Plumeir nods at Taylar and points to the West, above the trees, like the fallen Nishurin had done. "He definitely has to mean that cairn. I must apologize, but we will need to slow our walk for a couple of hours, until I can fully recover. I would also like that twilightstone we just found."
It only takes about an hour to reach the base of the cairn, so time is spent moving around it to look for a likely place that people could easily ascend it, while carrying a heavy burden. At the head of a small stream that likely only flowed during the Drenching Season, the crew located a very unexpected surprise. Not only was there a path suitable for people to climb the outcropping, but weather worn stairs had been long ago carved into the rock at intervals to allow for greater ease of ascension. The cairn was not so large to appear intimidating, but it was large enough to host habitat for various interesting shrubbery, rodents, and even small caprinae.
Three or so hours of winding up the definitive path brought the party to their second shock of the day. The path ended in a smooth face of rock, the border of which had been carved in such a manner to directly resemble the frame of a door. There were various pictograms upon the frame, and the smooth face that should have been a door was a solid rock that led nowhere.
Taylar: full wellness
tunic: - 3 - 3 Astarte: full wellness
vest - 1 Plumeir: full wellness
tunic - 1 - 1
Feline Tooth Necklace: (Health, Confluence)
OOC:
Each character receives 5 DP. State nominal actions and intentions. Provide a random roll.
Taylar studies the pictograms to determine if he has seen them before. He attempts to translate any message in the symbols. He says, "Years ago when I was with the Outliers we found an old, abandoned keep with many strange things carved in stone. We believed the ruin was left from an ancient people that lived here before us. I have never seen anything like this doorway before, but it might be of similar origin. I believe this door will open by manipulating waylines. I don't know if I'm strong enough to make it work, but one of you might be."
Taylar intends to place his hands on the door frame and manipulate waylines in an attempt to activate it.
74
OOC:
Taylar will take the unclaimed necklace for health and confluence
Astarte will carefully examine the door, the frames and rest of the surroundings seeking a traps, then if she finds nothing she'll move a 10 steps back, wait untill her companions do this too and trow a stone straight at the misterious face. roll:99
Looking around to quickly surveil the area for spies or hidden foes, Plumeir will join the other two in carefully examining the stone carved frame, hoping for any indication of how a barbaric clan without mystical talent could have somehow made use of what he suspects is a mystical portal.
Thinking back, it has been too many cycles to be certain but Taylar thinks that some of the symbols are the same as those previously discovered. He also comes to the realization that more of the marks are idiographic instead of pictographic giving a greater impression of some actual written language rather than mere symbols. To his frustration, despite his natural talent, nothing comes to mind with regard to manipulating waylines. They are definitely within the structure, but he cannot seem to do anything with them. He steps back to control his anger and allow Astarte to have a go.
Thinking more of the mysterious structure as something mechanical, she is impressed at the meticulous smoothness of the structure, like some fine sculpture that has withstood the passage of time. So thorough is she in her investigation that she notes some stains upon the frame at two particular marks. The stains appear to be dried blood. Those two marks have also been slightly smoothed when compared to the others, possibly just from being touched over and over. Backing away to allow Plumeir to have a look, she throws a stone at the very smooth surface of the frame’s interior. The stone simply bounces away with the distinct pinging sound of stone striking stone.
Thinking about what Taylar had tried and the discovery by Astarte, Plumeir suspects that blood is required to use the device. Being less concerned with personal injury than the other two, Taylar takes his small carving knife and pricks the inside edge of both hands, fingering the trickling blood across his palms. He then places his bloody hands upon the two specific marks. The one on the left is just above shoulder level. The one on the right is just below hip level. This awkward position causes his head to be pressed against the stone center. As he takes in a breath, thinking that nothing is going to happen, his body falls forward, straight through the stone.
Quickly recovering from the shock of his disappearance, Astarte takes an arrow and cuts her own hands to do the same thing with the same result. As Plumeir proceeds to follow suit, a thought occurs to him, as if implanted from some greater power. Merely touching the two symbols, even without blood on his hands, allows him to pass through the stone. The skill to manipulate waylines is far greater with Plumeir than either Taylar or Astarte, so much so that they cannot sense the talent in him, though they well know of his familiarity.
The three find themselves disoriented and nauseous, down on hands and knees, trying to recover from the extreme vertigo. Those hands and knees are pressed down into the loose sands of some never before seen desert. With the absence of anything much resembling weather, tracks of others leading away from the very spot are readily evident across the dune. It will likely be several more days before they will become indistinguishable.
Taylar: full wellness
tunic: - 3 - 3 Astarte: full wellness
vest - 1 Plumeir: full wellness
tunic - 1 - 1
none
OOC:
Each character receives 5 DP. State nominal actions and intentions. Provide a random roll.
Taylar scans the surroundings to see what else is around. Is the doorway attached to anything or just standing on sand dunes? He examines the tracks and uses either the position of sun or stars to determine what direction they are pointed in. He says, "I don't know how long we will have to travel in this desert. We should secure clean water immediately or we will be no good to anyone."
When Plumeir is able to rise to his feet, he will reflexively check his gear and look around to see if can get some bearings. He hears the words from Taylar; but as yet, says nothing, knowing not what to say.
Astarte will need a little time to stop vomiting, then she'll be finally able to cleanse the lower part of her face and very slowly try to kneel on one knee, then make sure that all of her equipment is intact and then inspect the traces. She's especially interested how many people could make them, whether they wore shoes and what were the size of their feet. After that, she'll tell her friends that she's fine and can follow with them the footprints. Even thought she's dehydrated, she won't drink for some time (as she can't anyway); then she'll use only a small amounts of water. Replying to Taylar she asks both him and Plumeir: "How much water do we all have now?"roll:55
Certain things are taken for granted with experienced travelers, even if players are unfamiliar in real life. Everyone carries rations that would cover a normal day. The water is often not used but regularly refreshed. In a desert environment, it could be rationed to keep a person alive for three days before becoming critical. Certain gear is also considered to be carried, even if never mentioned or rarely used, like utensils or small tools, fabric, cord, etc.
Calculations were performed but not listed.
Thinking that a similar doorway must be directly behind the party, everyone is surprised to see nothing but sand. Sand, sand, and more sand, as far as the eye can see, in every direction. There is no doorway here or any indication of a method by which to return. It is of no consequence to use the Daylight to get oriented, and no time seems to have passed during the mystical travel. The tracks appear to be headed Northeast. The horizon in every direction looks the same. Distance is impossible to estimate as the refraction of light near the ground causes a haze or mirage to obscure imagery. Perhaps the skyline is a little darker to the Northeast, but there is no way to know what that might mean. Occasionally there is the slightest breeze but not a single cloud in the sky.
The divots in the sands that logically must have been left by the other people resemble those left by the party, as everyone moves around. They must have been made by the kidnappers, as they originate where the party arrived and move in only the one direction. It can be estimated that the enemy party should contain six or eight members. The spacing indicates a strong pace, moving with assurance. These headhunters have obviously done this many times. Perhaps the strange method of travel becomes easier with familiarity.
As no one in the party usually wears any type of head covering, a piece of cloth that might normally be used to clean oneself can easily be fashioned to protect the scalp. Any other exposed part of the body should not need such for at least another day. The air is so dry it burns to breathe, prompting everyone to take another cloth, dampen it, and tie it around the face.
By nightfall, everyone thinks that some change in the environment must be closest in the direction traveled, but the haze makes the observation less than certain. While it is possible to see fairly well in the desert at night, it is not really possible to keep sight of the tracks and there is a risk of disorientation.
