fire too intense. Subdolus cuts the rope and grabs the lantern as the group climbs off the burning platform and back to the earth. Looking up they see the entire platform engulfed in flame before it smashes to the ground. After 15 minutes the fire dies down revealing a scorched room with all of the vines now burnt away. The spot where the magical disk had fallen is now covered over in glass.
What would you like to do next? You now see a cave opening directly across from the entrance to this room (it had been covered by vines until the fire burned the vines away). Do you wish to investigate that or head back to the princess with the lantern (or something else)?
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Post by trp2fan on Apr 23, 2008 16:15:23 GMT -5
"I'm as curious as the next man, but I think that we should return the princess home.. whole again, if we can manage that ourselves, or in two parts and let the arcane minds figure it out. We can always return here later. After all, there is still the matter of the prince. For now, though, I think we take our apparent success home to the bank"
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Post by AxeMental on Apr 24, 2008 5:04:30 GMT -5
Do the rest of you agree with this?
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Post by subdolus on Apr 24, 2008 8:24:13 GMT -5
Subdolus carefully considers the idea of returning but ultimately votes against it. "Although it would be nice to return, rest and revive both the princess and the yellow wizard I must vote against it. I remember all to well the journey to get here, it was not only long but dangerous as well. Besides that fact once the princess is gone I find it unlikely her captor will just sit and wait for us to return better armed."
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Post by trp2fan on Apr 24, 2008 8:51:29 GMT -5
"Right now, the princess is safe in our custody, if not whole. If we proceed with this soul-trapping lantern, we'd risk getting it destroyed or lost. At least when it was protected by that ... that snake thing .. it was relatively safe. If we restore the princess to her body, and continue looking for the prince, then we risk getting her killed."
"I'd hate to lose the princess in a bid to find the prince, but I'll go along 100% with whatever we decide to do."
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Post by The Master on Apr 24, 2008 9:55:09 GMT -5
Fletecher belives we should return the princess first.
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Post by Semaj The Silent on Apr 24, 2008 11:57:37 GMT -5
Sogathan also thinks we should return with the princess, since that was the primary objective.
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Post by subdolus on Apr 24, 2008 13:27:59 GMT -5
As has been his way Subdolus concedes to the will of the group.
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Post by Ska on Apr 24, 2008 15:06:34 GMT -5
Tiberious will suggest that perhaps he could stay behind, using his ring, cloak, and thief like skills to see if he could see who appears after the group leaves and more importantly, what information might be spoken concerning the still missing prince.
Tiberious would use his dagger's ability to fly to rejoin the group on its return march home. Tiberious beleives the other residents of the dungeon will likley be off-guard (hell, they may even pursue the group leaving the "prince" unguarded) and this might be an opportunity.
Tiberious though will leave with the rest of the group if the majority think it is too risky fro him to stay behind.
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Post by AxeMental on Apr 24, 2008 19:16:06 GMT -5
The half orc cleric speaks up clearing his throat, "Ahhhhh....yesssss.....Might I suggest we hide the princess halves for now, very well so none could find them, and then give the location of the hiding place to the 2 dwarves and myself. We will then return to Grime with the location, so if the main party dies (looking at each of you) while on its mission to find the prince at least our little party will have a chance of returning with whomever the king can spare, I imagine a good portion of his remaining army might come." Hoping he makes some since, the slithery cleric bows and backs away from the group a bit his arms stretched at his sides. "It would be my pleasure to serve my rescuers afterall. "
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Post by AxeMental on Apr 25, 2008 6:58:02 GMT -5
Fletcher (who keeps up with woodland knowledge) points out the quickest way back to the coast (and Grime) would not be to take the forest road (the way you came) but to travel down the Piney River (one of 2 rivers that cross the deep forest). He informs the group that it has a reputation of not being very navigatable at parts (rapids) and that no one in living memory has made the run to the coast. But it might be better then going on foot. By his calculations, you could make it to the coast in about 3 days (though it is somewhat twisty its current is said to be strong enough).
The Ranger informs the group the Piney starts at the base of the glacier you are on. Infact, he says, you crossed the begining of the Piney River when you went over the old wooden bridge near the Travellers Inn. And he's almost positive that the river flowing out of the dungeon and under the glacier leads to (or more likely is the source of) the Piney River. The ranger thinks this route might be less watched then the roads since no one uses it (because of the rapids). But with him (with a good amount of experiance running rapids) he's pretty sure he can avoid the bad stuff, or that the group can just carry the boat around anything unpassable. The group remembers the strong river boat sitting outside the Giant Kings chamber, that he tried to use to make his getaway under the glacier (see map). The giant king, you think, new enough about what lies ahead under the glacier to risk escaping on the boat. Perhaps it is safe the entire length down (a tunnel beneith the 1/2 mile thick glacier).
If the group does wish to return do you want to try the river boat.
You could either take it down to the bottom of the mountain by pulling it on your wagon (2-3 days), or you could just launch it where it lays and head down (a fast ride down no doubt, and possibly dangerous). The boat is large enough for the entire group and the ranger believes he can fashion some paddles and push sticks (it already has a rudder).
Let me know what you guys think.
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