(OOC: Lasair can take any slot because she hasn't used any PP today. Your proposed order is cool though, and correct on the nine hours--should be easy enough for them to get that with a watch, and it need not be consecutive. Also, Lasair has prettyrespectable Listen and Spot for being untrained thanks to Meliana and good Wisdom, and she is highest level and thus safest if attacked. Plus she has Meliana to also make Spot and Listen checks, so it's like not being alone )
"I know they must be. They are tal zij. They wish to work hard to earn back your respect and make the zij go away."
(OOC: Yup. Random comment--Solange, your sig is growing rather huge with all six characters. You may want to put another SBLOCK around all of those to avoid clutter)
You decide to camp outside the walls of the ancient city. A watch is determined, and despite the eerie archway and the mysterious mists in the city, the night passes uneventfully.
The next morning is cloudy but arid, so there's only a small chance of rain. The shrouded city seems less out of place on this darker, cooler day. The sun is invisible behind the clouds, and the arch stands before you, massive and intimidating.
Let's decide on daily travel times until the desert. Shall I assume waking at dawn (~6am) and walking for 8 hours (til 2pm) then resting for the rest of the day?
(OOC: Works for me. Once we get to the desert, we will likely be using a different strategy where we find cover and rest during the hottest part of the day. As far as I can see upthread, we have unanimous consent to continue through the ruins, hoping to finish today so we don't have to stop midway)
Your confidence boosted some by the scant daylight, you pack up and decide to venture under the arch and through the foggy city. You pass the crumbled wall and set foot into the city proper, staying on the main highway. The fog thickens some, about a block into the city, and it pours out of windows and through doors, in constant motion despite the lack of any heavy breeze.
At first the journey is just creepy, but as you walk along the road among the old stone buildings, a feeling of uneasiness nags at you. None of the buildings are inhabited, and you feel as though you shouldn't be here. The ever present fog rolls around you, obscuring the cityscape. Jilna hugs close to Jonka. Jilsa whispers in Sylvan, "
The ghosts of the past are all around us... I do not like feeling their eyes on me
." She moves closer to Jonda, who is stoic as ever. Still staring ahead, he puts a hand on her shoulder, and they walk together.
Soon, within an hour, a large statue fountain emerges from the mist in front of you. This is the first break in the highway that you've seen for two weeks. The road continues around the circular fountain, forming a large plaza, probably the center of the city. The statue in the fountain is in pristine condition, unlike the rest of the city, though no water flows out of it. Atop a stone sphere with many grooves, two smooth, featureless humanoid figures fashioned from some sort of silvery metal, one short and wide, the other tall and slender, weave around each other forming a single complex, asymmetrical, but balanced shape. The basin of the fountain is filled with white mist.
On the other side of the plaza, the highway continues, but it looks like whatever magic that protected it to this point has finally wore off: the highway behind the fountain looks as old and weathered as any of the other buildings in the city. It's still a functional road, however.
To the left side of the road, pounded in an open patch of earth, is a relatively new wooden sign. It looks extremely out of place in this ancient city of stone. In Common it reads "Do not abandon hope, ye who tread this path. Stray not, and the past will let you pass." Beneath the Common writing, two other scripts are burnt into the wood:
[sblock=Dwarven: ]Do not abandon hope, ye who tread this path. Stray not, and the past will let you pass.[/sblock]
[sblock=Elven: ]Do not abandon hope, ye who tread this path. Stray not, and the past will let you pass.[/sblock]
The statue in the fountain is in pristine condition, unlike the rest of the city, though no water flows out of it. Atop a stone sphere with many grooves, two smooth, featureless humanoid figures fashioned from some sort of silvery metal, one short and wide, the other tall and slender, weave around each other forming a single complex, asymmetrical, but balanced shape. The basin of the fountain is filled with white mist.
"The figures must represent the two races who lived together here," says Conuld, pointing. "It, er, appears they got along well." His voice falls flat in the dead city. "Since we have reached half way, it seems, I am going to do something I have been wanting to do for a while. Uh..." He casts Detect Magic, and with augmented sight stares out into the mist, turning in a slow circle. With an uncontrolled shiver, he also turns his gaze to the fountain.[sblock=Spells prepared](0) Acid Splash; Detect Magic; Ghost Sound (DC 14); Message; Prestidigitation
(1) Enlarge Person (DC 14); Grease (DC 14); Magic Missile; Color Spray (DC 15)
(2) Extended Mage Armor; Scorching Ray; Cat's Grace
[/sblock]
[SBLOCK=Sylvan]"They do indeed...I have been only once to a place like this before. I had hoped never again to return. Let us hope that there is not a crystalline maze here with a...But clearly there is not. We will be fine so long as we continue along the path without straying. The sign says so, and hopefully it speaks the truth. I'm sure you are as little tempted as I to wander. I just hope that my companions feel likewise."[/SBLOCK]
*When Lasair sees Conuld cast the spell and turn around, she looks a bit uncomfortable.*
"Conuld, I must admit that I truly hope you are not planning to head off the path in order to pursue your research. Both the roadwardens and this rather sensible sign seem to indicate that this would be a rather bad idea."
*Lasair is for pushing forward and not straying, just like the sign says.*
"I assure you, nothing could induce me to leave the roadway, had I ten times as many companions," Conuld replies, somewhat abstracted by maintaining concentration on the spell.
)
