The Threshold IC (D&D E6, low-op, story based)

[Edgar Snow]

Tobias sometimes wishes he was more forceful in his personality. This was one of those times.

The group has began to break off, alcohol is being ordered, and their home is being discussed in the open. He longs for home already, and it hasn't been a day.

"Alya!", he shouts after her, "Please, take Ralf with you. Ralf, defend, okay? Defend".

He turns to the host. "How dangerous is magic here, at least as far as unpredictable results?"

[jamieth]

"Oh, right, of course - he probably needs to be washed too, doesn't he? He was right in the middle of... it, after all" Alya turns around to call Ralf, "Come here, boy!" then, again to the waitress, "I have to say, miss, your inn's looking much better on the inside - I mean, it's not exaclty the best part of town, is it? So we weren't really expecting much..."

[Kaptin Keen]

"Perhaps a card would be best, thank you," Bobin replies smilingly. He stretches out his legs, removing his hat and doing his best to relax.

To Alya, as she leaves: "See you in a few, then. Don't drown, Ha!"

Bobin takes little notice of Jon's interactions with the Hyena gentleman, as he is too preoccupied with the anticipation of a good meal and fine ale.

You are all brought menues, detailing various wonderful sounding foods and drinks. Without going into too much detail, food, drinks and rooms will tally 3 gold each.

Tobias sometimes wishes he was more forceful in his personality. This was one of those times.

The group has began to break off, alcohol is being ordered, and their home is being discussed in the open. He longs for home already, and it hasn't been a day.

"Alya!", he shouts after her, "Please, take Ralf with you. Ralf, defend, okay? Defend".

He turns to the host. "How dangerous is magic here, at least as far as unpredictable results?"

Ralf goes along with Alya, sniffing curiously around the inn.

The waitress seems surprised by the question: I'm sorry, I'm sure I'm the wrong person to ask. For one thing, I have no idea what to compare it to. For another, I know nothing of magic to begin with.

"Oh, right, of course - he probably needs to be washed too, doesn't he? He was right in the middle of... it, after all" Alya turns around to call Ralf, "Come here, boy!" then, again to the waitress, "I have to say, miss, your inn's looking much better on the inside - I mean, it's not exaclty the best part of town, is it? So we weren't really expecting much..."

And Alya and Ralf are shown to a rather decent room, where a bath is prepared.

[WalkingTheShade]

Sir will do, my friend. 'Primer' refers to your home - where you're from. The 'prime material plane' as it were. When you think of your home, that's on the prime material plane. Everything you see here? He makes a sweeping gesture, Is on the Outer Planes. It's complicated, but it's related to what I do.

More often than you'd think, people wind up here without wanting it - and without the means to return home. Now, getting home can be complicated, and expensive. I help, where I can, but my services aren't cheap. Lots of people have to work really hard to get home. Some never do.

That's why people aren't always happy when they leave here: They've just learned just what it will take for them to go home again.

Jon scowls in intense concentration. "Are you a fiend... sorry I mean, sir, are you a fiend? Sir; we were told that trading with a fiend could help us get home. How much is it for going home, sir?"

[Kaptin Keen]

Jon scowls in intense concentration. "Are you a fiend... sorry I mean, sir, are you a fiend? Sir; we were told that trading with a fiend could help us get home. How much is it for going home, sir?"

No, I'm not a fiend. I can tell you about my race, if you like - but, no, not a fiend.

Fiends provide a specific service: They trade in souls. If you have souls to sell, you can buy pretty much anything from the fiends. If you have anything sufficiently valuable to sell, the fiends can sell you souls. Being primers - well, you each have at least one soul to sell.

I'm different. I sell portal keys. If you cannot get home, you can buy the key from me. If you don't know what portal to take, where it is, what the key is - this too is something I can help with.

Sometimes it's easy. But sometimes it's very hard. Let me give you an example. The multiverse, it seems, is not without a sense of irony: There is a fire elemental who came here accidentally. He wants to return home. What he needs is a portal to the City of Brass, the center of the elemental plane of fire.

Now, there is such a portal. It's placement is publicly known. But ... to enter it, you need your own true name, written on a piece of paper.

Do you see the problem?

[WalkingTheShade]

Jon blinks at the not-fiend. His scowls grows ever more intense. "I don't... Say, sir, we came 'ere from a portal in a garden with lots of statues and a green woman. It's the other side of t'big ramparts with cutting weed around and then..." Jon goes on to describe in reverse the way the took to get to the inn from the portal. "D'you know the key from this side, kind sir? How much will it cost t'buy it, sir?"

Spoiler: OOC

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Jon dodged the question. He's too stubborn about going home to be able to spend more than a minute about something he'd need ten minutes to figure out.

[Kaptin Keen]

Ahhh - the new one. It opened just recently. That's where you're from? How ... intriguing. I do know how to open it from this side. It's not cheap though. Would you and your friends like to step into the office here, and we can work out what you need, precisely, and I can calculate the cost?

[jamieth]

"I say that again, you've a really nice inn here" Alya shakes her head as she undresses and climbs into the bath, blissfully unaware of the conversation happening downstairs.

[Kaptin Keen]

"I say that again, you've a really nice inn here" Alya shakes her head as she undresses and climbs into the bath, blissfully unaware of the conversation happening downstairs.

The waitress quickly thanks you and ducks back out of the room to 'give you privacy'.

[WalkingTheShade]

Ahhh - the new one. It opened just recently. That's where you're from? How ... intriguing. I do know how to open it from this side. It's not cheap though. Would you and your friends like to step into the office here, and we can work out what you need, precisely, and I can calculate the cost?

Jon blinks a couple times... He was going to talk... then Fael's masked face comes back to his mind. He doesn't know why, but it seems these strange people always want to barter every time Jon or the others ask something of them. Well, Jon is smart, he can do that too. With a self satisfied smirk and a sense of fulfillment at his own stroke of genius, Jon tells the stranger: "I'm gonna ask my friends, but before that... we know how t'open it from the other side, though... what's that worth t'you, sir?"

[Kaptin Keen]

Jon blinks a couple times... He was going to talk... then Fael's masked face comes back to his mind. He doesn't know why, but it seems these strange people always want to barter every time Jon or the others ask something of them. Well, Jon is smart, he can do that too. With a self satisfied smirk and a sense of fulfillment at his own stroke of genius, Jon tells the stranger: "I'm gonna ask my friends, but before that... we know how t'open it from the other side, though... what's that worth t'you, sir?"

Spoiler: OOC: That's .....

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... cute.

He's one of the people most likely to know this already. But that's not to say he definitely does. So I'll give him a check to see if he does.

Knowledge, The Planes: (1d20+15)[17] vs dc 25.

Edit: Well well ....

Well now. Interesting question. There are many ways in which I might gather this bit of information myself, you know? But since you're right here, naturally it's convenient to learn it from you. I will give you a discount, my friend - 50% - if you tell me how to open it from the Prime side. Sound good?

[WalkingTheShade]

Jon's smile is radiant! So much luck and guile well used! He spits in his hand and extends it to the merchant. "Thank you, kind sir! Let's shake on it! I'll go ask my friends right away!" Whether his interlocutor shakes his hand or not, Jon goes back to his friend's table.

"You guys! you guys! You never guess what! There's this sir over there, he knows how to get home! He gave me a discount 'cause I'm sooooo smart!"

[Edgar Snow]

"Oh boy. Assuming you haven't said too much, we might want to be sure they give the information first. If only we had a quick way to test anything they say... Perhaps by returning, with them in tow? Makes the effort to get closer to the Radiant Dawn group for naught, though it didn't take too long to get here if we returned immediately. Not today of course."

[Woggle]

Bobin perks up. "A way back through the portal? That seems mighty convenient," he says, through a mouthful of food. "Perhaps we should see about the Radiant Dawn first? If going through the portal from this side is expensive, we may not want to be making lots of different trips. And I think I could use some rest before I make any major decisions. Not that this information isn't helpful; it certainly is."

[WalkingTheShade]

"He's not gonna lie t'us! I'm sure he's a nice person!" Jon points to the hyena faced merchant. "Just look at 'im! I'm sure you can feel it too! He tol' me he sell us t'key back home, and he gives us huh... some fifty-something discount t'tell 'im t'key from our side. Come on, guys, if we don't get t'discount now, maybe he gets t'key for our side from someone else and then there's no discount no more. I told 'im I bring you guys to talk with 'im 'cause I... cause I... cause I always get swindled by merchants." Jon blushes as he looks at his feet. He breathes in, straightens and starts blathering again. "We can buy t'key now, then go see Red Ant Down and then we go use t'key later and go home, right? Am I right? Am I right?" Jon seems more excited than ever. He's even more excited than when meeting Ralf the first time. And even more than when he learnt about Magical Animal Land. See, he's really and definitely excited now.

Spoiler: OOC

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Jon hasn't realized the distinction between knowledge of the key's nature and owning the key proper. Hopefully, smarter PC may realize that! (Or not.)

[Kaptin Keen]

Jon's smile is radiant! So much luck and guile well used! He spits in his hand and extends it to the merchant. "Thank you, kind sir! Let's shake on it! I'll go ask my friends right away!" Whether his interlocutor shakes his hand or not, Jon goes back to his friend's table.

"You guys! you guys! You never guess what! There's this sir over there, he knows how to get home! He gave me a discount 'cause I'm sooooo smart!"

The merchant looks at Jons extended hand, apparently mystified.

Once we've talked terms, I'll have a contract drawn up. Come back when you're ready.

[Edgar Snow]

Tobias is glad to see the conversation end on the hyena-figure's side first. "That sounds wonderful, thanks. We really must consult before making any particular decision. Our best recently was to come into this fine place. You've been very welcoming". None of it is a lie, and not quite diplomatic, but certainly meant to show respect and pander to ego. This creature was oddly similar to Fael, but the business nearby made it seem as though it may be typical.

To the group: "I gather that the price is high to get through, but information seems the main currency in these parts. I like Bobin's plan, about Radiant Dawn first, then see about going back. The Dawn might be able to tell us more, for less. Fifty percent discount doesn't mean much when we don't know what the price is normally. I don't want to be swindled because this fellow made the first deal. Happened to my father with our new wheelbarrow... Umm... Nevermind".

"So, rooms. Bunkmates?"

[WalkingTheShade]

Jon looks taken aback. He looks to the ground a very lightly kicks a chair leg. "A'right, Red Ant's Own it is. No one ever listens to me anyway."

Jon orders some food and has dinner silently—giving some scaps to Toby—before going to the room.

[Woggle]

Bobin continues to work through a large amount of delectable dishes, remembering to go easy on the ale; there is work to do tomorrow, after all. He looks up at Jon, replying "Oh, its not that you haven't done good work, it's just that we need to be careful about entering into agreements with entities that we really know next to nothing about. You've showed initiative, and I'm sure the others are with me when I say that I appreciate it."

Turning to Tobias, Bobin adds: "I don't mind where I sleep; I don't even need a bed really, since I've got my bedroll with me. I don't think I snore, but I guess I can't really be sure."

[WalkingTheShade]

"'Am fine, Bobin. Rad Aunt's Town, tomorrow, got it." Somehow, Jon is still pouting at his food while saying this. Then he thinks of Ma' and manners, and raises his head from his plate. "I mean... Thanks Bobin, I'm good with it." Jon gives a genuine smile to his smaller (yet rounder) friend.

[Kaptin Keen]

You all enjoy a good nights sleep. There are beds for everyone, so no pressing need for anyone to sleep on the floor - thus, doing so is entirely voluntary. When you wake, the light is no different than when you went to bed, and the activity at the inn is no different. Upon leaving the inn, you still have the flaring light above the Radiant Dawn cathedral (using a religious term mostly because of the appearance of the building, not because it's a church as such, all religion being banned in Sigil) to guide you on your way.

As you travel, the quality of the neighborhood increases, and great edifices the nature and functions of which are unknown to you start to rise to either side of you.

You estimate you can reach the Radiant Dawn that same evening.

[Edgar Snow]

"Shall we march right there and introduce ourselves? Like, 'Hello, we come from the new portal. We have a shop of tasty food. We could use help returning'? Maybe a bit of diplomacy to go with it, but I think someone else should do the talking. People skills..."
Tobias is glad to see the area improve, even if he recognizes less and less. 'Seedy' should only be used to describe an area if it's planting season.

[jamieth]

"That would be a little too straitforward, won't it?" Alya asks, "Honestly, I'd rather not say anything at all - not until we see what's what, at least."

[WalkingTheShade]

Jon is happy this morning of having slept well in a bed. He nods his agreement to what the girl just said. "Maybe, after we know what's what, I can talk to 'em. I'm a nice boy, and people like me. I mean, that's what Ma' 'ways says."

[Woggle]

"I agree with Alya; there's no need to tell them about ourselves. Certainly not until we find out what they're about, at any rate."

Bobin ponders on The Dawn a little as they walk. A religious order? If they are, what kind? The Radiant Dawn doesn't sound to violent, but with how topsy-turvy things are here who can say? As they walk, Bobin tries to keep his eyes and ears peeled for any signs of trouble, though the more genteel surroundings suggest that may not be necessary.

Spoiler: OOC

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Spot - (1d20+5)[8]
Listen - (1d20+7)[21]

[Kaptin Keen]

You eventually learn that these are the 'Upper Wards' - where the post people live, basically. There are patrols here. Rather a lot of them, to the extent that you slowly form the opinion that they are more or less competing, trying to out-do each other.

As the day passes, the flaring light moves imperceptibly closer, until - speaking of evening is meaningless here, but until you're really tired and starting to wonder if there is a similarly decent inn around here somewhere - until you round one last corner, and a huge building faces you from across a large square. Tall spires and golden domes, intricate mosaics and tall, imposing statues. And above it all ... the sun. This close, that's the impression you get: Above the building hangs the sun, too bright to look at, beautifully reflected in all the gold and glass.

It is a beautiful and imposing building. In front of it stand proud guards, a bright red sunburst on their chests. People are coming and going, up and down the elegant steps leading to the main entry.

[Edgar Snow]

Earlier: "Like I said, someone else should do the talking. I might be better talking with their pets. Good idea, Alya. And Jon, I'm sure that if they will like us, they will especially like you."
...
As the group reaches the Radiant Dawn, Tobias marvels at the grandeur of the place, despite his lack of knowledge of architecture and engineering. The glow is mildly stupifying enough.

"Ummm... Okay. I mean, wow. Should we save this for later? Maybe find out what we can from the locals first? 'Best foot forward' and all that, you know?"

[WalkingTheShade]

Jon watches the building with his mouth open.

As Tobias reaches the middle of his sentence, Jon is already a few pace away from the guards, mouth still hanging open. He realizes it and suddenly closes his jaw, giving a snapping sound and hurting his teeth. Jon shakes his head before adressing the guards. "Huh... I mean, hidee, sirs! We're.. huh, we're travellers, and here in this fine city for t'first time. See, I was wondering, that's a huuuuge beautiful buildin' you got 'ere. But what's that sun up there for?" says Jon, pointing at the big fireball above.

[Kaptin Keen]

The guard in question is tall and obviously strong, wide of shoulder and deep of chest. His breastplate holds the red sunburst, edged in gold, and the halberd in his hand is well maintained and sharpened to perfection. For all his martial poise however, he greets Jon with a friendly smile, and replies:

What you see before you is the home of the Radiant Dawn. That's why the 'sun' is up there. Symbolising our shining tomorrow. Actually, it's not just a symbol, but you'd better ask one of the initiates about all that.

[WalkingTheShade]

Jon beams to the guard, straightening. "Thank you, kind sir! T'Good Gods bless you!" Jon goes a few paces away from the guard, looking for something or someone in the crowd of passerby.

Jon comes back to the guard. "Hello again, dear sir. 'Am sorry, but how do I... huh... who's a 'nitiate, here?"