NOW LIVE! Today's the day you meet your new best friend. You don’t have to leave Wolfy behind... In 'Pets & Sidekicks' your companions level up with you!

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="megamania" data-source="post: 2209328" data-attributes="member: 9255">EBERRON04/23/05SEGMENT 071“RAIL WRECK”  PT 21  That afternoon, they find the beginning of the Talenta Gorge.The electric rail bridge crosses the gorge in a zigzag formation.  It uses built pillars, natural rock formations and large 300+ feet tall trees for support.  The bridge is about 50 feet wide.  Down the center are the crackling blue stones that empower and push the rail cars.  Occasionally, a bug flies too close and burns up complete with a short silent explosion.“Keeps the bugs down.  Cannith could make money with these bug killers.” Comments Cedious.“Heh-  call them Bug Zappers.” Follows up Sharshek.They walk along the bridge noting the different types of birds and bugs.  There is a two-foot high wall along the edges to contain or more keep out the amount of critters.  The trees are thick and very strong.  They see a river near the bottom that reveals itself sometimes through the vegetation.   A few hours later they see a section of wall that has been replaced.  Going to it, they find ropes and some supplies still around.  The rail bridge is built onto a thick branch here.  Looking over the edge, they spot two electric rail cars below caught within the branches about 100ft down.  The bottom of the gorge can not be seen here.“This is the spot I suspect” offers Cedious.  “uh….  Gnarl will have problems climbing down.”  Says the Druid with a great deal of concern and wonder as he sees the bottom is over 100 feet down.“Can he leap from branch to branch instead of climbing ropes and vines?” ask Sharshek.“What do you think?” asks the druid to his wolf who has his two front paws on the top of the small and short wall.  It looks around and gives a short and soft “hurrumph.” Sound and wags it’s tail.“Yes I guess.” Says Black sands.  “And what of …Cedious …?”   The ½ Giant begins to wonder where the halfling is until he spots him climbing down a vine onto the tree.  The branches are in some places 10 feet wide.  Easy to walk for halflings and humans alike.  Half-giants should be okay so long as they don’t do anything stupid.Gnarl with Taskerdoo leaps to the main branch the rail is built onto.  No problem.  The others begin their climb using the ropes and vines available.  Cedious is easily the first to reach the highest car up.  It is already covered in green moss and vines snake around sections of it.  He looks over the doors and finds it has been torn away.  Deep two fingered marked remain.  “Warforged…” he grumbles under his breath.Cedious eases his way in as Gnarl nears the area.  Sharshek and Black sand continue slowly.  The thought of falling scares them.  The sudden stop even more so.The moss grows inside the car making for areas of slippery conditions.  Cedious goes on anyway into the car.  Taskerdoo follows with his wolf.  Cedious looks into the first private room.  He finds a closeable bag that has been ripped open.  Along with the ruined papers are jewels.  He collects and only later wonders why someone would leave this behind.Taskerdoo looks into a room he and his wolf slide to.  The door was once locked but has since been ripped open by someone with great strength.  Gnarl lets out a soft growl of discontent.  “A body?”  Taskerdoo looks inside and finds the remains of a dead changeling.  His body condition and level of decay suggest he died during the crash and was missed by the rescue crew.  Who opened the door is uncertain.  Cedious will later suggest a warforged.  On the body or within the room he finds 10 gold, 25 silver and a scroll case.  Looking for a good scroll case, Taskerdoo takes and opens it.  There’s something within!  He opens it and finds a map.  It is written in dwarven and includes notes written in dwarven.  At a quick glance, he reads “Mror Holds Mountains” and written by a circled room the word “Goodies”.  He keeps this for future use.Sharshek arrives next to the car.  He stays outside and looks around.  He sees many insects and birds.  Small possibly harmless tree frogs hop here and there.  Brightly colored blossoms hang from fruit bearing vines.  Pretty but not helpful.Cedious moves to the room across the hallway.  Old blood on the wall and marks from bodily impact suggest someone was once within this room at the time of the crash.  The body has since been removed.  The druid finds an empty room across the hall from the dead changeling.  Nothing of use can be seen at the bottom of the car so they climb out.  Black sand arrives just in time.  He is sticking to climbing down the main trunk in fear of a vine snapping under his great weight.  From the branch the upper part of the car rests on he looks down.  Water is visible below.  They have another 50 plus feet to go.Cedious easily swings, slides and climbs to the next car trapped within the branches.  From here he can see the murky ground below.  Two more cars fell to the muddy waters below.  One is in part submerged in the water and the other landed on the wet land but burned from the impact.  He looks up and spots the wolf leaping from a branch to the far right.  He then walks the branch to a new section and leaps onto another branch.  Slowly he winds his way around to the car.  Only once did his rider look scared from the trip.Cedious waits for the druid this time.  This car is completely covered in slick wet moss that tears free easily.  Once torn, it creates an ice-like condition of wetness.  Not good.  Also, he looked into the car.  Thick webs are visible at the bottom.  The car sits on a 45-degree angle this time.  One slip and you will be in those webs.  Webs = spiders or nasty mages.Carefully, Cedious enters the car as the wolf lands about 50 feet away on the same branch the car rests on.  Cedious peeks into a private room and finds little except for fine clothes that seem to resist mildewing.  He collects the outfit suspecting them to be magical.  Taskerdoo and his wolf scurry a bit as they enter the car.  The moss is terribly hard to walk on without falling.  He locks his legs around his mount and uses his arms to grasp anything he can to aid his ride to a room.  The room is closed.  The door appears to be jammed shut from the inside.  He forces the door open and a large block of stone falls and barely strikes the halfling druid.  A crack on the outside reveals how the person that set this trap escaped the room.  But why the crude trap?Cedious looks into the next room and finds a set of shackles.  Signs of blood and a fight are here. Blood (dried) is on the cuffs, pieces of cloth and on the walls.  Curious he thinks.  The druid looks into the next room.  He spots something on the floor.  It is a round 3-inch ball of metal with silver runes and lines on it.  A small jade crystal is set within it.  The design reminds him of the warforged.  Perhaps this item is a part of one or could be used by one.  He holds onto the item.  Then he hears something.He looks out and sees Cedious.  He has ignited a torch and with a smile releases it and it falls onto the webs.  Two bundles are within the sticky strands.  As a rush of heat rises, two large monstrous spiders come out of their hiding places in the shadows.  “I knew it!” exclaims the rogue.Outside, the human fighter looks down and sighs.  “They can handle it right.”Black sands is making his way across the branch and doesn’t know what is happening but sees the burst of flame through the dirty windows at the bottom of the car.  “If not- we can push it over the edge.”One spider rushes along the “ceiling” and the other along the floor.  They seem to weather the moss much better than the two halflings.  Gnarl bites at the one and misses.  The druid likewise.  Cedious slips and slides down the walkway tearing up green moss as he goes.  He slams into Gnarl and thus trips him up.  Together, the three then slam into the one spider and they fall into the smoking wisps of the web.  The two sucked dry halflings have fallen to the floor.  Above Black sand considers what he drop to crush a spider.  Sharshek reminds him he may hit the dog.  “Oh yeah- I aim to the left a bit then.  We won’t miss the annoying one as much.”“…and which one is that?”The spider climbs down the ceiling and onto the wall to strike Cedious even as he tries to stand up. The bite burns but he doesn’t feel ill from it.  Good thing since the other spider is also trying to get up to attacks him.  The wolf and druid take down the one spider and Cedious takes out the one next to him.  “Not even close.” He says as he folds the torn shirt in a mock repair.  How he misses the artificer at times like this.They find little here but lose coins no higher than single silver.  They carefully climb up even as the human and half-giant have begun to climb down to the roots below.</blockquote>

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