Wheel of Time: The kingdom of Shadows

[Kuma Da]

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I'm here. Does this mean we're down to three?

[The_Snark]

Sarinen

"Something straight out of the Dark One's imagination, more like," Sarinen mutters. "Look at the light. It's like there's something swallowing it when it gets too far." She shivers, then tries to pull herself together.

"We're underground, right? We must be." She doesn't sound all that sure, but how else could the night sky have vanished so completely? "We should try and find a way to go upwards."

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I'm still here, too; it's just that between board troubles and RL busyness, I haven't had as much time as usual, and this game's been managing to slip my mind when I do.

I'm still hoping Ifni will come back; that character was fun to have around, and we really need an expert here. Maybe I'll PM her; if she's still on the boards at all, that might help.

[fireinthedust]

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yeah, board troubles eat up the moments I'm not busy and can post@! Seriously, though, I'm happy to keep going. Please do PM her, if it'd help. Everyone's great, I hate losing folks. I'm really digging in at school, gone back and all, but this is a great break and focus for me :D

btw: is everyone enjoying it so far? I know the Trolloc invasion has eaten up a lot of time. I'm used to live DMing for that sort of situation. PBP is actually tricky, I find, despite doing ti for yeeeears. I mean, what makes a game a good game? I think having a specific route for the plot, to keep it moving along, is good; but as a DM it's not always easy to keep on top of things. Meh. I try to have the players be incharge of the action, or at least busy doing something, every second I DM in RL; like designing a lesson plan for a class. PBP is different, but I'm trying to get back to where I can let everyone do their thing. Thoughts?

If we are down to three, that just concentrates the awesome!

OOC: The DM shivered in the doorway, but continued talking while the others smoked. So I said "no, that's not how you fill one of those out", and that was it. What an idiot! ...ok, are we ready to go back in and start this up again? I am freezing!



The group moves forward, Kireyn numbly following along with everyone. However, as you get twenty paces away from the gate, there is a crackling sound from the stone, and a glowing red line burns in its surface.

In short: The line opens up the portal again, and the female Fade can be seen once more holding it open with her bizarre abilities. At the same time, a great fire explodes behind her, destroying the contingent of Trollocs. A figure rushes past the Fade, knocking her out of the way with a motion of his hand and an unseen force. The figure makes it through the portal to stand on the other side; he points at the edges of the opening, and the portal snaps shut.
.
Jak:

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You can tell he's weaving the male side of the Source. He's sealing the portal shut and tying it off. It's intense what he's doing, and the words "masterful" spring to mind.

He turns to face you. He's tall, broad shouldered, and younger than you might have expected. His skin is tanned, his hair is red, and on his forearms you see bandages falling away to reveal tattoos of snake-like scaled creatures: dragons! He looks at you with amber eyes.

I'm sorry I couldn't get here earlier to help, I had to find out what they were here for. My name is Rand.

[Kuma Da]

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this is awful timing. i know. but i'm gonna have to withdraw from this game until my hands heal

[Yawielas]

Jianna turns around to see the female Fade enter, and screams. When the strange man suddenly appears, pushing the fade out of the way and closing the gate, she stands gasping a little while before finding her breath again. There was one word in particular she was relieved to hear, even though the man was somewhat awe-inspiring to look at. The word was "help". He was here to help. She breaks into a relieved smile. "Thank the Light!" Then something else he said registers and her smile fades. "What were they here for..."

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima

Glad to be moving, even if he didn’t understand where the group has ended up or where they are going, Ishigari takes the time to draw one of Jarl's swords and inspects it. With his own swords back in the clearing, he takes the time to try and get a feel for blade, answering Sarinen in a distracted fashion.

"It was the power that the Aes Sedi wield that brought us here, so I believe it unlikely that we are underground. As for trying to go up, I suspect that our way will be dictated by these paths…"

His line of thought is interrupted by the opening of the portal, and once more, he finds himself moving before he can think, rushing past the others to put himself between them and the Fade. Feeling shock at seeing a man closing the portal, he nonetheless keeps his sword up as Rand and Jianna converse.

Relaxing a bit, he lowers his blade a hair and looks the stranger up and down with a curious look. He speaks clearly and without malice, but clearly looks ready to fight if necessary.

"How were you able to close that portal? I have seen only Vera Sedi and the Fade manipulate it in that way."

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It’s a shame we’ve had so much trouble keeping this going. I find it hard sometimes to motivate myself to post when I’ve finished work and study, and the boards going down when I want to post doesn’t help. I guess it’s the nature of PbP though, so nothing for it but to try and stick with it. I certainly am enjoying the game – I just wish we still had Noal and Mas running around. Darran looks like he also be something of a GM controlled PC for the moment as well :S

[fireinthedust]

Rand moves closer to the group, but holds his hands up as if asking for peace with Ishigari. Under his cloak you can see a sword with the heron mark on its hilt. I promise you, I mean you no harm. I was... in the area on my own business when the Trollocs attacked. I saw the Fades near you, but I had troubles of my own with others around the town. I've dealt with Trollocs before, but never like this, and never such an unusual band of Fades. I followed some of them to what I think was their goal: a tower library of some sort. I'm afraid I was too late to save whoever was inside, but the Fade who'd entered had been searching for this:

Rand holds up a black book. Those of you who entered the tower of the bookseller recognize it as the one that was looked at during the visit. Its cover is only slightly covered in ash, but it is otherwise in good shape.

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Kuma Da: Gah! sorry your hands aren't ok. Keep lurking, maybe use your feet? And come back when you're ready.

Ruik: I'm the same way about posting. What's worse is that everything I say has to mean something or entertain everyone, and I just don't have it in me some days (weeks! sorry!).

I think I'll advertise for more players? Sound like a plan? Should we keep the same PCs (maybe let them do their own stats) or re-do the whole party?

[Yawielas]

(Maybe new players could choose between either taking over one of the abandoned PCs, or make a new character. They could also tweak the already existing character.)

Jianna looks curious at the book, then frowns sadly when she realises the nice old man is dead. "Must be a pretty important book....To lay waste to a whole town over it..."

(Btw, since Jianna is a latent Viewer, can she see any images floating around Rand? There should be aplenty.)

[fireinthedust]

Viewer: yes, loads of images. many of them don't make sense. You see armies, tollocs, a beautiful woman who is deep under water, a man covered in burns, and a dark ocean.

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actually I totally missed that in your character. I would have used that for all sorts of info-giving!!! oh well.

ooc: I think I'll post a list of the characters they can pick up right away. Any luck contacting Kireyn? Or the others? I guess I should try.

Do you folks have suggestions for new players?

I'm DMing tonight for friends, most of whom are new to RPGs. The group is really enjoying it, it's a whole social thing with food and drinks and some really ecclectic people. The "module" is one I wrote where the PCs are tricked into stealing items around the town for the thieves' guild (who are lycanthropes, secretly). Hopefully it goes well.

[Yawielas]

(Well, she's only got the Latent Viewer power yet, since she's 1st level, maybe that's why she haven't seen much yet. And maybe Rand's powerful images sets it off, so to speak :) Awakens the talent. Good luck with your game tonight!)

Jianna stands staring at the stranger, her eyes wide. Actually, she's not really staring at him as much as the air around him.

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima

Deciding that if this stranger wanted to kill him, he would most likely succeed, Ishigari lowers his sword and stands up strait, inclining his head.

"We met the old man who owned that tower. There was much knowledge stored there, but I would like to know why that book is special."

[fireinthedust]

Rand hands over the book to Ishigari. Here, see if you can note anything I haven't. The fade I took this off seemed to value it above the others; he set them alight the moment he found it. Here.

As he does so, he notes the twin swords Jarl had handed over before dying. Rand's eyebrow goes up as he sees them. two? Shadow and flame, I understand how your group made it through that hoard! Well met.

[Yawielas]

(I'll be away from Thursday to Sunday without internet access. If necessary, please npc Jianna.)

"Who's the woman underwater?" Jianna muses, as she keeps staring fascinated at something seemingly just above Rand's head.

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima

Too tired to argue, Ishigari reverses the grip on his sword and transfers it to his left hand and reaches over to take hold of the book. He rubs the cover of the book absently with his thumb as he looks at the cover and remembers the kindly old man that it belonged to.

Pulling himself together with an effort, he looks back up at Rand before glancing down at the sword at the sword in his left hand. After a moment he tuck the book under his arm and sheaths it, giving Rand a weary smile.

"Two blades are customary amongst my people. I hail from the borderlands, from Arafel. My name is Ishigari."

He steps back slightly to allow the others to introduce themselves, and focus his attention back on the book, flipping it open and paging through it randomly before looking back out at the gloom that surrounds the small band.

[Ifni]

Kireyn

Kireyn slowly pulls herself to her feet, gratefully accepting Ishigari's supporting hand. She still feels... numb. She had thought she'd faced death back in the inn, but seeing it become real was something else altogether. Warders and Aes Sedai aren't meant to die. Not like that. When Vera and Jarl had come rushing in to save them from the Trollocs, it had been like something out of a song. Songs don't end like this.

She shakes her head and rubs at her eyes. Her head is pounding, the aftereffect of straining her channelling abilities. She blinks, but the air around her still seems oddly shadowed, the darkness swallowing the light. She grasps the stone seashell tightly in her hand, its cool solidity reassuring.

As the stranger leaps through the gate, her eyes widen in shock. That explosion of fire, the unseen force striking his foe aside. Can he... could he be... It's hard even to think the words - but with Shadowspawn this far south, is anything unimaginable any more? A man who can channel...

Kireyn stands stunned for a moment. Her senses still seem numbed, her reactions slow. Snap out of this. You may only be Accepted, but you're the closest thing to an Aes Sedai they have. They need you.

She takes a step forward, and nods to the newcomer. "I am Kireyn Sakuri, Accepted of the White Tower. Peace favor you, Rand." Peace favor all of us. Not much point in concealment now. "I recognize that book - the seller said it was part of a shipment just in from Tarabon, of antique books. Do you know anything of its contents? Or of this place?"

Kireyn glances around again, with a growing sense of unease. "While I would like to study the tome... Vera Sedai said to get to the nearest doorway we could find. I don't like the feel of this place." She casts her mind back to the quiet, musty vaults of the White Tower libraries, and her long hours of study there. A world of dark bridges, accessed through carved stone doors... it seems somehow familiar, and she tries to bring the memory to the front of her mind.

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Knowledge checks - not sure which is most relevant, so will do several:
For the Ways themselves:
Knowledge (The One Power): (1d20+7)[24]
Knowledge (Ancient): (1d20+7)[24]
For Machin Shin, the Black Wind, or other dangers of the Ways:
Knowledge (Shadow): (1d20+7)[20]
And to see if she might know something about Rand or the dragon markings:
Knowledge (Politics): (1d20+7)[23]
Knowledge (Local): (1d20+4)[7]

EDIT: Heh, generally awesome checks. I'll let Fireinthedust decide how much I know about Rand, but with those One Power, Ancient and Shadow rolls, I'm going to assume I can give the rundown on the Ways. If I'm wrong, let me know and I'll edit

Her face drains white as memory returns, like a vast shadow rising through deep waters. She remembers carefully turning the pages of a book so old that the pages were crumbling even with all the White Tower librarians could do, reading lore set down by Aes Sedai of ages past. She turns, looking around, gazing out and down at scenes she never thought to see with her own eyes.

"I... now that I think of it, I believe I know where we are," she says, her voice hushed. "I think that these are the Ways." That explains my unease, and maybe why I feel so numb here, so cold. "They are... pathways, made by the Ogier and the One Power, in ages long past. They lead from place to place - you might enter through one doorway, and leave through another mere yards away, and find you have travelled a hundred miles in the outer world. Time is different, too - it seems to pass more swiftly, here. And there are dangers. Some never emerge from the Ways. Others emerge insane, babbling of a Black Wind." She shudders. "I should not channel here. I can feel the taint in the air - the books I read say it comes from the same source as the taint on the male half of the Power." She glances quickly at Rand, and then away. "The books... they warned against using the Power in the Ways, saying that weaves could become... corrupted." She remembers those warnings clearly. I never thought I would need to heed them.

She closes her eyes briefly at the end of this speech, not wanting to look at the others. Has Vera Sedai sent us to death or madness? Then she opens her eyes, takes a deep breath, and says, "We should start moving, and see if we can find another doorway. Unless you know a path, Rand?" He did know how to enter this place. "Or... Ishigari, I don't suppose that book touches on the Ways at all?" If it does, perhaps the Myrddraal wanted it to move their armies through the Ways. Maybe that's how they appeared so far south... She flinches, as the natural conclusion presents itself inescapably to her mind. Light, does that mean there might be more of them in here with us?

[fireinthedust]

The book: Ishigari looks through the pages and sees (as does everyone else who reads it) a book filled with what looks like the Old Tongue. The pages are smooth despite the age of the book, and it is quite possibly the finest-made thing you have ever held: while the blades of Jarl are exquisite and powerful swords, the book is a work of art of the highest craftsmanship.
((if you can read the old tongue))

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The book seems to be filled with stories: battles between channelers of the one power, both men and women, in the ancient days

Of more interest than the writing, and certainly standing out more, are a series of ink drawings throughout the book; perhaps at every chapter. They are beautiful etchings in black ink. Something about them draws the eye, the style being simple yet intense. They seem to be the headings of chapters, and there are nine of them.

Rand looks out at the Ways. I've been in the Ways before. I think we should get a move on. If we can find the other side of the gateway... the Ways are known to be dangerous. We shouldn't stay long.

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima

While not a scholar, Ishigari recognises that this book is a work of art in its own right. He half listens as Kireyn speaks, though a black wind and people driven insane catches his attention for a moment, instead finding himself absorbed in the beautiful ink drawings. He closes the book with reverence as Kireyn questions him and looks up almost unwillingly.

"I do not know if the book speaks of the… Ways… I cannot read the tongue. I think however that it is a book of history, and an old one at that."

He looks to Rand as he speaks, and nods in agreement at the thought of getting out of the bleak nothingness.

"If you have been here before than I for one am willing to follow you. I do not wish to linger."

He hands the book to Kireyn, assuming she will know what to do with it, and subconsciously deferring to the wisdom of the White Tower, even if she is not Aes Sedi yet.

[Yawielas]

Jianna seems to agree that getting out of there as soon as possible is a good idea after hearing of the dangers in the Ways. She follows, keeping close to Ishigari, but still casting an odd look towards Rand from time to time. After a little while, she starts looking carefully at the others.

[Ifni]

Kireyn takes the book reverently and quickly skims a few pages. "It doesn't speak of the Ways, from what I can see. It seems to tell of ancient battles." She closes the book reluctantly, gently brushes the remaining specks of ash from its cover, and slides it into her satchel.

"If you have travelled here before, Rand, I think we are all willing to let you guide us." She glances around at the others for confirmation.

(if the party starts walking)

As the group begins to move along the dark bridges of the Ways, Kireyn stays close to Daran, laying her hand on his arm in an attempt to lend comfort. Vera was a mentor to me, but she always seemed to be much more than that to Daran.