S3: The Scythe of Seto (Bront Judging)[Completed]

[SlagMortar]

Beamer is nervous through out the fight. He creeps up on his toes with every blow Raz strikes and cringes down at each counter attack from the King. Beamer loses track, knowing the battle must not have lasted long, but feeling like it drug on for ever. As the Black King topples, and Raz does not, Beamer cheers, "Yes! Rasereit, you truly have the heart of a bear and the skill of a master!" He then is immediately on the defensive again. He mostly ignores the celebrating white pieces and keeps an eye on the black door, while also darting furtive glances back over his shoulder.

"Is it safe to move, or is this board still dangerous after the game is over?" Banion asks.

"It looks like it was safe for the other white pieces. Let's move forward."
He slowly makes his way toward the dark door ending at the center of the board.

Once the celebration dies down, he inquires, "So what do we do now?"

 

[Manzanita]

9:40 am

The chess game ends, with White victorious.

The group congratulates each other and begins to move forward. At this point, the nebulous light rapidly fades, leaving the party in complete darkness. This is particularly odd for Rasereit, who can usually see in the dark.

After a moment, the light comes back. But things are not what they were.

Adventure notes [sblock] Now begins the solo part of this adventure. Despite the fact that the characters don't know what is happening to each other, I am not going to put the action in sblocks. It's too ghostly when the thread is all black from that. Instead, I invite you to follow along with each other's adventures. At times, I will put things in sblocks, generally b/c there is some overlap in what happens to each of you, and it will be more fun as a surprise.[/sblock]

Beamer and Eusebius find themselves just where they were. But now they are the only two people in sight. Gone are all the other chess pieces, including Banion, Ogrin & Rasereit. Also gone is the door in which they entered. Now only the dark door at the far end of the chessboard beckons.

There is something there that was not there before. It looks like a little card table, with a small humanoid sitting behind it.

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Ogrin finds himself in a small, dimly lit room. It is 15 foot square, with beige walls and ceiling. In front of him is what appears to be a door. It is very simliar to the door through which the passed to enter the temple in the first place. There is no handle to open the door, but there is a rectangular plate on the wall, about 4 feet off the ground, about 1 foot high, and 6 inches wide.

How did he get here? Looking down at his feet, he realizes he's standing on the same marble chess board square that he was standing on when the lights went out.

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Banion and Rasereit each finds himself alone in a room almost identical to Ogrin's. It has the same 15' dimension, beige walls and ceiling, and reddish 'door.' The difference is that they each see two rectangular plates on the wall next to the door. One carries the image of two identical stick figures, apparently holding hands. The other carries an image of a stick figure with a big, square head and a long stick in one hand.

 

[Patlin]

Banion looks around, trying to discover the source of the light and also marking anyplace with cover or concealment in which he can hide.

Glancing at the stick figures, he mumbles to himself.

"Get to choose... two monsters of reasonable size or some sort of big Ogre like thing? Easier to sneak by one big thing than two medium things."

Once satisfied that he can find a place to hide, he will examine the panel to see if he can "press" it by throwing his mindblade at it.

If all goes as hoped, he will conceal himself and chuck a mindblade at the Ogre figurine, summoning another one immediately.

 

[SlagMortar]

Beamer's head whirls as most of his friends disappear. "What's going on?" he says quietly. Then he notices the small figure behind the card table. He puts on an expression of mixed surprise and intrigue, "Well, I didn't expect to meet any new friends here. What brings you here, sir? Do you happen to know what happened to our friends?"

 

[Boddynock]

Eusebius, too, is surprised by the events following White's victory. He hastens to stay close to Beamer, glad that the halfling, who still carries their dangerous burden, is in sight.

He bows and greets the figure behind the table. "Benedicite! I am Eusebius. I serve the Shining One. Do you have information about this place?"

 

[Manzanita]

There is no place to hide in Banion's little room, but he crouches and hurls his mindblade at the little panel with the square-headed figure. The blade strikes, leaving a silver scrape on the plate. The door opens.

Beyond is a corridor, or so it seems. All Banion can see from his current position is the beige wall opposite.

-----

Raseriet examines his little room. Suddenly he notices that the picture of the single square-headed figure is gone. He now only has one panel by his door. It has two identical stick figures holding hands.

-----

Beamer and Eusebius approach the dark doorway beyond the chessboard. In front of the dark arch is a small figure. He's about 2 feet tall, with small horns, a pointed tail, bee-like wings, large eyes and red skin. He's hairless and nude. He doesn't appear to have any genatalia. He is sitting in a simple chair behind a four -legged table. The only thing on the table is what appears to be a deck of cards. The cards are large, about the size of a human hand. On the back is a chessboard pattern.

The little imp seems distracted and starts when Beamer speaks to him. A look of panic comes over his face, but that quickly goes away. He hardly seems to hear what Eusebius and Beamer say to him. His hand slowly raises and points at Beamer. "You're the king!" he says excitedly. "You won the game! You get a free draw from Jarreth's Deck of Weal and Woe!" He gestures towards the deck. "Take the top card."

He looks darkly towards Eusebius. "If you want a card, you need some currency."

 

[Boddynock]

Eusebius stiffens as he draws close and takes in the nature of the figure opposite. His eyes narrow as the imp makes its offer to Beamer, and when it speaks to him, he replies, "I do not seek to draw from this deck."

He then turns to Beamer. "And if you sought my counsel, I would advise you to have nothing to do with such things. Still, that is your choice to make."

 

[Manzanita]

The little imp does not impede the path of Beamer and Eusebius. His table sits against the wall. Next to this is an dark archway. It's not clear whether this is passable or not. The light from the room does not show what is beyond.

 

[Patlin]

Banion will make his way down the corridor, sneaking to whatever extent possible.

 

[SlagMortar]

Beamer asks the imp, "And what happens if I don't take a card? Or what happens if I do, for that matter? And, do you know what is beyond this door?"